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By Cliff Rold - It wasn’t that long ago, but sometimes it feels like it.
The excitement around Flyweight right now among hardcore followers of the sport was happening at Bantamweight. Both HBO and Showtime were investing in the division. There were big fights being made on both networks. Organic talents inside the division like Hozumi Hasegawa, Abner Mares, Anselmo Moreno, Joseph Agbeko, and Yonnhy Perez were mixing with names from lower on the scale like Nonito Donaire, Fernando Montiel and Vic Darchinyan.
It was fair to say then, let’s say between 2009-11, that Bantamweight was one of the best in-ring divisions in the game.
Then what happens happened.
Guys moved up.
Guys got old.
The sweet science kept rolling.
Bantamweight has continued to have its share of talent but that moment of electricity, of consistent anticipation, seemed to pass.
One thing about the rolling tide of this sport is that, eventually, it all comes back around again. In 2015, Bantamweight appears to be heating up once again. It might not be quite the depth of talent we saw a few years back. That’s okay. There’s enough going on. The feel of a destination division fans can count on for good fights among its top guys is growing.
This Saturday afternoon on CBS (4 PM EST/1 PM PST), one of the better undercard fights of the year will get its sequel. Again, it will play a supporting role. There are plenty who might not be all that interested in a main event featuring former Super Middleweight titlist Anthony Dirrell and former Middleweight title challenger Marco Antonio Rubio. That’s what remote controls were made for. [Click Here To Read More]
The excitement around Flyweight right now among hardcore followers of the sport was happening at Bantamweight. Both HBO and Showtime were investing in the division. There were big fights being made on both networks. Organic talents inside the division like Hozumi Hasegawa, Abner Mares, Anselmo Moreno, Joseph Agbeko, and Yonnhy Perez were mixing with names from lower on the scale like Nonito Donaire, Fernando Montiel and Vic Darchinyan.
It was fair to say then, let’s say between 2009-11, that Bantamweight was one of the best in-ring divisions in the game.
Then what happens happened.
Guys moved up.
Guys got old.
The sweet science kept rolling.
Bantamweight has continued to have its share of talent but that moment of electricity, of consistent anticipation, seemed to pass.
One thing about the rolling tide of this sport is that, eventually, it all comes back around again. In 2015, Bantamweight appears to be heating up once again. It might not be quite the depth of talent we saw a few years back. That’s okay. There’s enough going on. The feel of a destination division fans can count on for good fights among its top guys is growing.
This Saturday afternoon on CBS (4 PM EST/1 PM PST), one of the better undercard fights of the year will get its sequel. Again, it will play a supporting role. There are plenty who might not be all that interested in a main event featuring former Super Middleweight titlist Anthony Dirrell and former Middleweight title challenger Marco Antonio Rubio. That’s what remote controls were made for. [Click Here To Read More]
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