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...and while Britain has plenty to be proud of, there is good reason to believe the best heavys are in the US.
The 3 fights we saw make an excellent case for this.
Chisora sparked out Takam. That's both a plus and a minus for British boxing. It's great for DelBoy, who you have to root for no matter who you are (the guy is just a throwback, a classic example of a guy making a whole lot out of a little). But Takam had a controversial stoppage vs AJ and took Joseph Parker 12 rounds. What DelBoy did reflects badly on both AJ and Parker. How good are they if a washed Chisora can spark out a guy they couldn't? Yes, styles make fights and you can't make any conclusive assertions either way but it is definitely fodder for discussion.
We saw Dillian Whyte beat Joseph Parker. Dillian gets a plus for beating Parker, but maybe Parker just isn't as good as some folks rated him. A few close fights with Ruiz and Takam, 2 boring fights with Hughie Fury and Cojanu...maybe Parker was more fortunate than good. And BTW, Parker has an extra minute in that last round and perhaps we are talking about a different winner. Whyte gets credit as a plus, but the minus is Parker may not be anything more than a former beltholder who did not deserve all of his ranking.
The fight with Luis Ortiz and Razvan Cojanu throws even more fat on the fire. It's very hard to keep making the case that Ortiz is not the 3rd best heavyweight in the world when he does things like he did last night. Sparking out a guy in 2 rounds that went 12 with Parker is a statement no matter what you want to say about Luis. It puts the lie to any sentiments about his age as well. Ortiz is clearly the most skilled guy in the division and remains in good enough shape to not only compete but be counted as among the best.
I think it is clear that 2 of the top 3 guys (Wilder and Ortiz) fight in the US. And, with the addition of Jarrell Miller, it is probably 3 out of the top 5 or 6. British heavyweight boxing is indeed at an all-time high, especially if you throw in Bellew and Tyson Fury. But, the US can still make a very legit claim to having the best in the division.
The 3 fights we saw make an excellent case for this.
Chisora sparked out Takam. That's both a plus and a minus for British boxing. It's great for DelBoy, who you have to root for no matter who you are (the guy is just a throwback, a classic example of a guy making a whole lot out of a little). But Takam had a controversial stoppage vs AJ and took Joseph Parker 12 rounds. What DelBoy did reflects badly on both AJ and Parker. How good are they if a washed Chisora can spark out a guy they couldn't? Yes, styles make fights and you can't make any conclusive assertions either way but it is definitely fodder for discussion.
We saw Dillian Whyte beat Joseph Parker. Dillian gets a plus for beating Parker, but maybe Parker just isn't as good as some folks rated him. A few close fights with Ruiz and Takam, 2 boring fights with Hughie Fury and Cojanu...maybe Parker was more fortunate than good. And BTW, Parker has an extra minute in that last round and perhaps we are talking about a different winner. Whyte gets credit as a plus, but the minus is Parker may not be anything more than a former beltholder who did not deserve all of his ranking.
The fight with Luis Ortiz and Razvan Cojanu throws even more fat on the fire. It's very hard to keep making the case that Ortiz is not the 3rd best heavyweight in the world when he does things like he did last night. Sparking out a guy in 2 rounds that went 12 with Parker is a statement no matter what you want to say about Luis. It puts the lie to any sentiments about his age as well. Ortiz is clearly the most skilled guy in the division and remains in good enough shape to not only compete but be counted as among the best.
I think it is clear that 2 of the top 3 guys (Wilder and Ortiz) fight in the US. And, with the addition of Jarrell Miller, it is probably 3 out of the top 5 or 6. British heavyweight boxing is indeed at an all-time high, especially if you throw in Bellew and Tyson Fury. But, the US can still make a very legit claim to having the best in the division.
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