Demetrius Andrade annihilated Jason Quigley on Friday night, scoring three knockdowns en route to a statement second-round TKO against the outmatched Irish challenger.
The win was Andrade’s fifth title defense of his 160-pound WBO middleweight belt.
The 33-year-old Andrade (31-0, 19 KOs) has been forced to fend off second-rate fighters during his title run since 2018 because a career-defining foe continues to escape him.
Middleweight champions Jermall Charlo (WBC), Gennadiy Golovkin (IBF), Ryota Murata (WBA) and former 154-pound champion and top 160-pound contender Jaime Munguia all fit the bill for the kind of opponents Andrade needs to further grow his credentials and leave a lasting legacy in the sport.
Andrade promoter in Matchroom Boxing Eddie Hearn is increasingly growing tired that the fighter’s prime years are passing without a top billing.
“We know he was a massive favorite over Jason Quigley, but he completely demolished him, and that is the kind of performance that you can stretch out about and say, ‘This guy needs to get those fights,’” Hearn told IFL. “It’s easy to make excuses when you don’t want to fight someone. ‘Oh, they’re boring, They never knock anyone out, and they don’t entertain.’ So what can you say now? [Andraade] went in there and demolished this guy.
“You offer people twice as much money as they’ve ever made, yet they still don’t want to fight him. I hope after that performance enough fans, enough media, and enough people will say, ‘Come on.’ Charlo, 32-0, a great fighter, and an undefeated champion. Demetrius, 31-0, an undefeated world champion. Two Americans, what’s wrong with the sport? Do it on [Showtime]. It’s not about Matchroom or DAZN. This is about Demetrius Andrade and getting this guy the opportunity that he deserves. He deserves to create a legacy, and I believe he’s good enough, and we’ll only find out when he’s in those kinds of fights.”
Andrade received the scorn of Canelo Alvarez when he crashed the pound-for-pound star’s post-fight press conference in May following the Mexican fighter’s stoppage win against Billy Joe Saunders. Andrade used the stage to call for a fight against Alvarez, who instead told Andrade to “get the f--- out of here” and said he was only seeking a payday.
Alvarez’s ship has sailed since he’s now attempting to campaign as a cruiserweight, three divisions above Andrade’s current weight class.
Hearn, who once said he emailed Charlo a $7 million in December 2019, is seemingly most interested in a Charlo championship unification fight.
“There's no way that Charlo against Demetrius Andrade is not a brilliant fight. It’s two guys with extreme skill levels with so much on the line. Jaime Munguia and Golovkin have the styles to create a great fight with Demetrius Andrade,” said Hearn.
“I’m not knocking Charlo. He’s a great fighter, but he’s got to say to PBC, ‘I want a unification. It’s there, and there are no excuses. He might win. He could be a favorite. I don’t know. I want to see it, and it’s such a shame. That’s the problem with boxing … There’s a load of money, it’s a brilliant fight, it’s a unification [bout], and look who [Charlo is] fighting [instead].
“We’ve all got to push for it. DAZN has got to push for it, and you have to push for it, the fans, and the media. With performances like that, there’s at least more passion behind people saying, ‘Come on, give this guy [Demetrius] what he deserves.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com