Burning Questions for the Rest of 2014 After Mayweather-Maidana II
Last weekend in Las Vegas, Floyd Mayweather cruised to a unanimous-decision victory over Marcos Maidana to improve his perfect record to 47-0. The biggest fight of the year is now in the rearview mirror, but there is still plenty of great boxing action waiting to unfold in the year's final months.
The heavyweight title will be on the line, and superstar Manny Pacquiao will return to action in Macau, China. Knockout artist Gennady Golovkin will square off against veteran Mexican warrior Marco Antonio Rubio.
Other major players are sitting on the sidelines, raising questions as to what will happen with them next. In the wake of Mayweather-Maidana II, these questions are being bandied about by boxing fans.
10. Is Danny Garcia Going to Move Up in Weight?
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Undefeated Danny Garcia has accomplished huge things in his 26 years on the planet. He's the WBC and WBA light welterweight champion and the acknowledged top fighter in the world at 140 pounds. He's recorded some of the most memorable stoppages of the past few years.
But 2014 has not been his year. In March he was lucky to escape with a majority decision against the tricky Mauricio Herrera. In August he knocked out Rod Salka in two rounds, but it's tough to give the 140-pound world champion much credit for stopping an unranked, 135-pound fighter.
Nevertheless, Garcia's existing resume is strong enough to keep him one of the most relevant fighters in the sport. The big question surrounding him at this point is how much he'll weigh the next time he enters the ring.
As the champ at 140, he has a long line of contenders hungry to face him. But his reputation will make him an immediate factor at 147 pounds if he decides to move up.
9. Will Keith Thurman Have a Major Fight Before the End of the Year?
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Undefeated welterweight contender Keith Thurman was a very visible presence during the Mayweather-Maidana pay-per-view broadcast. "One Time" has captured the imagination of serious boxing fans with his explosive power and in-ring intelligence.
He could be the most interesting available fight for Mayweather at this point. His youth and size would both give him big edges over the pound-for-pound king.
But this early in his career, he still lacks the name recognition to market against Mayweather. As an opponent, he's a solid year away.
Which means he needs to start recording wins over big names. He would have fought on the undercard of Maidana-Mayweather, but he was rehabbing an injured arm.
If he can get well physically and return to action before the year is out, his career will continue on the fast track.
8. Will Kell Brook and Amir Khan Wage the Battle of Britain?
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Amir Khan has been consistently viewed as Floyd Mayweather's next opponent for over a year now, but it's a fight that continues to not be made.
Khan's speed and skill make him one of the more interesting potential fights for Mayweather. However, he just isn't accepted as a credible opponent for Mayweather by many North American fans.
Despite the fact that Khan has a win over Marcos Maidana, the memories of him going down by stoppage to Breidis Prescott and Danny Garcia remain far more vivid.
So despite how many people I hear predicting Khan vs. Mayweather for May 2015, I'm not convinced. It could be that Mayweather covets a sold-out Wembley Stadium, but I'm not forgetting that no fighter has ever been quite so comfortable in Las Vegas.
If Khan's big shot at Mayweather doesn't materialize, he's got another great alternative waiting. Kell Brook's title-winning victory over Shawn Porter makes him one of the hottest names in the welterweight division.
An all-England showdown at Wembley between Khan and Brook would be a huge event domestically and of interest to fans around the world. A win for Khan in that fight would make his case for an eventual shot at Mayweather that much more undeniable.
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7. Who Will Miguel Cotto Defend Against?
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Miguel Cotto's stunning TKO of Sergio Martinez last June is perhaps the biggest single boxing story of 2014. The win made Cotto the first four-division world champion ever from boxing-rich Puerto Rico.
But Cotto has been inactive since, and there has been a surprising lack of even rumors about who he will face in his first defense.
In addition to capturing the WBC belt, the victory over Martinez made Cotto the lineal middleweight champion. But that's a title he can't truly represent without stepping into the ring with Gennady Golovkin. and I'm not sure Freddie Roach would let Cotto anywhere near that fight.
Peter Quillin vacated the WBO title over the summer, which would make it easier for him to face Cotto down the road. That would be a huge fight in New York City.
Almost nobody is speculating about it, but I can't help thinking a rematch with Mayweather is not out of the question. It's the biggest payday the aging Cotto could get. And few achievements would add more to Mayweather's legacy at this point than a title at middleweight.
6. Will Gennady Golovkin Walk Over Marco Antonio Rubio?
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No fighter in the sport has been hotter than Gennady Golovkin over the past two years. The WBA middleweight champion is a perfect 30-0 with 27 KOs. He's stopped his last 18 opponents.
In July he beat former champion Daniel Geale by Round 3 TKO, further enhancing his mystique. After the fight, in his in-ring interview, GGG told Max Kellerman that he was a "Mexican-style fighter," which all boxing fans recognize as a synonym for "exciting, action fighter."
This bit of pandering was shrewd marketing from the Kazakhstan native. Fans from Mexico and of Mexican heritage are perhaps the single most important demographic for boxing, which has become a distressingly niche sport over the years.
And for his next opponent, Golovkin has tapped tough Mexican veteran Marco Antonio Rubio on October 18. Rubio is durable and experienced. He'll definitely come to fight against the fearsome GGG.
He's not the ideal opponent for Golovkin, but until the likes of Miguel Cotto or Peter Quillin agree to climb into the ring with him, the WBA champ has to face whoever will agree to fight him.
This should be a very entertaining fight, but I don't see it ending differently than GGG's last 18.
5. Will Andre Ward Fight This Year at All?
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Few boxing fans or writers would dispute that Andre Ward is the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world behind Mayweather. Between 2009 and 20011 he completely cleaned out the super middleweight division while winning the Showtime Super Six tournament.
But he's averaged just a fight a year since, and so far in 2014 has not fought at all. If he doesn't fight by November 16, he will have been inactive for a year. At that point, I'll drop him from my own rankings, as will many more official sources.
Ward has been locked in contract disputes with his promoters. Plus, there really isn't anybody left at 168 for him to fight, aside from newly crowned WBC champion Anthony Dirrell.
But the 30-year-old Ward has spent too much time on the sidelines in the last remaining years of his athletic prime. That's no way to maximize his earning potential in this brutal sport or to build a legacy.
4. Can Bernard Hopkins Keep Defying Father Time?
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For as long as there has been boxing, one truth has remained undeniable: Nobody can defeat Father Time. Prizefighting is a vocation for young men.
Somehow, Bernard Hopkins seems to have never learned this. And in November, just two months shy of turning 50, Hopkins will put his IBF and WBA light heavyweight titles on the line against WBO champion Sergey Kovalev.
In boxing, 39-going-on-40 is considered ancient. It's unheard of for a fighter to be competing on this level at 50. It's unheard of in sports in general.
And Kovalev isn't just some random titleholder. He's an undefeated monster. He's one of the most dangerous punchers in the entire sport.
In an era where the term "cherry picker" has become the most common criticism thrown at top fighters, Hopkins has remained classically old-school.
3. Will We See a New Savior Emerge at Heavyweight?
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For over a decade now, Wladimir Klitschko and his recently retired older brother, Vitali, have reigned as the heavyweight champions. During all that time, scarcely a single exciting contender has emerged.
Heavyweight has traditionally been the glamour division in the sport, and the fact that the Klitschkos have consistently failed to capture the imagination of the boxing public in North America has undeniably hurt the sport here.
When Vitali retired last December, he vacated his WBC belt. Bermane Stiverne captured it with an impressive KO of Chris Arreola in May.
Fans haven't exactly swarmed to rally around Stiverne, but his ascent to the title is a step in the right direction. Meanwhile, Deontay Wilder waits in the wings, 32-0 with 32 stoppages. As soon as Stiverne's injured hand is mended, Wilder should be his first mandatory opponent.
The winner of that fight will have more standing than any North American heavyweight in years.
The younger Klitschko brother will defend his own titles in November against unbeaten Kubrat Pulev. The former Olympian from Bulgaria is the biggest threat to Klitschko to emerge in years. He's got the physical stature to stand in front of Klitschko and the skill to reach the champ's notoriously vulnerable chin.
It's still a long shot to pick Pulev to win. But 2014 has been a year in which the heavyweight division has shown refreshing signs of life. There is a chance that it will intensify in the year's final months.
2. Does Chris Algieri Belong on Pay-Per-View?
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Chris Algieri's split-decision victory over Ruslan Provodnikov last June was an incredibly gutsy and skillful performance. After suffering two knockdowns in the first round, Algieri went on to outbox the hard-punching Provodnikov as his eye was swelling shut.
The win earned Algieri the WBO light welterweight title and made him an instant player at the world-class level. It also fast-tracked him for a shot at Manny Pacquiao this November in Macau.
Nobody is denying that the win over Provodnikov made Algieri worthy of another big-time fight, but a lot of fans are having trouble accepting him as a player in one of the biggest boxing events of the year.
Provodnikov is a monster but limited as a boxer. Algieri's biggest win besides that was over Emmanuel Taylor. Taylor is a talented young fighter, and that's a good win. But as Taylor showed in his recent loss to Adrien Broner, he's not at the elite level, at least not yet.
Algieri could very well present some difficult challenges for Pacquiao. He has very good skills and a big length advantage. But it's understandable that so many are questioning whether he belongs in this kind of fight right now.
1. Will Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao Ever Happen?
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For better or worse, until it finally happens or one man retires, this question will probably remain the biggest one hanging over the sport. Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao have been the two biggest boxing stars of their generation, and it is a legitimate shame that they have never met in the ring.
But at this point, I have personally given up on seeing it take place. When pressed by Showtime's Jim Gray in his in-ring interview after beating Marcos Maidana, Mayweather was extremely evasive about the potential for a fight with Pacquiao.
Pacquiao, meanwhile, needs to get by Chris Algieri this November before he can start seriously angling for a fight with Mayweather. I expect him to win against Algieri, but it's a mistake to view it as a done deal.
But if things go expected in Macau and Pacquiao walks away victorious, expect the year to end with the usual chatter about the great fight that has never taken place.
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