The Hottest Boxing Storylines for the Week of April 19

A weekend always feels more like a weekend when you get three quality fights on a Saturday night.

Here we break down the carnage that was Lucas Matthysse's narrow majority-decision win over Ruslan Provodnikov and try to decide whether it lived up to the hype.

We take a look at the latest in a string of impressive conquests from Terence "Bud" Crawford that earned him a second world title in a second weight division.

And we ask the all-important question: Is this the end of the road for Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.?

Shifting the focus ahead just a bit, what can we make of Main Events' decision to pull the plug on a possible Adonis Stevenson-Sergey Kovalev unification bout? Wasn't that what they were lobbying for?

That, plus we'll discuss the return of the heavyweight champion and take another potshot or two at Leo Santa Cruz for his unwillingness to fight, well, anyone with much of a pulse.

These are the hottest boxing storylines for the week of April 19.

Did Matthysse-Provodnikov Live Up to the Hype?

Let's answer this question with a question.

Do you know what that substance is in the little cup on the table?

That's Provodnikov's post-fight urine sample, which we aren't convinced is really urine. It might be oil because that man is a cyborg or something. There's just no way he's human.

Matthysse and Provodnikov engaged in 12 of the most brutal and taxing rounds you could ever imagine for professional prizefighters on this level. Maybe it wasn't the hellacious war for three minutes of every round that people were expecting—amazingly, there were no knockdowns—but the gruesome thud of every landed punch was still cringeworthy.

Matthysse got out of the gate strong by boxing Provodnikov from distance and not allowing him into scoring range with powerful but often wild hooks. There wasn't much in the way of technique from the Siberian Rocky in those early frames, and by the third round his face was already a bloody—by way of a cut over his left eye caused by a head-butt—swollen mask.

Most fighters, especially when in there with a guy as destructive as Matthysse, wouldn't have the stomach for the hill Provo was forced to climb in the middle rounds. 

See: Provodnikov, Ruslan, not human. 

Provodnikov rallied in Rounds 3, 4 and 5, closing the distance of the fight and thumping Matthysse with left hooks that were enough to give us all pause about the desirability of another human being receiving that type of concussive force for our entertainment. 

Matthysse, who has been chinny a time or two in the past, took the shots well before rallying himself.

That's the type of fight we had: a brutal, vicious, taxing slugfest filled with rallies.

Provodnikov buzzed Matthysse near the end of Round 11, bringing the crowd to its feet, but he couldn't cinch the deal, and the Argentine emerged with a majority decision that should be no cause for complaint, even if you saw a draw or favored Provo close.

Whenever you have a fight like this, it's natural to speak of a rematch, but it's entirely possible we could skip that here. You don't want to have too many of these fights in your career if you value both it and your quality of life afterward.

It's one of those fights where nobody loses or wins. You pay the piper either way, and it would be best for both men to try their hands against other fighters in the loaded 140-pound division and take a look at this rematch down the road, if at all.

Will Terence Crawford Be Boxing's Next Big Thing?

LM Otero/Associated Press

Crawford spent the first five rounds of his challenge for the WBO Junior Welterweight Championship on Saturday night looking very little like the fighter who had set the world on fire in a 2014 campaign worthy of Fighter of the Year honors.

Thomas Dulorme, a former blue-chip welterweight prospect, wasn't doing anything particularly spectacular, but he was fighting with confidence, seizing the initiative and probably did enough to outwork "Bud" in at least three of those rounds. 

Little did we know that Crawford, a slick boxer-puncher from nearby Omaha, Nebraska—the fight was in Arlington, Texas—was laying a trap.

Coming into the fight, Dulorme was known as something of a five- or six-round fighter. And that proved prophetic on this night.

Crawford touched him with a huge one-two combination early in Round 6 that set up the first of the three knockdowns that would ultimately end the fight, vindicate his strategy and net him a second world championship in as many weight classes. 

Where does he go from here?

Only up would seem to be the answer.

There was some chatter about Crawford meeting the winner of Matthysse vs. Provodnikov at some point later in the year.

Obviously, that's all speculation at this point, but you couldn't go wrong with that fight.

Crawford has also been mentioned in the past as a possible opponent for Manny Pacquiao, who has something of bigger fish to fry at the moment.

Regardless of where he ends up next, Crawford is a budding star who will be given every opportunity to become one of boxing's pound-for-pound best in the  near future.

Has a New Light Heavyweight Threat Emerged?

Esther Lin/SHOWTIME

Should we focus on the absolute train wreck that is Chavez Jr., boxing's longtime poster boy for entitlement, or Andrzej Fonfara, who emerges from this mess as a suddenly hot commodity and top-level contender in the light heavyweight division?

Let's do both.

Chavez Jr. gave boxing his very own "no mas" moment Saturday night in front of several thousand of his fans at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. He was hopelessly behind in the fight at the time, had just been knocked down for the first time in his career and had almost no realistic path to victory.

So he sat on his stool after Round 9 and told his new trainer Joe Goossen he wanted no more.

Literally.

Fonfara's impressive win isn't just the possible final nail in the coffin of a tremendously talented fighter with a big name who wasn't willing to do much of anything to live up to the hype and hope of his lineage. It's also a huge win for the 29-year-old Pole, who now darts to the front of the line for big opportunities at 175 pounds.

This was always a risky fight for Chavez Jr.

Fonfara gave lineal and WBC 175-pound champion Adonis Stevenson all he could handle and even knocked him down last year and is the naturally bigger, stronger man. He came into the fight with a chip on his shoulder. A rematch with Stevenson now makes sense, and he's earned that right.

He took that chip out on Chavez Jr., who now faces an uncertain future after quitting, angering basically every boxing fan from Mexico—who hit him with boos and beers after the fight—and then giving a rambling, delusional and sad post-fight interview to Showtime's Jim Gray.

Like we said, train wreck.

Will Wlad Extend His Streak to 18?

Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press

Wladimir Klitschko will take his show on the road to the United States for the first time in more than seven years Saturday night when he defends the heavyweight championship against undefeated American Bryant Jennings at Madison Square Garden.

Jennings is easily one of the better heavyweight contenders on the market today, but it's really, really hard to see how he'll have the size to compete with the towering big man from Ukraine.

The real story here will be Klitschko's continued inching toward boxing history.

He's already established himself as one of the premier heavyweight fighters of all time, having successfully defended at least a share of the crown in 17 consecutive fights and holding the title for the second-longest reign in history. 

Both of those marks come in as runner-up to Joe Louis, who defended the title 24 times and held it for almost 12 years. 

Is it possible that Klitschko could meet or exceed one or both of those records? 

He hasn't shown any sign of slowing down, and while Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury would likely disagree, there isn't a heavyweight fighter on the horizon who you wouldn't slot him in as the overwhelming favorite to beat. 

Klitschko's reign will have exceeded nine years once he steps through the ropes to face Jennings, and a win would put him at 18 successful defenses, and yet he struggles to get credit.

Has his heavyweight era been a murderers' row?

No, but dominance is dominance, and he has a chance to crack some pretty hallowed records before all is said and done, so don't miss the festivities on Saturday.

Did Main Events Drop the Ball on Stevenson-Kovalev?

Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

For the past several months, Stevenson, the WBC and lineal light heavyweight champion, has received his fair and deserved share of criticism for scuttling a potentially blockbuster unification showdown with Kovalev when it appeared all that was left was to cross the t's and dot the i's. 

So, let's not be hypocritical now and give a pass once the worm has turned.

Kovalev's promoters Main Events, led by Kathy Duva, successfully lobbied WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman last year to take the highly unusual step of declaring their man the mandatory challenger for Stevenson's belt.

Why is that unusual?

Sanctioning bodies never rank champions who hold belts from other sanctioning bodies. It just doesn't happen, but per Dan Rafael of ESPN.com, Sulaiman took the step because he wanted to see the fight for the good of boxing.

The next step in this process was a purse bid—whenever promoters can't reach agreement on their own, a purse bid is set up to allow sealed bids with the highest dollar amount winning the right to promote the fight, choose the network, etc.—which the WBC scheduled for this past Friday.

And then Duva withdrew her man from the process, citing his exclusive contract with HBO, their inability to place him on any other network and problems with the timing of the bid process.

Wait, what?

That's a questionable move for a promoter who put Stevenson on blast for ducking, dodging and engaging in all sorts of physical and verbal gymnastics to avoid facing her guy in the ring. 

The winner of the purse bid, which, again, it was Duva and her company that lobbied the WBC to take this step, would have gotten the right to choose the network where it aired. It was widely expected that Al Haymon, backed by millions of investor money, would have blown any other offers out of the water.

That means the fight would have landed on Showtime or one of the various networks Premier Boxing Champions has secured contracts with. It also would have meant a boatload more money for the fighters.

Duva cited uncertainty in the market, per Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports, for her decision. The purse bid came far earlier than she was anticipating for a fight that wouldn't be scheduled to take place for six months and with both fighters taking interim bouts over the summer. 

All of that is true, but it's hard to see how this is a good look, even to those who have spent considerable time defending their position in the past.

Will Leo Santa Cruz Ever Step Up His Opposition?

John Locher/Associated Press

I'm starting to think the answer to this question could legitimately be no.

Santa Cruz was recently added to the undercard of Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao, and his addition so close to the fight date against a to-be-determined opponent leaves us justifiably skeptical that he'll get in there with anything resembling a real challenge. 

We'll likely watch a third consecutive glorified sparring session against an anonymous foe with an 18-4-2 record, who promises to shock the world before getting shellacked.

How frustrating has that become for boxing fans who want to see Teremoto step in there with the best fighters in a division that's brimming with high-level talent?

Santa Cruz came close to an anticipated and desirable showdown with Guillermo Rigondeaux, but that fight fell through once Haymon put the brakes on it and bought the Mexican champion's contract from Golden Boy Promotions.

That was expected to lead the way toward a showdown with Abner Mares, who hasn't looked the same since getting knocked out by Jhonny Gonzalez but tweeted his desire to face Santa Cruz on short notice in this fight.

Not going to happen.

They're going to want to build that one up once—if?—it takes place.

Maybe in the fall.

Instead, saddle up for the latest installment—make that three in a row—of Santa Cruz against a no-hope opponent in high-profile showcase sparring session.