Burning Boxing Questions That Will Be Answered Before 2015 Ends
We've only now reached the hot days of August, and it's already been a memorable year for the Sweet Science. After years of delay, the two biggest stars of this generation, Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, finally climbed into the ring together.
The fight itself lacked any significant drama, but it was still the biggest sporting event of recent years. The current generation finally got to see firsthand that nothing draws the world's attention the way a major prizefight does.
As Mayweather and Pacquiao took one step closer to exiting stage right, new stars have emerged, such as Terence Crawford, Gennady Golovkin and Sergey Kovalev.
In the year's remaining months, the action should only get better. Legends Miguel Cotto and Wladimir Klitschko have major fights against young stars Saul Alvarez and Tyson Fury. Golovkin will make his pay-per-view debut.
These are 10 of the biggest questions in boxing, as 2015 enters its final months.
Will We See a Super Bout South of Bantamweight?
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The fighters in the smallest weight classes rarely get the credit they deserve, at least in the United States. But every so often, a superstar emerges with too much talent and charisma to be overlooked. Roman Gonzalez is that kind of superstar.
With a record of 43-0 and 37 KOs, the three-division champion has laid a path of destruction at strawweight, light flyweight and flyweight. Earlier this year, he made his long-awaited HBO debut on the undercard to Gennady Golovkin vs. Willie Monroe Jr., starching tough veteran Edgar Sosa in two rounds.
Gonzalez is scheduled to face a yet-to-be-determined opponent on the undercard for Golovkin's October 17 PPV fight with David Lemieux. Expect Gonzalez to once more put on a show, regardless of his foe.
But there's only one man that serious boxing fans truly want to see Gonzalez face and that is WBO super flyweight champion Naoya Inoue.
At only 22 years of age and with just eight professional fights, Inoue already looks like he could become the greatest fighter in the history of Japan. In April 2014, he stopped veteran WBC light flyweight champion Adrian Hernandez.
In December of last year, Inoue leapfrogged the flyweight division and went to 115 pounds, where he smashed longtime WBO champion Omar Narvaez in just two rounds. Narvaez had lost just once in his career, to Nonito Donaire, and had never been stopped.
Gonzalez is very popular in Japan and shares a promoter there with Inoue. Expect to see this one made for the end of December. I only hope it gets picked up for stateside broadcast. If not, I'll be one of countless U.S. fans searching desperately online for a feed.
Will We See a Clash Between the Greatest Olympic Boxers of This Century?
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In the late 1990s and early 2000s, super bantamweight Guillermo Rigondeaux was the pride of the highly vaunted Cuban amateur boxing program. He won two Olympic gold medals and two more amateur world championships. He won a world title as a pro in just his ninth fight, knocking out Rico Ramos in six rounds.
Two fights later, Rigo completely outclassed Nonito Donaire, who was then universally regarded as a pound-for-pound, top-five fighter.
Many consider Rigondeaux the greatest amateur fighter of all time, or at least of this century.
If he's not the best amateur of this century, only one other man qualifies for the distinction: Ukrainian featherweight Vasyl Lomachenko.
Lomachenko also won two Olympic gold medals, in 2008 and 2012. His amateur record was an astonishing 396-1. He won a world title as a professional in his third fight.
With just four pounds separating their divisions, it's a natural to wonder if these two technical wizards will face off.
This would be an all-time classic bout. According to reports by ESPN's Dan Rafael and other media sources last month, only finalizing the weight and/or rehydration clause and the financial terms remains to be decided upon to make this one happen.
Let's hope it comes to pass.
What's Next for Terence Crawford?
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In 2014, Terence Crawford exploded onto the boxing scene. In March, he traveled to Scotland and beat Ricky Burns to capture the WBO lightweight title. In June, he turned in one of the most impressive performances of the year, knocking out the previously undefeated Yuriorkis Gamboa in nine rounds.
He capped things off in November with a dominant win over tough, veteran contender Raymundo Beltran. Crawford was named "Fighter of the Year" by the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Last April, Crawford jumped up to 140 pounds and claimed the vacant WBO title when he knocked out the talented Thomas Dulorme in six rounds.
Ring Magazine has Crawford ranked No. 8 on their own pound-for-pound list. There's no doubt he's one of the hottest fighters in the sport.
As a young fighter, it would be great to see Crawford fight three times this year. But with fewer than five months left on the calendar, he'll probably just fight once more.
Fellow Top Rank fighter and interim WBA champion Jose Benavidez would make a lot of sense for him. He's undefeated and has 16 KOs in his 23 fights. Benavidez got a gift decision against Mauricio Herrera last December, but he could still make for an exciting opponent against Crawford.
From a fan's perspective, a dream fight with Crawford would be against Lucas Matthysse, but The Machine is already slated to face Viktor Postol in October.
Don't be surprised if Crawford ends up facing a returning Manny Pacquiao in 2016.
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Who Will Keith Thurman Fight Next?
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Keith Thurman deserves the swell of fan interest he's been showered with the past two years. He's 26-0 with 22 KOs. Last March, he beat former champion Robert Guerrero by wider margins on the scorecards than Floyd Mayweather did in 2013.
But it's time for Thurman to face a top-rated fighter. It would be nice to see him step up and fight IBF champion Kell Brook, in a battle of undefeated young stars.
A more likely undefeated candidate for Thurman might be Danny Garcia, since they share a manager in Al Haymon. Garcia is a welterweight now, so there's no reason for the fight shouldn't happen.
Marcos Maidana has been inactive all year and Thurman would provide him with a great return fight. It would give Thurman another former Mayweather opponent to measure himself against.
Timothy Bradley and Amir Khan would also provide intriguing opponents.
Is Miguel Cotto's Career Resurgence for Real?
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Maybe this entry should actually read "Will Miguel Cotto and Saul Alvarez actually fight?" As of right now, the deal still isn't done.
I think they'll come to terms, but I also thought they would make this fight for earlier in the year, and that never came to pass. Still, it just makes too much sense as a fight not to happen.
If it does, it will tell us for sure just how legitimate Cotto's career resurgence really is. In December 2012, Cotto was absolutely schooled by Austin Trout. It seemed like a great career had reached its natural ending point.
Instead, Cotto connected with super trainer Freddie Roach and came back in October 2013, when he turned in an impressive Round 3 TKO against Delvin Rodriguez. In June 2014, he was absolutely sensational in stopping lineal middleweight champion Sergio Martinez in Round 10.
Cotto once more looked like a wrecking crew when he stopped Daniel Geale in four rounds last June.
Cotto's loyal fans have been understandably elated by this seeming return to classic form for the future Hall of Famer. But a more rational analysis has to ask: Is it for real?
Rodriguez is essentially a journeyman. Martinez, while undeniably a great fighter, was also a 39-year-old athlete coming off from multiple surgeries in the past two years. He'd been lucky to escape with his title again Martin Murray in April 2013.
Less than a year before facing Cotto, Geale was smashed by Gennady Golovkin in three rounds.
Saul Alvarez is a young, talented fighter with dangerous power. He's a naturally bigger man than Cotto, with a two-inch height advantage and a three-and-one-half inch edge in reach.
Aside from Golovkin, there might be no more stiff test for Cotto right now. It will tell fans everything they want to know about how legitimate his comeback truly is.
Is David Lemieux Ready for Gennady Golovkin's Big-Drama Show?
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WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin has developed into the hottest fighter in the sport over the past few years. He's currently riding a 20-fight KO streak and is 33-0 with 30 stoppages for his career.
But so far he has been unable to find other middleweight belt holders willing to face him. All that changes this October, though, when newly crowned WBO champ David Lemieux meets him on pay-per-view.
If not for GGG, Lemieux would be the middleweight we are all talking about. He's a dangerous offensive fighter, and his IBF-winning performance over Hassan N'Dam was a leading Fight of the Year candidate.
On paper, Lemieux does look like he might be made-to-order for Golovkin. Then again, Golovkin has never been particularly hard to hit, and Lemieux is bringing more power than any previous Golovkin opponent, save perhaps Curtis Stevens.
Golovkin has famously promised to put on a "big drama show" whenever he gets into the ring. Lemieux is the kind of opponent who will look to provide the same thing.
Will Andre Ward Get a Big-Time Fight This Year?
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Andre Ward just might be the most talented boxer on the planet. The 2004 Olympic gold medalist hasn't lost a fight of any kind since he was in grade school. Between 2009 and 2011, he cleaned out the super middleweight division, winning the Showtime Super Six tournament with stunning ease.
But since stopping Chad Dawson in 2012, he's been absurdly inactive. He fought just once in 2013, against Edwin Rodriguez, and not at all in 2014.
Last June, he finally returned to action, stopping Paul Smith in Round 9. It was a nice return for Ward, but Smith was hardly the kind of opponent that makes fans stop and pay attention.
The two best available fights for Ward would be against middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin or light heavyweight champ Sergey Kovalev. But while Ward was inactive, Golovkin and Kovalev were establishing themselves as two of the biggest stars in the sport.
Despite his stellar resume and undeniable talent, Ward isn't exactly in the driver's seat for negotiations with either man. He needs a fight with either of them more than they need fights with him.
Will There Be an Undisputed Champion at Light Heavyweight?
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At one point, when a fighter was called the world champion, it truly meant that he was the greatest fighter in the world at his weight. But in our era of alphabet-soup shenanigans, it doesn't necessarily mean he's even in the top 10.
With four sanctioning bodies, fans can be forgiven for getting confused.
Still, that rare unicorn could truly appear this year, at light heavyweight, if only Sergey Kovalev and Adonis Stevenson can get together and settle things in the ring.
A meeting between the two seemed inevitable back in 2013, when both men emerged as exciting stars. Each fighter went a perfect 4-0, with four KOs, during that year, capturing a version of the world title. Kovalev took the WBO belt from Nathan Cleverly and Stevenson stunned WBC and lineal champion Chad Dawson with a Round 1 KO.
In October 2014, Kovalev added the IBF and WBA straps to his collection, when he shut out legend Bernard Hopkins on all three cards.
There's no bigger fight for either man. It will be a shame if promotional disputes prevent it from happening.
Can Tyson Fury Back Up His Big Talk Against Wladimir Klitschko?
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There's no denying that Tyson Fury is a very big man with a very big mouth. The undefeated heavyweight stands a towering 6'9" and is one of the most colorful trash talkers in the sport.
There's also no doubt he's earned the title shot he's receiving in October against Wladimir Klitschko. Fury looked very good in last two wins, both stoppages, over Dereck Chisora and Christian Hammer.
I've never been sold on Fury as a potential heavyweight champion. If Klitschko catches him with the same sort of punch that former cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham dropped Fury with in 2013, the fight will be over.
At the same time, it's rare for Klitschko to meet an opponent who dwarfs him. Fury is a belligerent giant with some boxing skill, so that makes him a potential handful for anybody.
I expect Klitschko to collect the scalp of yet another young contender in this one. But it's a compelling matchup just the same, thanks in no small part to Fury's gift of gab.
Will Fans Pay to See Floyd Mayweather Fight an Unranked Opponent?
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I have nothing but respect for Andre Berto as a prizefighter. He's a gutsy ring warrior who has participated in two fight-of-the-year quality battles, in 2011 against Victor Ortiz, and again in 2012 against Robert Guerrero.
But he lost both of those fights and was also knocked out by journeyman Jesus Soto Karass in July 2013. So it's frankly very hard for me to accept him as a pay-per-view opponent for the pound-for-pound king, Floyd Mayweather.
If this fight was going to be on free, network television, then I'd say "fair enough." But for Mayweather to expect fans to shell out hard-earned money for it seems like a stretch.
Berto won his most recent fight, this past March, when he stopped Josesito Lopez in Round 6. But Berto was losing the fight and the stoppage was absurdly quick.
Please note that I don't make it a habit of criticizing stoppages. I'd rather see a referee err on the side of fighter safety. Berto's stoppage of Lopez might be the only one I've publicly complained about in the past several years.
Boxrec has Berto ranked at No. 22 in its welterweight rankings. You could certainly argue that he belongs in the top 20, but at this point, he's clearly not top 10.
It's hard to accept the best fighter in the world picking such a low-rated opponent. It will be interesting to see what the pay-per-view numbers end up looking like.
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