The Hottest Boxing Storylines for the Week of January 17
If a fighter can win knockout of the year in January, Deontay Wilder did just that on Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Wilder imploded challenger Artur Szpilka with a filthy right hand in the ninth round to retain his WBC Heavyweight Championship in a fight that exceeded expectations. His challenger was unconscious from the moment the shot landed, and you could've counted to one million.
We take a look at what we learned, good and bad, about Wilder as he steams toward more significant (and challenging) fights.
We'll also take a look at the abbreviated (thankfully) title fight between Charles Martin and Vyacheslav Glazkov that crowned a completely unworthy winner.
Also, can Danny Garcia claim a welterweight title, and will Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter's finally announced clash meet expectations?
That and more in this week's edition of the hottest storylines in boxing.
What Did We Learn About Wilder?
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Some good, but maybe even more bad.
Wilder's ninth-round knockout was epic, highlight-reel stuff. It's guaranteed to be in the conversation (at the very least) in about 11 months for knockout of the year, and it seemed (before the ludicrous judges scorecards surfaced) at the time to have salvaged what was an otherwise difficult fight for the loquacious Alabamian.
Szpilka came into the fight with no fear, and he fought like it. His movement and southpaw stance created nightmares for the extremely powerful but technically flawed champion in the early rounds. Wilder seemed to have no idea how to handle the different look and got outboxed and outworked early.
It seemed that the Pole had built a small lead on the scorecards as the stretch run began (in reality he was down four points on two cards and two on the third) when Wilder tattooed him with a right hand that would've knocked out a brick wall.
The resulting scene was scary, with Szpilka unconscious on the mat and medical staff needing to be called in to attend to the fallen challenger. He was taken to the hospital for observation.
So, what did we learn here?
For one, Tyson Fury is a genius.
The reigning heavyweight champ (the real one, not a title winner like Wilder and now Martin) broke up the celebration in the center of the ring to taunt Wilder and hype a potential bout in the near future. It was box-office gold but for a fight that still has a few hurdles to clear.
Wilder showed a great many technical flaws against Szpilka that could be his undoing against the upper-echelon fighters of his division, including Fury and his mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin, who should be up next.
His power is legit, no doubt about it with the way he just erased Szpilka, but he has a long way to go.
Can Danny Garcia Claim a Welterweight Belt?
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Garcia and Robert Guerrero are set to do battle Saturday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and the bout, which has been given lackluster attention by many boxing fans, was recently given a little added meaning by the WBC.
The Mexico-based sanctioning body announced last week that it would award its now-vacant (since the retirement of Floyd Mayweather) championship to the winner of Garcia-Guerrero.
Why?
You can't see it, but we're shrugging our shoulders.
Garcia spent the last several years campaigning at 140 pounds, where he unified the WBC and WBA titles, but his lone signature win (and only win in the division, unless you count his early career) since deciding to campaign full time at welterweight came over faded former titlist Paulie Malignaggi last August.
Guerrero has been a solid pro, but he looks like a spent force. He hasn't looked good at all since losing to Mayweather in May 2013, struggling to win a brutal war with Yoshihiro Kamegai before getting bludgeoned by Thurman and escaping with a decision that should have been a loss against Aaron Martinez.
What you have here are two guys who appear to be trending in opposite directions.
The math is simple.
Garcia is being set up to win a welterweight belt, while Guerrero, a warrior throughout his entire career (inside and outside the ring) who insists he isn't done, is expected to provide a credible level of opposition and name recognition but not win.
That doesn't translate to anticipation and excitement for most fans, but, hey, you never know what happens when the bell rings.
Did Glazkov-Martin Get the Ending It Deserved?
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Cue your audible sigh.
Martin captured the vacant IBF Heavyweight Championship on Saturday night when Glazkov crumpled to the mat in Round 3, the result of the fighter's feet getting tangled, injured his knee and was unable to continue. The ringside physician diagnosed the Ukrainian with a torn right ACL.
It was a perfect ending to a fight that matched up two men who didn't have the credentials to come within sniffing distance of a heavyweight belt, however meaningless. The fight proved less than nothing and means the same in the grand scheme of things.
Glazkov entered as the No. 1 ranked contender, a distinction he earned with no less than three highly questionable decisions, and looked the more technically sound, if much smaller, fighter.
Martin hadn't beaten any fighter you've heard of before (well, maybe one or two, but they were terrible journeymen/trial horses) and his lofty ranking was literally ridiculous.
Literally.
But now he gets to call himself heavyweight champion after a freak accident ended what seemed to be well on the path toward becoming a terrible fight. It's a distinction you probably won't see him own for very long.
You can imagine promoters and managers are tripping over each other right now to line up their guy as the mandatory for the IBF's title after this showcase.
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Will Vasquez-Martinez Steal the Night?
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Sammy Vasquez has quite a story and star potential, but Sergio Martinez is a tough, hard-nosed challenger who has scored one upset already over former titlist Devon Alexander (many feel he beat Guerrero as well) and can't be taken lightly.
Their bout will co-feature the Premier Boxing Champions card on Fox that will be headlined by Garcia-Guerrero for the WBC Welterweight Championship.
Vasquez is an undefeated welterweight prospect from Pennsylvania who served two tours of duty in Iraq as a member of the National Guard. Hard guy to root against, given those facts.
That alone makes him an interesting fighter to watch. It certainly doesn't hurt that he has an exciting, fun style and has been in many entertaining bouts during his climb up the ladder. Saturday night should be another one.
Martinez came back from an extended layoff (14 months) to put Guerrero on the mat in the fourth round of their bout last June. He appeared to do enough to score the upset but was denied by some questionable (bad) judging.
Which makes this fight one that has the potential to steal the show.
In one corner you have a young, hungry prospect with a heroic backstory and, in the other, a fighter who has already beaten one fighter he wasn't supposed to beat and two if you're able to properly score professional prizefighting.
More of this please, PBC.
Does Thurman-Porter Finally Deliver?
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Thurman and Porter have finally agreed to terms for a fight.
Mike Coppinger of USA Today reports that the two will face off with the WBA Welterweight Championship on the line March 12, likely at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. The bout will be a prime-time showcase on CBS, which has televised all its previous PBC fights in the afternoon.
Thurman and Porter have been dancing around each other for a while now.
The fight was reported to be close before being pushed off a couple of times, causing many fans and media members to wonder what could be gumming up the works.
Thurman is the current WBA welterweight champion and enters an undefeated fighter penned by many as one of boxing's best young stars. He bludgeoned Guerrero in the main event of PBC's inaugural card last year before capping the campaign with a stoppage on cuts over former titlist Luis Collazo.
Porter, a former welterweight champion, dropped a decision and his belt to Kell Brook before rebounding with a significant win over over Adrien Broner in what was a mostly one-sided affair.
This fight has a lot of build and a lot to live up to as the biggest fight on the early PBC calendar for 2016.
Given the power of Thurman and the swarming, aggressive style of Porter, it shouldn't have a hard time delivering the goods.
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