The Hottest Boxing Storylines for the Week of August 21
Errol Spence Jr. blew right through another opponent on Sunday afternoon in Brooklyn, New York.
It was his second consecutive impressive stoppage win in New York City's trendiest borough, and we ponder whether or not he's on the path toward top-dog status in the crowded welterweight division.
Manny Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum had some fighting words for HBO as the fallout from the network's decision to pass on the Pac Man's pay-per-view return this fall.
We'll take a look at what that might mean for the long-term relationship between Top Rank and HBO.
All that, plus the Canelo Alvarez vs. Liam Smith (underwhelming) undercard, the future of American silver medalist Shakur Stevenson and the WBC's long-awaited ruling on the Alexander Povetkin situation.
These are the hottest boxing storylines for the week.
Is Errol Spence on His Way to Being the World's Best Welterweight?
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Spence is the real deal.
There's no doubt left.
The 26-year-old star followed up his one-sided thrashing of former 140-pound titlist Chris Algieri by literally knocking Leonard Bundu unconscious in the sixth round of their fight on Sunday afternoon. The two faced off at the new Ford Amphitheater in Brooklyn, New York.
It wasn't an unexpected result, but Bundu had survived (that's the exact correct word) the full 12 rounds with vaunted puncher Keith Thurman, and he wasn't just knocked out here. He was knocked out cold.
Spence is now the mandatory challenger for the IBF Welterweight Championship. That belt is currently held by Kell Brook, which makes its future uncertain, since the Brit is stepping up in September in what is most likely an ill-fated challenge of Gennady Golovkin.
If Brook vacates, which there's a decent shot that's exactly what happens, then Spence could fight for the vacant title before the end of the year. He told Bleacher Report last week that he hoped the Bundu fight would lead to the bigger dogs of the 147-pound division.
Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia both hold welterweight belts, and both, like Spence, are signed to Al Haymon, so fights shouldn't be hard to negotiate.
And they need to happen, sooner rather than later, because Spence is a monster, and he's well on his way to topping the crowded field in one of boxing's deepest divisions.
How Damaged Is the Relationship Between Top Rank/Pacquiao and HBO?
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Arum isn't happy, and he isn't pulling any punches on what he thinks of HBO's decision to pass on putting Pacquiao's challenge of Jessie Vargas for the WBO Welterweight Championship on its PPV arm.
The legendary promoter accused HBO of "abandoning" Pacquiao after "sucking him dry for 10 years," per Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times. That's some harsh stuff, but Arum wasn't done.
He blasted the network, who he says had an "obligation" to distribute the fight and once again stated that he believes HBO, by passing, has voided its contract with Pacquiao and made the Filipino icon a free agent.
"They’re either in breach of contract or they’ve ended the contract," Arum said.
Pugmire reached out to HBO, but the network's comment was limited to acknowledging that they have an existing agreement with Pacquiao and his promoters Top Rank.
Arum has talked to Turner Sports about the possibility of distributing the fight, and he also plans on having talks with ESPN and HBO's rival in the cable-boxing business, Showtime.
A Showtime spokesperson told Forbes last week that the network would listen if Top Rank reached out.
One wonders what Pacquiao appearing on Showtime, which he did in 2011 when he fought Shane Mosley on PPV, would mean for the long-term relationship between Arum/Pacquiao/Top Rank and HBO, which has been cable boxing's standard bearer but is having a very questionable year.
Does the Canelo-Smith Undercard Do Anything to Sell Fight?
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We're under a month away from Canelo's challenge of Smith for the WBO Junior Middleweight Championship at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and the undercard has just been revealed for what figures to be a tough sell to fans on PPV.
In the main support bout, Willie Monroe Jr. and Gabriel Rosado, two former world-title challengers, each of whom was rejected by WBO middleweight champ Billy Joe Saunders, will meet in a 12-round bout.
Monroe and Rosado are both solid fighters, but neither really operates near the top of the crowded middleweight mix. Each man has already been stopped by Gennady Golovkin, the division's unified champion and best fighter.
The other two fights on the telecast are solid prospects in step-up fights.
Both are quality, but neither is going to do anything to move the fans who were on the fence about shelling out $70 for a fight they didn't want. Not with Canelo such a massive favorite and limited buzz surrounding the entire event.
Joseph Diaz Jr., a highly touted prospect and 2012 U.S. Olympian, will take on dangerous power puncher Andrew Cancio. Diego De La Hoya, a cousin of Golden Boy Promotions head Oscar De La Hoya, will face Puerto Rico's Luis Orlando Del Valle.
Solid fights, all, but you can definitely question whether they're worthy of a PPV headlined by one of the sport's biggest stars. It just seems like a pretty underwhelming way to round out a card that has been widely panned by fans and media.
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What Is Shakur Stevenson's Ceiling?
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A loss in the Olympic final notwithstanding, Stevenson, who captured the silver medal in the men's bantamweight division at the Summer Games in Rio, has a very bright future in the professional ranks.
He dropped a split decision to Cuba's Robeisy Ramirez in Saturday's gold-medal match. The Cuban was the far more experienced fighter—having captured gold at London in 2012 in the flyweight division—and was busier in the final round to capture a decision that was both fair and in line with the in-ring action.
Stevenson broke down in his post-fight interview, overcome with the emotion of the loss but with a successful tournament that netted him a silver medal and exposure to boxing fans worldwide.
The next step is leaving the amateur game behind.
Stevenson has been linked to former pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather's promotional company Mayweather Promotions but says Stevenson hasn't signed with any promoter yet. He's sure to get plenty of offers and will make the transition to the professional ranks now that his Rio experience has concluded.
The 19-year-old has the makeup and story of a fighter who could become a major star if he's managed correctly. His talent is undeniable, and you can bet you'll be hearing more of this name in the not too distant future.
What to Make of the Alexander Povetkin Ruling?
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Povetkin, who had a mandatory shot at WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder canceled after testing positive for the banned substance melondium in April, will return to the ring and be allowed to fight for the interim WBC Heavyweight Championship, per Pugmire.
Povetkin will be subjected to a year of mandatory drug testing under the auspices of the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA), which the fighter will pay for. Any further failed tests will result in an indefinite suspension.
The WBC spent several months investigating all angles of this story, and it concluded, per a statement released last Wednesday, that it was aware of the positive tests but that the low-level amounts of melondium and several other negative test results prior did not allow them to conclude that Povetkin had broken any rules.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) added melondium to its list of banned substances as of Jan. 1 this year, but it said that trace amounts of under 1.0 microgram per millileter would be permitted up until Oct. 1 and then not after.
Povetkin's amount was well under that limit, and WADA cleared Povetkin of wrongdoing in July.
The Russian has now been ordered to open negotiations with fellow former heavyweight titlist Bermane Stiverne for the WBC's interim title. The two sides have until Sept. 16 to agree before a purse bid is called.
The winner would be next in line to face Wilder, who will be on the shelf for the remainder of the year after suffering a broken hand and torn bicep in his defeat of Chris Arreola in July.
The injuries required surgery, and he hopes to return, presumably against the winner of Povetkin-Stiverne, early in 2017.
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