Burning Questions for Boxing in 2017
Burning boxing questions come in two basic varieties: "Will they fight?" and "Who will win when they do fight?"
Will Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin finally meet in the ring in 2017? Or will we just spend another year wondering about it?
Will Andre Ward give Sergey Kovalev the rematch he deserves, following their historic 2016 clash?
Will Anthony Joshua turn back the aging Wladimir Klitschko? Whose unbeaten record will have to go when Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia meet in a March unification bout?
These are among the top questions on the minds of boxing fans as 2016 draws to a close.
Can Roman Gonzalez Stay Undefeated Above Flyweight?
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Roman Gonzalez is a contemporary superstar, but he has also reached the point in his career where he deserves to be considered against the all-time greats. Few fighters in the sport's history at 112 pounds and below can match his accomplishments.
Last September, he went up to 115 pounds and won a world title in a fourth weight class, defeating previously unbeaten Carlos Cuadras to seize the 115-pound belt.
This time, however, there was nothing easy about it. Cuadras adjusted mid-fight and was winning down the stretch. Gonzalez left with a new championship belt, but also with a face that was badly swollen.
As the former champion, Cuadras deserves a rematch, and I am far from convinced that Gonzalez would prevail a second time. I also think the Nicaraguan would be in for a tough night with Japanese phenon Naoya Inoue.
Boxing has weight classes for a reason. Gonzalez is still a great fighter at 115 pounds, but it remains to be seen if he can continue as the same dominant force he was from 105 to 112 pounds.
Will Anybody Be Willing to Give Guillermo Rigondeaux a Fight?
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In April 2013, Guillermo Rigondeaux faced Nonito Donaire. It was the Cuban's 12th professional fight, and Donaire was universally viewed at the time as a top-five, pound-for-pound fighter.
But Rigondeaux handed Donaire a boxing lesson, completely neutralizing one of the most explosive small fighters of the past generation. It established him as a top pound-for-pound fighter in his own right.
Unfortunately, Rigondeaux has not been able to make another high-profile fight since.
It is no real secret why he struggles to make fights. Rigondeaux's style is nearly impossible to penetrate; he makes good boxers look amateurish.
At the same time, his focus on defense fails to entertain crowds. Even as a boxing purist, I have found myself less than thrilled by some of his more recent exhibitions.
I did find his win over Donaire utterly compelling, though. It is always fascinating to see a great offensive fighter shut down by brilliant tactical movement and timing.
At 36, time is probably running out for Rigondeaux, but it will be a shame if we never get to see him face another opponent like Donaire.
Can Anybody Below 140 Pounds Challenge Vasyl Lomachenko
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Some readers are going to see this headline and respond that Vasyl Lomachenko has already lost—against Orlando Salido at 126 pounds. But that was the Ukrainian's second fight, and he has improved greatly since then as a pro fighter.
In fact, he improved remarkably during that loss, taking it to Salido down the stretch and making what started out as a rough fight into a close one. I would not mind seeing a rematch, for the sake of closure, but I don't think the rematch would be particularly close.
In 2016, Lomachenko battered veteran champion Roman Martinez and frustrated former champion Nicholas Walters so badly that he quit between rounds. Martinez and Walters are two of the top fighters in the world at 130 pounds.
Lomachenko will no doubt move to lightweight in 2017, and it is hard not to think he will be every bit as dominant when he does.
However, there is one fighter at lightweight who could give him all he can handle—undefeated, two-division champion Mikey Garcia. A bout between the pair would be one of the year's best.
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Will Manny Pacquiao Fight Terence Crawford?
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Nobody should fault Manny Pacquiao if he wants to continue earning money in the boxing ring. This is especially true when we consider how generous he has been over the years when it comes to donating money in his native Philippines.
However, fans cannot be faulted for wanting to see Pacquiao face the best, for as long as he is going to continue campaigning. By easily defeating Timothy Bradley and Jessie Vargas last year, Pacman proved he is still an elite talent.
Elite talents should fight other elite talents, though, and the fight that makes most sense for Pacquiao in this regard is Terence Crawford.
They share a promoter in Top Rank and the fight would earn substantial pay-per-view revenue. From a fan's perspective, a win for either man would be a major line on his resume.
Who Wins Between Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia?
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Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia are both PBC fighters and both hold versions of the welterweight crown, but their 2016 campaigns were vastly different.
WBA champion Thurman beat Shawn Porter in one of 2016's best fights. Porter is a former champion and was probably the toughest possible fight Thurman could have made.
Garcia captured the vacant WBC belt in January, when he bested a badly faded Robert Guerrero. Instead of defending his new crown against a credible contender, he opted for a non-title bout against Samuel Vargas in November.
In the past, when champions fought six to eight times a year, non-title fights were acceptable. In an era when champions fight twice a year, having one of them be a non-title exhibition is an insult to the sport.
Still, Garcia will have the chance to shut up his critics when he faces Thurman in March. This will be one of the year's most important bouts.
Will Canelo Fight GGG?
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I am sure I'm not the only boxing writer who is already tired of even thinking about this potential clash of superstars. The endless "will-they-won't-they" talk that surrounded Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao for half a decade has made a generation of scribes and fans cynical about never-ending speculation.
Still, a potential fight between Alvarez and Golovkin is going to be one of next year's biggest boxing topics. On paper, it makes no sense that these two did not fight in 2016.
The Kazakh already has a bout lined up with Daniel Jacobs for March. To his credit, a fight with the American is the best he could make—after a showdown with Canelo.
There have been reports from ESPN's Dan Rafael that Canelo might face Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on Cinco de Mayo. That is not a particularly relevant fight, but it will still be a huge bout, given the fact that Chavez Jr. is the son of a true Mexican legend.
Provided both men win, expect non-stop speculation next summer about a Alvarez-Golovkin fight for Mexican Independence Day in September.
Who Wins Between James DeGale and Badou Jack?
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The super middleweight division has not been in the spotlight much since the days when it was ruled by the likes of Andre Ward and Carl Froch. But that should change in the next couple of years.
The 168-pound class now contains three good, up-and-coming champions. IBF champion James DeGale of England looks like a potential superstar, as does Mexico's Gilberto Ramirez, who captured the WBO title from tough veteran Arthur Abraham in a shutout last April.
WBC champion Badou Jack has rebounded well from a shocking KO loss to journeyman Derek Edwards in 2014. Since that setback, he has become a legitimate title-holder.
Now it's time for some unification fights, and the first step in that process is already in place. DeGale and Jack are set to face off in 2017's first major bout, on January 14.
Will Andre Ward Give Sergey Kovalev a Rematch?
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Andre Ward vs. Sergey Kovalev was the most important fight of 2016. In the ring, it delivered on the drama. The American overcame an early knockdown to rally back courageously, while the Russian hung tough, even as he faced a new level of adversity.
I thought Kovalev won the fight, 114-113. I had it six rounds each, with Ward losing a point for getting sent to the canvas in Round 2.
A fight that close should never be called a robbery. While I had it six even, honest judges could have easily given seven rounds to Ward.
However, a fight that close demands a rematch—especially when the champion lost. I have always been a big fan of Ward. I like the way he fights and have always loved the way he handles himself.
However, if he doesn't make it a priority to give Kovalev an immediate rematch, I will lose a lot of respect for him.
Can Oleksandr Usyk Put Cruiserweight on the Map in North America?
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In North America, cruiserweight is the perpetually forgotten division.
When the cruisers do manage to make it into the spotlight—such as when Krzysztof Glowacki knocked out long-time champion Marco Huck in one of 2015's best fights—it only ever seems to be an episodic exception, rather than the start of a new trend.
But Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk could be the fighter who at least briefly forces the 200-pound class front and center. The Olympic gold medalist became a professional champion this year, when he handled Glowacki with ease and won a decision.
In terms of relevance, I view Usyk's win over Glowacki as one of the most important fights of 2016. Unfortunately, it took place in Poland and received scant attention in the United States.
But it did set Usyk up for a high-profile bout on the Bernard Hopkins-Joe Smith card earlier this month. He looked like his typical, dominant self, dispatching the tough Thabiso Mchunu in Round 9.
Usyk is already scheduled to fight in Madison Square Garden in the early part of 2017. At 6'3", it is inevitable that he will eventually campaign at heavyweight.
His future potential with the big men could play a big part in drawing attention to him right now, while he campaigns to lock down the cruiserweight division.
Who Wins Between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko
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When Wladimir Klitschko lost to Tyson Fury in November 2015, it shocked the boxing world. Sure, the Ukrainian, then aged 39, was old by boxing standards, and he had not looked his best in going the distance with Bryant Jennings the previous April.
However, he was still expected to handle Fury with relative ease, and I was on record predicting him to knock the Englishman out.
That is why, even though the Fury-Klitschko fight was horrendous to watch, many of us were still looking forward to a rematch in 2016. As a mere matter of historical interest, we wanted to see if the long-reigning champion was truly finished.
But that fight never happened this year. Instead, Fury suffered an unfortunate and public mental breakdown.
Klitschko will instead return to the ring in April against undefeated Anthony Joshua of England. The IBF and WBA versions of the heavyweight crown will be on the line, and in our newly fractured heavyweight division, the winner will clearly deserve to be viewed as the division's top fighter.
Even when Klitschko was at his best, I would have seen Joshua as a tough opponent for him. The 27-year-old has the size and athleticism to reach the Ukrainian's notoriously vulnerable chin.
If the same version of Klitschko that lost to Fury shows up, it will be a one-sided fight in favor of the younger man.
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