Not since the days of Lennox Lewis has there been one name, one face, in the heavyweight division. And it’s making fans wonder if heavyweight boxing will unify. Despite the moving parts that weren’t there in days past. Now; Lewis’ run from 1999 to 2000 was short, but special.
What made Lewis so beloved was not only was he intelligent in the ring, but he never “ducked” anyone. And his nasty left jab and destructive upper cuts were a bonus. Plus, he avenged both his losses with KO’s of his own.
Nowadays, there’s more politics in boxing than in Congress. But it is an exciting time in the land of the “Big Boys”. Once the cards were read in the United Kingdom, Oleksandr Usyk, flipped the script for the division. We all heard that what boxing and England needs was Anthony Joshua versus Tyson Fury for all the straps. Well Usyk, and Fury are in a way mirror images of each other. Except Fury has 6-inches on him.
Bob Arum, Fury’s lead promoter at Top Rank wants that fight to happen, and for Joshua to step aside with his rematch clause. And the only way to describe what that fight will look like is; “INCREDIBLE IN-RING ULTIMATE CHESS MATCH”. Neither has devastating power, but they both move around looking to pick you apart. But like they say, “a good big man always beats a good smaller man”. But Usyk will be chasing history to possibly push Evander Holyfield aside as the best cruiserweight to claim all the heavyweight gold.
Will Heavyweight Boxing Unify: Others Have A Say In This
Unfortunately for Arum, he doesn’t call all the shots. First up Fury has to get past an angry Deontay Wilder. And should he take the trilogy, the “unification” wont happen after that either. It’s because the WBC has announced that “The Body Snatcher” Dillian Whyte is the mandatory for that fights winner.
Arum may have the slick moves to get Joshua to step aside, but not to get another Eddie Hearn fighter, in Whyte to do so also. And that’s saying Fury doesn’t get slept this time. Whyte’s tough, but it’s hard seeing him beat either Fury or Wilder.
In the meantime; Usyk’s management team has already said they’re okay with Joshua invoking the rematch clause. Although, Usyk has spent significant time away from his children, which he wants to rectify. And frankly, Joshua needs time away to come up with a much better game plan. Should that happen next, Arum’s plans go on the back burner. The far away back burner. At best if things fall right, it looks like a Fall of 2022 scenario.
And if anyone thinks that Andy Ruiz will remain quiet while all this happens, is fooling themselves. A fight and a win over say; Joe Joyce might make the “Destroyer” second… or is it third in line for the straps? Either way, fans clamor for a single face leading every division. Even though the governing bodies don’t necessarily feel the same. And being they own the toy, they make the rules. So it looks like we’ll just have to wait… and wait… and wait some more.
