As a boxing writer, I have compiled my personal top 20 fights that I would like to see happen within one year. The following are numbers 11-20. I will post my top 10 by Thursday evening. I chose the fights I wanted based on several different reasons: cross-town rivalries, country vs. country, one style vs another, back stories, the battle to see who ranks higher, knock out power, to see if a certain fighter still belongs, curiosity due to the fact I have only heard of the fighter, and overall if the fight can produce the drama that we love as boxing fans. You be the judge of whether you would like to see these fights as well.
11.Paulie Malignaggi(27-4)-Zab Judah(39-6)-ok, who doesn?t like a cross-town rivalry? This would be an awesome battle of the Brooklyn-ites. I am surprised this fight has not already happened. The two fighters may not be at the top of their division right now, but have both been in their with boxing?s elite and made solid names for themselves. By matching these two guy?s slick boxing styles, flamboyant personalities, and selling it as the ?Battle for Brooklyn,? this fight could be a winner for everyone that lives near The Big Apple. One stipulation, if Zab Judah gets his father in his corner, Paulie gets to have the cast of Jersey Shore.
12.Chris Arreola(29-2)-Alexander Povetkin(19-0)-with Arreola?s look, come-forward brawling style, and colorful post fight interviews, he continues to capture the imagination of a country starving for a heavyweight star. Even though he was outclassed by Klitschko, I still thought that fight was entertaining. There has been a lot made of Alexander Povetkin especially by being trained by Teddy Atlas now. The American audience would like to see what he?s got. By combining Arreola?s action, and my curiosity to see what Povektin is made of, this is definitely a fight I want to see. The fight should take place in the Staples Center in Los Angeles and billed as ?Coming to America.?
13.Sergio Martinez(45-2-2)-Felix Sturm(33-2)-a fight that should be billed as ?Not Just a Pretty Face.?-I am still puzzled as to why American fight fans only got to see Sturm when he was about to spoil Oscar De La Hoya?s plans to have a superfight with Bernard Hopkins. Sturm has got talent. He has only two losses, one against De La Hoya(we all know what happened there), and the other against Javier Castillejo, a fight which he later avenged. Martinez his finally getting the respect he serves, he also has only two losses, one against Paul Williams, which could have gone either way, the other was when he was knocked out for the only time in his career against Antonio MargaCHEATO. Funny how it is the same circumstances for Cintron, right? With the World Cup being over, the Argentinean and German fans can transfer their interest to boxing.
14.Victor Ortiz(27-2-1)-Marcos Maidana(28-1)part II-their first fight was a thriller. Multiple knock downs, the crowd going crazy, Oscar De La Hoya trying to communicate with Ortiz from the crowd. The exact type of drama us boxing fans love. I have no clue as to why a rematch has not been made, or at least discussed! Ortiz definitely has a solid case for a rematch in this one. Since these two warriors met, they have combined for a record of 6-0. In my opinion, this fight would determine the number one, or maybe number two spot(behind Amir Kahn) for boxing?s brightest young star.
15.Luis Collazo(30-4)-Matthew Hatton(40-4)-the story line of this fight captures my interest. Collazo would have the opportunity to avenge his demons by beating the little brother of a man he felt he already defeated along with the rabid Hatton fans in attendance. Collazo has proved he can be in there with the best. Most believe his losses to Andre Berto and Ricky Hatton could have just as easily gone his way. Matthew Hatton has showed drastic improvement over his last couple fights. Put this fight in Manchester, and I think it could draw quite well.
16.Andre Berto(26-0)-Joshua Clottey(35-4)- definitely a battle between two highly skilled warriors. Haiti vs. Ghana. With the recent tragedy in Haiti, and on top of Berto being a classy guy, the boxing public would solidly get behind him. Clottey may have had a dismal performance against Manny Pacqiauo, but Manny makes everyone look bad. Clottey has proved he can make good fighters look bad on other occasions before. Like when he fought Miguel Cotto, Zab Judah, and Antonio Maragrito. Neither Clottey or Berto has ever been knocked out. I see this being a competitive contest with the winner getting a decent pay day with Shane Mosley.
17.Shane Mosley(46-6)-Kermit Cintron(32-3)-I always thought Cintron was underrated. His three losses were all controversial. The first two came at the hands of MargaCHEATO. Also first two times Cintron had ever been knocked out, hmmmmmmmm. The other loss was against Paul Williams, that I believed should have been ruled a no-contest. Cintron hits like he has bricks in his gloves. His fights are interesting to watch because of his long looping, hard punches. Mosley may have came up short to Mayweather, but still proved he belongs. Looks fantastic for a fighter at any age much less 38. This fight almost happened not too long ago, which makes me want to see it even more. It would be a good old fashioned speed vs power fight.
18.Michael Katsidis(27-2)-Robert Guerrero(27-1-1)-in my opinion Katisidis is developing into the next Arturo Gatti. He is a blood and guts fighter, but also possesses the skills. Lost a split to Juan Diaz in Diaz?s hometown of Houston. No shame in that. Guerrero recently put on his best performance to date when he picked apart Joel Casamayor. In this fight, I see Katsidis coming forward, and Guerrero having to adjust by using his solid boxing ability. It would be hard to pick a winner. Whichever fighter emerges victorious deserves a title shot.
19.Peter Manfredo Jr(35-6).-John Duddy(29-2)-it would definitely be great to see the Irish-Italian rivalry continue on the East Coast. Both fighters have seemed to develop a decent following. Duddy has become the face of Ireland?s current boxing scene. It would be a good fight for somewhere in New York City, Rhode Island, or even Boston. Manfredo has seemed to put together a string of wins recently. I was at Duddy?s last fight against Chavez. Duddy seemed to fade in the latter half of the fight. Both are pretty evenly matched. I see a competitive fight here. A win could get either fighter in a top ten or even top five ranking, back towards a title shot.
20.Samuel Peter(34-3)-Shannon Briggs(51-5)-definitely the last two guys on my list that I would want to run into in a dark alley. The fans would get to see over 500 lbs of muscle in the ring. How often do we get to see that in the boxing world? Of their combined eighty-five wins, seventy-two came by knock out. I think it would be exciting to see these two monsters go at it. This fight would definitely have a very climatic ending. This would be a winner for the heavyweight division.
