SONAHR: August 16, 2015 – For the past several years, an exclusive club of fighters have dominated the cruiserweight division. The club includes IBF champion Yoan Pablo Hernandez of Cuba; WBC champ Grigory Drozd of Russia; WBA titlist Denis Lebedev, also of Russia; WBO king Marco Huck of Germany; and ex-WBC champ Krzysztof Wlodarczyk of Poland, who was recently dethroned by Drozd. This group turned back all challengers ? until last Friday, when a new member spectacularly crashed its ranks.
The interloper is another Krzysztof from Poland: Krzysztof Glowacki, who wrested the WBO crown from the head of Huck via an 11th-round kayo in a strong candidate for Fight of the Year. Huck was the favorite going into the title tilt, which was held at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, another of the energetic new boxing venues that are breathing life into a sport thought to be moribund.
Although the arena was packed with Polish-American partisans of Glowacki, they were the only ones who gave their countryman much of a chance against Huck. His name could not be found among the top ranks of 200-pounders. Huck, on the other hand, was considered, along with Hernandez, as the best fighter in the division. He?d even made a semi-successful foray into heavyweights, losing a disputed decision to then-WBA ?regular? (don?t ask) champion Alexander Povetkin. Huck?s brain trust must have considered Glowacki to be a ?marking-time? opponent who would earn their man a payday while he awaited an opportunity for a unification bout, or perhaps another run at the heavyweights.
Glowacki, however, threw a wrench into those calculations by coming off the floor to stop the champion in a thrilling slugfest reminiscent of the bygone time when the best heavyweights weighed between 180 and 200 lbs, not the 220 to 250-plus poundage that is the norm today. It was like watching Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis or Rocky Marciano instead of Wladimir Klitschko, Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury.
Glowacki did well in the opening rounds, only to be dropped heavily in the sixth. It looked like the end for the Pole. But he gritted his teeth ? or, at least, his mouthpiece ? and battled his way back into the fight. And in the end, Huck was the one who crashed. Even if this contest isn?t the Fight of the Year, it definitely qualifies as the Upset of the Year, unless Andre Berto pulls off a miracle against Floyd Mayweather Jr. next month.
So now there?s a new kid on the block of the cruiserweight elite. The new WBO champion has plenty of options to choose from, all of which are potentially lucrative, but also risky. A rematch with Huck would do great business in New Jersey or Germany. An all-Polish showdown with Wlodarczyk would break the bank in Poland. Unifiers with Hernandez, Drozd and Lebedev would also be cash cows for Glowacki?s promoters.
Glowacki might not be favored to win many of those matchups, even a rematch with Huck. But based on what he showed at the Prudential Center, he would be certain to give the paying customers their money?s worth.
Charles R. Saunders is the author of several books including Sweat and Soul: The Saga of Black Boxers in the Maritimes from the Halifax Forum to Caesars Palace, as well as the Imaro series of fantasy/adventure novels. Considered by many to be one of the leading authorities on boxing in Canada, he is the current Vice-President of Boxing for the Society of North American Sports Historians and Researchers. His novels, Imaro, Damballa, and Abengoni: First Calling are available at Amazon.com.
