THIS year looks very promising when it comes to super-fights.
The previous year didn?t exactly knock it out of the park in that category and in fact its biggest matchup–Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao– turned out to be a dud, action-wise. The year 2015, however, laid down the groundwork for this year?s potential match-ups. Here?s our wishlist:
1.) Canelo Alvarez vs Gennady Golovkin. It?s about damn time for these two to set aside all the posturing and get down to business. Reigning middleweight king Golovkin has long been looking for a worthy rival to his throne.
Former junior middleweight king Alvarez (46-1, 32 Kos) has practically cleaned up the division and last year, defeated Miguel Cotto to annex the WBC middleweight crown.
Problem is, that fight was fought at a catch-weight and Alvarez has repeatedly asserted that he?s not ready yet to face Golovkin at middleweight but was willing to face him at junior-middle.
I think that?s a load of bull-crap as Alvarez?s hale, muscular physique is perfect now for a move up to 160, and besides come fight-time he usually outweighs his opponents as he comes in at around 160 to 170 for a junior middleweight bout.
Given Golovkin?s (34-0, 31Kos) fearsome reputation, I can understand the reluctance but Alvarez has to take this fight soon because there are no other marquee opponents in the horizon for him and Golovkin isn?t getting any younger. Chances of it happening?60 percent.
2.) Andre Ward vs Sergey Kovalev- Ward( 28-0, 15Kos), the undefeated former Super middleweight champion has recently vacated the division and announced his intention to campaign at light heavyweight.
This bodes well for fight fans as there are several potentially explosive match-ups waiting for him , the foremost being the one with reigning IBF/WBA/WBO king Sergey Kovalev (28-0, 25Kos)
Kovalev ended Bernard Hopkins? reign in 2014 and last year scored stoppage victories over Jean Pascal and Najeb Mohammedi. Chances of this happening: 70 percent.
3.) Tyson Fury vs Deontay Wilder- Fury?s upset victory over Wladimir Klitschko last year injected an adrenaline boost into the heavyweight division.
Waiting in the wings for a career-defining fight is Deontay Wilder (35-0, 34Kos.), who holds the WBC crown. The ?Bronze Bomber? has been openly challenging Fury (25-0, 18Kos) already and the loquacious Brit isn?t likely to back down from that challenge.
However, Klitschko has indicated he will be seeking a rematch and so there?s a suspensive condition to this fight. Chances of it happening- 50 percent.
4.) Terence Crawford vs Kell Brook- It doesn?t get any better than this. Two undefeated fighters at the peak of their powers.
Manny Pacquiao and his team dropped the ball when they opted for another Timothy Bradley redux instead of facing an up and coming undefeated fighter but that doesn?t mean these two cannot face off against each other.
However , Brook (35-0, 24Kos) the reigning IBF welterweight champion and Crawford (27-0,19 Kos) the current WBO junior welterweight holder aren?t exactly household names yet, so they will be built up some more before they ever cross paths. Chances of it happening: 20 percent.
5. Nonito Donaire vs Guilermo Rigondeaux 2- Admittedly, this might not be an exciting match-up , action-wise with Rigo?s boring, defensive style.
But Donaire ( 36-3, 23Kos) who lost to Rigo via decision back in 2013, has resurrected his career in 2015 and annexed the WBO super bantamweight diadem.
It seems pretty interesting how a resurgent ?Filipino Flash? will go about exacting revenge against Rigo (16-0, 10Kos) and whether or not he can come up with the perfect strategy to foil the Cuban?s elusive tactics.
LAST ROUND. It?s on my uncle Raul Quijano, who recently celebrated his birthday. Cheers!
