2015 witnessed perhaps the most dramatic shifting of boxing’s landscape in the last decade and then some. In that time, Wladamir Klitschko’s reign as heavyweight king came to an end, Floyd Mayweather retired (probably), Manny Pacquiao lost a bunch of belts, and for the first time since perhaps the 1990s, boxing was once again anyone’s for the taking.
It’s been a good year to be a boxing fan, to say the least. Sure, the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight wasn’t all it was cracked to be and sure the sport has had mixed results in its effort to get back on network TV, but the fact is that due to all of the above, people are talking about the sport more than they have in a very long time. With that in mind, an end of the year recap is due; specifically VAVEL USA’s fight of the year, fighter of the year, flop of the year, as well as a look ahead to 2016 and which fighters to keep an eye on.
Fight of the Year:
Sorry, Floyd and Manny, but Pay Per View sales aren't taken into consideration for this segment. While the Fight of the Century may have been anything but, there were some truly thrilling bouts that caught our eye. Following a fairly quiet spring, the summer brought on some terrific bouts. As one-sided as Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. James Kirkland was, it was a testament to the Mexican’s prowess nonetheless.
At super-middleweight, James DeGale and Andre Dirrell’s scrap for the vacant IBF belt was a thrilling, back and forth affair that saw Andre bouncing back from an ugly first few rounds, though he ultimately came up short by decision. Amir Khan’s unanimous decision over Chris Algieri was delightfully a closer contest than many thought it’d be, and the scrappy American managed to get a good couple licks in before being ultimately done in by “King” Khan’s speed. It would’ve been a more important fight if the Khan victory ensured a meeting with Floyd Mayweather, but whatever.
Fall and onward managed to bring some thrillers as well, including Leo Santa Cruz’s majority decision victory over Abner Mares. During this time we saw Floyd sent off with a lopsided punishing of Andre Berto, and Canelo Alvarez putting on yet another clinic after outboxing his stiffest opposition to date, Miguel Cotto. Tyson Fury’s dethroning of Wladamir Klitschko deserves a mention here as well, even if it was more for the implications of the fight than the fight itself.
However, the fight of the year rightfully goes to Gennady Golovkin’s 8th rd. TKO of David Lemieux. Golovkin methodically broke down the Canadian middleweight throughout the first 8 rounds, precisely dictating with his jab and negating Lemieux’s power with excellent defense and timing. Golovkin frustrated Lemieux time and time again, waiting for the right time before unloading and ending the fight in the 8th. With his victory, Gennady made perhaps the best case for being the world’s pound for pound best fighter in the absence of Mayweather, while opening himself up to a wide array of pretty intriguing opportunities in 2016 (more on that later).
Fighter of the Year:
While Golovkin’s destruction of Lemieux may have been the most impressive single effort in 2015, it’s hard to make a case against Canelo Alvarez for this year’s best fighter. Neither fighter he faced in 2015 were chumps, yet in both he looked his best. One could argue that nobody has rebounded from a Floyd Mayweather loss better than Canelo has: He used the experience to become twice the fighter he used to be, and since that loss he’s beaten a who’s who of middleweight talent.
While Canelo proved his ability to go the distance vs. top ranked opposition in his win over Miguel Cotto, his 3rd rd. TKO of Kirkland was particularly impressive, not to mention a refreshing change of pace for a sport that had been all but put to sleep after watching Pacquiao unsuccessfully try to crack the Mayweather shield for 12 rounds. Canelo was powerful; Canelo was swift; Canelo was brutal. Boxing needs brutal.
Sure, defensive experts such as Floyd last longest, but boxing fans live for the knockouts and battered faces. Not to take away from anything Mayweather has done because he is a tactical genius, but boxing needs sluggers. Gennady Golovkin and Saul Alvarez are said sluggers. Somebody has to get these two in a ring together.
Flop of the Year:
Stevenson vs. Karpency
Premier Boxing Champions gets a lot of deserved hate. Sure some of the matchups aren’t great, but they’ve also been able to bring us some top notch matchups like Lamont Peterson vs. Danny Garcia, and Andre Dirrell vs. James DeGale. Adonis Stevenson vs. Tommy Karpency, however, was not one of these top notch matchups.
Somebody needs to remind PBC mastermind Al Haymon that Rocky was a movie and doesn’t actually work in real life. In real life, Apollo Creed downs Balboa in the 2nd round. That’s exactly what happened to poor Tommy Karpency, who somehow wandered into the same ring as Adonis Stevenson and was just allowed to fight instead of being escorted out by security.
To steal a line from Avengers’ Nick Fury, Karpency was “hopelessly - hilariously - outgunned”. The only thing that Stevenson vs. Karpency did successfully was allow Adonis to dodge light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev….again. If he has to resort to pulling guys off the street to delay the fight, well then that’s pretty sad.
Looking Ahead:
After such a whirlwind year that saw so much in boxing change, it is only assumed that this coming year will be one to be remembered. With Wladamir Klitschko and Floyd Mayweather both leaving a plethora of vacant titles all over their respective divisions, boxing’s door has suddenly been blown wide open. While nothing is guaranteed in this world of politicking, mandatory title fights, and injury, 2016 certainly has the potential to be an even better year for boxing than 2015 was. Here are some fighters to keep an eye on, as well as some fights VAVEL hopes to see happen.
Fighter to Watch in 2016:
Errol Spence Jr. A former Olympian, Errol Spence has quickly become one of the best boxers in his weight class. Need proof? Since his rise, welterweight contenders have been avoiding Spence like the plague. Why? Because Spence is every fighter’s worst nightmare: young, unafraid, and ridiculously talented. Well, the welterweight division won’t be able to ignore the Dallas, Texas native much longer. Spence is starting to find his way into the rankings: Ring Magazine, the Internatonal Boxing Federation, International Boxing Organization, and ESPN have Spence ranked as a top 10 welterweight, while the World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Association have him in the top 15.
After three victories in 2015 (all by knockout) Spence has improved to a remarkable 19-0, 16 by way of knockout. While his opponents (Phil Lo Greco, Chris Van Heerden, and Alejandro Barrera) were nothing outstanding, all are seasoned veterans of the sport with some impressive records of their own.
Errol Spence has done what a great fighter is supposed to do against good fighters; he beat them. Badly. He’s cut through the middle of the pack like a hot knife through bread, and the only thing left for the Dallas Southpaw is the cream of the crop. He’s coming for a title fight.
Fights We Want To See:
Heavyweight:
Deontay Wilder (35-0; 34 KO) vs. Alexander Povetkin (31-1; 22 KO)
Tyson Fury’s win over Klitschko makes for a suddenly very interesting landscape in the heavyweight division; perhaps the most interesting it’s been in 20 years. Yes, Fury now holds the same belts Klitschko does (minus one that was vacated), but the chance that he holds them with the same dominance Wlad did is very, very slim. The heavyweight division’s up-and-comers are foaming at the mouths with the idea of a belt around their waist being more tangible than ever before. Wilder vs. Povetkin, which is technically mandatory, would serve as a sort of unofficial eliminator to see who Tyson Fury makes his first defense against.
Light Heavyweight:
Adonis Stevenson (27-1; 22 KO) vs. Sergey Kovalev (28-0-1; 25 KO)
The boxing world wants this fight to happen. However, what the boxing world wants and what it gets are typically two very, very different things. Kovalev is scheduled to fight in late January against Jean Pasqual in Canada (the only country Stevenson has ever fought in professionally outside of 2 bouts in the States) and maybe his being in Stevenson’s backyard (metaphorically) will get the ball rolling on this fight, but that’s doubtful.
Super Middleweight:
Badou Jack (20-1-1; 12 KO) vs. James DeGale (22-1; 14 KO)
If this fight happened in 2016, it could be a candidate for fight of the year. Both fighters are powerful punchers while still maintaining a strong sense of strategy in the ring. Both currently hold a belt. Both are young with only 1 loss on their record. Unfortunately, both probably will end up settling for lesser competition instead of risking their belts to each other so early on in their reigns at the top. Realistically, expect to see this fight in 2017 at the earliest if both Jack and DeGale remain in form, but keep wishing for it in 2016 and who knows what will happen.
Middleweight:
Gennady Golovkin (34-0; 31 KO) vs. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (46-1; 32 KO)
With Golovkin fighting the fight of the 2015, and Alvarez being the fighter of 2015, these two butting heads (or, in this case, fists) would only make sense. As we know, however, boxing rarely makes sense and many skeptics believe Alvarez’s promoter Oscar De La Hoya would rather milk his cash cow rather than risk another loss. Don’t give up yet though, boxing fans. Word on the street is that the two camps are in “serious” discussions which means there is a sliver of hope. How serious is “serious”, though? Good question.
Billy Joe Saunders (23-0; 12 KO) vs. Miguel Cotto (40-5; 33 KO)
Saunders is fresh off an impressive win over Andy Lee while Cotto has the taste of defeat still fresh in his mouth after a narrow loss to Canelo Alvarez. Saunders called out Cotto personally after his win over Lee, and it’s hard to imagine Miguel Cotto skipping over another chance at a title, especially this late in his career.
Daniel Jacobs (31-1; 28 KO) vs. Andy Lee (34-3-1; 24 KO)
While not much has been said about this fight, it would make sense if it happened. Both fighters are pretty cozy with Al Haymon, both have impressive resumes, both want a title (or another title, in Jacobs’ case). The only thing worrying about this matchup is the possible talent disparity; both Jacobs and Lee have fought Peter Quillain this past year. Lee fought Quillain to a draw while Jacobs knocked “Kid Chocolate” out in the first round. True that this doesn’t necessarily mean anything for a Jacobs vs. Lee Matchup, but Jacobs is closer to Golovkin and Alvarez in terms of talent than he is to Lee.
Welterweight:
Keith Thurman (26-0[1]; 22 KO) vs. Shawn Porter (26-1-1; 16 KO)
Leading off what could be a great year for welterweight fights is the battle of “One-time” vs. “Showtime”. While this fight would be a terrific matchup, the buildup to it has been frustrating. Both camps are adamant that this fight is a matter of “when”, not “if”, but the details and dates are in an odd limbo. Until then, all there is left to do is imagine how great this fight would be. Thurman’s raw power vs. Porter’s athleticism alone is enough to make any boxing fan salivate just a little.
Manny Pacquiao (57-6-2; 39 KO) vs. Amir Khan (31-3; 19 KO)
Amir Khan is already on the shortlist for Manny Pacquiao’s final fight. Other names include Terrence Crawford and Kell Brook, but with Crawford due for a mandatory Super-Lightweight defense in April and Kell Brook not quite being “there” in terms of talent level, Khan is the obvious choice. He’s a top contender and a rising star in boxing and is still sour after not getting the Mayweather fight, but in Manny’s eyes he is beatable. That may be the deal-sealer.
Danny Garcia (31-0; 18 KO) vs. Marcos Maidana (35-5; 31 KO)
This has had all the lead-up to a good fight. Trash talk has been had by both camps. Insults have been thrown by both fighers. Chests have been thumped and promises have been made. Blogs have speculated and hypothesized. All that remains for this fight is putting it on paper. Danny Garcia does have a date with Robert Guerrero scheduled for late January, but hypothetically this could be a terrific summer blockbuster.
Errol Spence Jr. (19-0; 16 KO) vs. Kell Brook (35-0; 24 KO)
Spence deserves a title shot, and Brook needs a fight. With Spence’s victory over Alejandro Barrera upgraded to an official eliminator for a Kell Brook matchup, this fight has the groundwork laid. Spence wants a belt badly, and like previously stated, that makes him a very scary matchup for anybody who would like to hold onto a belt for a while.
Footnote:
[1]: Keith Thurman's record also contains a No-Contest vs. Francisco Garcia circa 2009.