When Heavyweight contenders Bermane Stiverne and Chris
Arreola entered the ring for their rematch on Saturday night in Los Angeles,
the Boxing world focused its attention on a fight between two knockout punchers
where anything could happen. A small 17 by 17 foot ring would present an ideal
setting for a shootout.
Along with the historical significance that this fight
brought with it in either the first Haitian or Mexican-American World
Heavyweight champion to be crowned by winning a vacant world title, the
question of who would succeed Vitali Klitschko as WBC champion would also be
answered. As is often the case when two fighters meet for a vacant world
championship following a dominant champion relinquishing his title, some are
likely to question and or discredit the validity of the contest being a “Real”
championship fight.
What made this championship fight somewhat different is the
fact that although Vitali Klitschko has been a dominant champion, he was one
half of a dominant duo. The duo that over the years this observer has referred
to as “The Two-Headed Heavyweight Championship Monster” known as the Klitschko
brothers. Now with Vitali having put his career on hold and vacating his title
it has left his younger brother and unified world champion Wladimir Klitschko
as the division’s central figure.
In the lead up to this rematch I stated that whomever should
win would likely have to fight a different battle that many past champions have
had to take on after winning a world title for recognition as world champion.
Despite the battle that awaited the winner of this fight, what Boxing fans are
likely to remember of May 10, 2014 is that it was a night that an exciting
battle took place where a new champion was crowned.
The rematch would pick up where the first fight had left off
with both fighters willing to stand and engage each other in close in a fight
that saw plenty of back and forth action. The difference however, in the
rematch was that Arreola seemed to outwork Stiverne as he consistently backed
him up against the ropes, in contrast to the first fight where Stiverne was
able to outwork a pressuring Arreola. Although Stiverne was able to have his
moments, I feel that Arreola’s activity and consistent pressure was able to win
him three out of the first five rounds.
Even though Arreola was clearly more active than Stiverne,
Stiverne was effective in spots counter punching and during periods where he
was able to keep the fight in the middle of the ring. There could easily be a
difference of opinion as to how the first five rounds were scored. Discussion
of how rounds were scored however, would become academic in round six.
A right hand by Stiverne landed on the temple of Arreola
sending him down to the canvas. Although Arreola was able to make it to his
feet and continue, when a fighter gets hit on the temple it can obviously
affect a fighter’s equilibrium. Arreola would be dropped for a second time by a
follow-up barrage of punches from Stiverne. I was somewhat surprised that the
fight was allowed to continue at this point due to the condition of Arreola’s
legs, which were wobbly.
The fight would be stopped seconds later by Referee Jack
Reiss. Although I was surprised somewhat that the fight was allowed to continue
Referee Jack Reiss deserves a lot of credit for giving Arreola every chance to
recover, but at the same time did not allow him to suffer any unnecessary
punishment.
Bermane Stiverne has etched his name into Boxing history as
the first Haitian to win a World Heavyweight championship. It was an exciting
battle between two “Game” fighters who were looking to make the step from
contender to world champion.
What does this do to the landscape of the Heavyweight
division beyond merely filling a vacancy of a world title? There are likely to
be varying opinions on that question, but in terms of the immediate future as a
relates to the World Boxing Council (WBC) Stiverne is likely to make his first
title defense against the undefeated number one contender Deontay Wilder
perhaps later this year. Meanwhile a scheduled fight to determine the number
two ranking in the WBC ratings between top contenders Bryant Jennings and Mike
Perez that was scheduled to take place on May 24th was canceled last Friday due
to a shoulder injury suffered by Perez.
As of this writing there is no word on when that fight might
be rescheduled. It will also be interesting to see where the rest of the WBC
top ten contenders will factor in, in the coming months. Current WBC number
seven rated contender and former world title challenger Manuel Charr will face current WBA number three rated contender
and former world title challenger Alexander Povetkin on May 30th in Moscow, in
a WBC International title fight.
Another upcoming fight that will likely have an impact on
the WBC Heavyweight ratings is the upcoming rematch between undefeated
contender Tyson Fury and former world title challenger Dereck Chisora, on July
26th with both the European and British Heavyweight titles at stake. Even
though the rematch between Fury and Chisora is also to determine a new number
one contender in the World Boxing Organization’s (WBO) rankings, Fury is
currently rated number ten by the WBC and Chisora is currently rated number
eight.
Depending not only on what may happen when Wladimir
Klitschko defends his unified IBF/WBO/WBA/IBO crown against IBF top contender
Kubrat Pulev at some point in the future, and the status of the WBC’s number
two ranking, the outcome of that rematch could definitely shake things up as
far as the WBC rankings are concerned. What also should be taken into
consideration is, despite being stopped by Bermane Stiverne, Chris Arreola is
likely not done as a contender and depending on when he fights again and
against whom could also have ratings implications.
Although many are likely to assume that Stiverne will seek a
fight for the undisputed championship with Wladimir Klitschko next, I remain
firm in my stance as I have said in previous columns covering the Heavyweight
division that this might be the year that lays the groundwork towards an
undisputed championship fight. It is
more likely that an undisputed championship fight will not take place until
mandatory obligations are met on both sides.
It has been an interesting first half of 2014 for the
Heavyweight division so far. Boxing fans and experts alike eagerly await what
is in store for the division for the rest of the year.
“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”
The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison
All Rights Reserved.
Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison
No comments:
Post a Comment