Five Bouts that would Top Off 2017

By Donavan Leonard: 2017 has been a banner year for boxing, and there are still a few more highly-anticipated bouts on the calendar. This bonanza has extended over many divisions, with marquee bouts (biggest names/unifications) that have been held or are scheduled in: Heavyweight (Anthony Joshua-Vladimir Klitschko), Light Heavyweight (Andre Ward-Sergey Kovalev 2), Super Middleweight (Badou Jack-James DeGale), Middleweight (Gennady Golovkin-Canelo Alvarez), Welterweight (Errol Spence Jr.-Kell Brook, Danny Garcia-Keith Thurman), and Featherweight (Leo Santa Cruz-Carl Frampton). However, not all of the weight classes have enjoyed a showcase fight. 

There have been some quality bouts, but not a contest that at the end of 2016 would have been the one that was on the “must-see” list.   Here is a list of five of the best fights that could be made over the remainder of the year in those remaining divisions to highlight their talent.

Cruiserweight–Murat Gassiev (24-0, 17 KOs) vs. Oleksandr Usyk (12-0, 10KOs)  This  would pit two of the fresh faces in the division. Gassiev captured the IBF title in December 2016 with a split decision win over  veteran Denis Lebedev. This welcomed Gassiev to the big leagues, and showed that he is capable of thwarting any challenge. His bone-chilling knockout of Jordan Shimmel prior to the bout with Lebedev displayed the power that he possesses that can be unleashed in an instant. Meanwhile, Usyk captured the WBO title in September 2016 with a unanimous decision over Poland’s Krzysztof Glowacki. Glowacki had shown his mettle in victories over long-time champion  Marco Huck and perennial contender Steve Cunningham. Gassiev has more professional fights on his ledger, but Usyk’s vast experience as an amateur, including winning a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics, offsets any perceived advantage gained by Gassiev through his activity. Gassiev would be the hunter in this bout, as Usyk likes to use angles and movement, but at some point the distance would close and this has the potential to be an epic battle.   2017 is probably too soon for this bout, as Gassiev continues to develop, but with both displaying poise and confidence while taking belts from respected titlists,  it would be the ideal matchup to showcase the Cruiserweights.

Junior Welterweight–Terence Crawford (31-0, 22 KOs) vs Julius Indongo (22-0, 11 KOs)  The bout for four belts has been discussed, and could be a real possibility. Crawford is a known commodity whose name graces the pound-for-pound list of many experts. He can box, he can punch, he can fight out of either stance, and he is a fighter who truly enjoys what he does. He has totally outclassed top-level opponents Felix Diaz and Viktor Postol, and there have been calls for him to move up and challenge himself. The challenge is real at 140 pounds with Indongo. The perceived light-hitting Namibian was to be another notch for undefeated Eduard Troyanovsky, who at the time sported a glistening record of 25-0, 25 knockouts. Forty seconds into the first round, the unknown Indongo gained a win, a title, and a contender for KO-of-the-year and upset-of-the-year with a left hand that left Troyanovsky out on the canvas. He shut out Ricky Burns in his first defense. Burns is the only common opponent between the two, and both fighters had an easy time with him. Of course, the class of Crawford would make him the justifiable favorite in this bout, but the danger of facing a long, tall left-hander (Antonio Tarver-Roy Jones Jr.) would make this bout far more intriguing than just the value of the trinkets.

Lightweight–Mikey Garcia (36-0, 30 KOs) vs Jorge Linares (42-3, 27 KOs)  While a bout with Adrien Broner has been discussed for Garcia, it would be a much better test of his talent and a bigger treat for fans to watch him in a unification bout with Linares. After taking off for over two years due to promotional and contractual issues, Garcia has come back and reminded followers of boxing the talent they had been missing. His highlight-reel knockout of Dejan Zlaticanin showed just how devastating he can be. That, coupled with the memory of how he toyed with Orlando Salido before his time off, (and before Salido managed a victory over Vasyl Lomachenko) make him a must-watch commodity. In the other corner would be Linares, who has not lost a bout since 2012. He looked rejuvenated in his title-winning effort against Anthony Crolla in September 2016, and made it look even easier in the rematch in March 2017.  A unification bout between these two boxer-punchers would be a treat for those who love the sweet science.

Junior Lightweight–Vasyl Lomachenko (8-1, 6 KOs) vs Miguel Berchelt (31-1, 28 KOs). Lomachenko is another pound-for-pound entry, whose name has been tossed about fighting anyone from Mikey Garcia to Terence Crawford. He is a tremendous talent, and it appears he is on course to avenge his only defeat, a debatable loss to veteran Orlando Salido. At this point in both of their careers, it really is a sideways, if not backwards, move. Perhaps it needs to be arranged so that Lomachenko can state that he has beaten everyone he has faced, and that would be an acceptable justification. As other-worldly as Lomachenko has looked in undressing Roman Martinez, Nicholas Walters, and Jason Sosa in his last three bouts, a bigger challenge than shop-worn Salido is needed.  Enter Berchelt. On the surface, this is not as “sexy” as a bout with Garcia, but the rugged Mexican has reeled off ten consecutive wins since a loss to Luis Florez in 2014, and the last time he went the distance was in 2012.  Berchelt would be more like Salido 2.0, possibly even an upgrade on the version that gave Lomachenko problems in March 2014. Berchelt has shown the ability to walk through hell to finish off his opponents, as he did in his WBC title-winning effort against Vargas. If he takes care of business against Takashi Miura in his next bout in July, the drums should begin beating for this torrid unification bout. Lomachenko is a next-level talent, but he will be facing a fighter who will not quit and has the power to hurt him at any time.

Junior Bantamweight–Naoya Inoue (13-0, 11 KOs) vs. Juan Francisco Estrada (34-2, 24 KOs). Substituting Estrada for Roman Gonzalez is not a concession that the best days of “Chocolotito” have passed, but given that he has a rematch with Srisaket Sor Rungvisai scheduled in September, it would be doubtful that there would be enough time for him to be matched with Inoue. Estrada’s last loss was to Gonzalez, in November 2012, in a bout widely seen as Gonzalez’ most difficult. Inoue turned pro only one month prior to the Estrada-Gonzalez bout, but he has wasted no time in making his foray into the professional ranks worthwhile. He won the WBC light-flyweight title in only his 6th bout, A TKO over Adrian Hernandez in April 2014. Since that time he has gone on to win the WBO junior-bantamweight title and defended it five times. Only one opponent has heard the final bell. Appropriately nicknamed “Monster”, he has been a beast that nobody yet has been able to slow down, let alone tame. Estrada would present him with a young, hungry, experienced fighter, and possibly currently the greatest challenge in his division. A win for Inoue is not a forgone conclusion, and this bout could be reminiscent of Humberto Gonzalez-Michael Carbajal. This shouldn’t be a difficult match to make happen, as long as Estrada is amenable to traveling to Japan. He shouldn’t fear for a hometown decision, as the scorecards for Hassan N’dam and Ryota Murata show that officials in Japan can be very giving.

This list is by no means all-inclusive, but fight fans would definitely get their money’s worth if these bouts became reality. Here are the bouts that missed the cut: Junior Middleweight–Jermell Charlo-Erislandy Lara, Junior Featherweight–Guillermo Rigondeaux-Jesse Magdaleno, Bantamweight–Shinsuke Yamanaka-Zhanat Zhakiyanov, Flyweight–Kazuto Ioka–Donnie Nietes, Junior Flyweight–Kosei-Tanaka-Ryochi Taguchi, Minimumweight–Chayaphon Moonsri-Thammanoon Niyomtrong