Iron Mike Tyson was the undisputed heavyweight king of the 1980s! Known for his blazing … read more
Iron Mike Tyson is arguably the most exciting boxer in the rich history of professional boxing. Tyson electrified audiences with his crowd-pleasing style that often resulted in magnificent highlight reel knockouts. Tyson’s unique blend of blazing speed and devastating power made him an absolute force to be reckoned with.
Saturday night marked an historic moment in professional boxing. It was the first time ever that two former two-time Olympic gold medalists competed in a championship prizefight. Guillermo Rigondeaux (17-1, 11 KOs) moved up two weight classes to challenge the reigning WBO super featherweight world champion Vasyl Lomachenko (10-1, 8 KOs).
One of the absolute greatest match-ups that can be made in all of professional boxing is just around the corner. On December 9, undefeated WBA super bantamweight world champion Guillermo Rigondeaux (17-0, 11 KOs) will move up two full weight classes to challenge WBO super featherweight world champion Vasyl Lomachenko (9-1, 7 KOs) at the Madison Square Garden theater.
Muhammad Ali (56-5, 37 KOs) is widely viewed as the greatest heavyweight of all time. During his long and illustrious career, Ali has the unique distinction of being the only three time lineal heavyweight champion in the rich history of professional boxing.
Saturday night on HBO former unified light heavyweight world champion Sergey Kovalev (31-2-1, 27 KOs) defeated Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (19-2, 16 KOs) for the vacant WBO title that Kovalev once possessed. Kovalev dropped Shabranskyy twice in the opening round, and again in round two. He bravely rose to his feet once again following the third knockdown, but by then the damage had been done. Cool as an assassin, Kovalev continued breaking Shabranskyy down until referee Harvey Dock mercifully called a halt to the contest.
In the rich history of professional boxing, there have been many champions, especially in the last 30 to 40 years when things evolved to the point where we now have 4 major sanctioning bodies. We don’t have many undisputed champions in boxing these days, and in the rare instance that one emerges, boxing politics and the corrupt nature of sanctioning bodies usually make for short-lived undisputed reigns.
The heavyweight division has started to become interesting again. And there are three heavyweights in particular that have a lot of fans talking. We have unified IBF/WBA world champion Anthony Joshua (20-0, 20 KOs). Then we have WBC heavyweight champ Deontay Wilder (39-0, 38 KOs). And off the radar, but perhaps back in the picture, we have the man who ended Wladimir Klitschko’s long streak of dominance, Tyson Fury (25-0, 18 KOs).
In somewhat of an unexpected surprise, unified light heavyweight champion of the world, Andre Ward (32-0, 16 KOs) retired from professional boxing. Ward was 33 years old, and was widely viewed as the best pound for pound boxer in the world. He is coming off of an impressive stoppage victory against Sergey Kovalev last June.
The controversial draw between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin in last Saturday’s middleweight championship showdown continues to resonate throughout the boxing world. Controversial high profile fights always get extended attention – but in this instance, two of boxing’s biggest stars put on a good show, despite the unpopular verdict. This fight has huge rematch written all over it. It’s inevitable. It will happen. It’s just a matter of when.