By Paul “Paparazzi” Jones & Justin Jones – With Hollywood’s award season upon us, and the 2018 Golden Globe® Award winners announced this past Sunday, we kick off the New Year by unveiling our yearly boxing awards starting with the 2017 Fighter of the Year.
And the nominees are. . .
Heavyweight legend, former two-time king George Foreman today celebrates his 69th birthday. In great health, and always in great spirits, “Big George” is the elder statesman of boxing, the way the departed Muhammad Ali perhaps should have been in his later years had ill health not struck him down. Immensely popular (it’s so hard to believe how Foreman was a bad guy, a disliked fighter back in the 1970s), Foreman perhaps holds the distinction of being the greatest living heavyweight boxer.
Two-division world champion Danny “Swift” Garcia and former world champion Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios went face-to-face for the first time Tuesday at a press conference in Los Angeles to announce their main event showdown taking place Saturday, Feb. 17 live on SHOWTIME from Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas and presented by Premier Boxing Champions.
Amir Khan is set to host a press conference in London tomorrow, during which the former 140 pound champ will make what he himself says will be “a major announcement.” Just this week rumors surfaced, suggesting Khan has a fight set against Adrien Broner, but while this may indeed be the big news the 31 year old will release officially tomorrow, there are more whispers saying he has even bigger news.
There was a time when Howard Cosell was very much the voice of boxing; the man on the microphone whenever the big, big fights took place. Cosell, though, was far from the most popular sports commentator in the world, with some people, be it fans or active fighters, feeling the ABC man was just a little bit too big-headed and pompous for his own good.
![Evander Holyfield: Floyd Mayweather is a great fighter but he was never undisputed [champion]](https://www.boxing247.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/holyfield.jpg "Photo: Evander Holyfield: Floyd Mayweather is a great fighter but he was never undisputed [champion]")
All-time great Evander Holyfield, who fought everyone there was to fight at both heavyweight and cruiserweight, becoming undisputed champion in both weight divisions, doesn’t like the way Floyd Mayweather Junior never once unified the titles in any of the divisions in which he won a world title.
Speaking with Kevin Iole, “The Real Deal” says that although he rates “Money” as a great fighter, he feels to be the best of the absolute best a fighter must win all the belts, beat all the other champions at the weight class.
“Vicious” Victor Ortiz and Devon Alexander “The Great” headline a show topped by two USA vs. Mexico battles as the former welterweight champions meet in the 12-round main event of Premier Boxing Champions on FOX and FOX Deportes Saturday, Feb. 17 from Don Haskins Center on the UTEP campus in El Paso, Texas with televised coverage starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
Did the beating he took from Errol Spence, to his facial bones especially, do permanent damage to former IBF welterweight champ Kell Brook? Come to think of it, did the damage Brook took in the Gennady Golovkin fight, which took place eight months earlier, do irreparable harm to the Sheffield warrior?
No man has ever held, simultaneously, all four major heavyweight belts: WBA/IBF/WBO and WBC. Anthony Joshua, who currently holds two of these coveted titles, could take one big step closer to getting an opportunity at getting his hands on a third strap this week.
January 20, 2018. Less than two weeks from today IBF Welterweight Champion Errol Spence Jr. will defend his title against two division champion Lamont Peterson. One has to applaud Spence for taking on such a difficult challenge in his first title defense. Peterson is not only a recognizable name to boxing fans. He is also a handful for any boxer not named Lucas Matthysse. However, I wonder if this was an error in judgement by Team Spence.