HAVING been swept along by everything to do with Terence Crawford vs Errol Spence Jr boxing fans want more.
The two American welterweights played the game right during fight week. They let their achievements and talents speak for themselves. We were told not to expect any trash talk, instead respect was the lead role in a story where antagonism rarely got a hold of the leading men.
Crawford’s performance is rightly being lauded by those from around the boxing world and those who like to step foot into it from time to time. Recognised by TBRB and Boxing News as the pound-for-pound number one Crawford is now the main man.
The events at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on July 29 are now an electric memory, boxing quickly moves on. Superfights are few and far between across any era but they are contests which separate themselves from the rest. For the label to be applied different criteria is needed. Being a very good fighter isn’t enough, they need to be elite. A compelling storyline would help, a guaranteed big crowd, huge media attention and something that crosses over to the mainstream.
So, which two boxers will next create a momentous occasion where the entire sport stops for one night.
Boxing News brings you five candidates that can be filed under the term superfight.
Heavyweight: Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk
It’s already slipped through their fingers earlier this year when negotiations, played out publicly, fell apart turning it into a blame game. Fury and Usyk are in an evenly matched two-horse race with the rest some way behind. The heavyweight division has offered slim pickings since the Ukrainian fought Anthony Joshua in their rematch a year ago. Boxing’s biggest weight class needs to deliver and getting the best v the best to fight one another is a genuine super-fight.
Deontay Wilder vs Anthony Joshua
Should this arrive early 2024 then it will be a few years too late but that does not stop it being a superfight. Wilder and Joshua are still two hugely important players in the sport that people flock to see in their thousands. Add to that the destructive power of Wilder and the pedigree of Joshua and you have something that appeals to the masses. There are more questions for the Briton to answer than the American and it may not last long either.
Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua
Another heavyweight fight that is on the shelf gathering dust, but if things fall into place this is still a monster. If Fury was to beat Usyk or remain champion and if Joshua could beat Wilder then the all-British affair still quickens our pulses. Sure, it may take a bit of time to click with everyone, but fight week is where fans and fighters feel differently. And as the minutes counted down, the sight of Fury and Joshua staring across from one another about to fight would create an incredible sporting moment.
Super-middleweight: Canelo Alvarez vs David Benavidez
The fight that the 168lbs division needs. One modern-day great, one aspiring to become one. Rivalry, Mexican pride, contrasting personalities and potentially a passing of the torch moment. A stadium filler and a sure-fure fight of the year contender as well. It would provide a spectacle that would encapsulate all that is jaw-dropping about boxing.
Lightweight: Gervonta Davis vs Shakur Stevenson
‘Tank’ Davis has already established himself as one of the biggest draws in the sport Stevenson could well be his kryptonite, but he needs a dance partner of Tank’s stature to bring him into the mainstream. As two of the sport’s biggest talents this would be a must-watch from the first press conference until the fight was over.