Category: Uncategorized

My Heavyweight Rankings: December 2019

15 – Jarrell Miller. Record: 23-0-1 (20 KO)

Yes, he’s a drugs cheat, and admittedly he hasn’t had a fight in 2019, but he still has a solid record that needs to be acknowledged. In 2017 he stopped former world title challengers Mariusz Wach and Gerald Washington, and knocked out former Cruiserweight world champion Tomasz Adamek in 2018. He is very good at applying pressure to his opponents, and whilst he isn’t an excellent technical boxer, he has staggering power that has KO’d 83% of his opponents.

14 – Daniel Dubois. Record: 13-0-0 (12 KO)

I would happily say that Daniel Dubois is the second hardest punching Heavyweight in the world right now, behind Deontay Wilder of course. I have to admit, I was sceptical about Dubois’ abilities before his fight in July against Nathan Gorman, but he proved me completely wrong, by outclassing Gorman en-route to a 5th round KO. Dubois won the British Heavyweight title that night, and added the Commonwealth title two months later, blowing away Ebenezer Tetteh in the first round. It looks like Frank Warren is trying to take Dubois’ progression slowly, and not forcing him into top 10 Heavyweight fights already, which I’m perfectly happy with, considering he’s only 22.

13 – Adam Kownacki. Record: 20-0-0 (15 KO)

Kownacki had a very solid 2019, stopping Gerald Washington in January and winning by unanimous decision against Chris Arreola in August. The fight against Arreola actually broke a Compubox record for the most punches thrown in a Heavyweight fight in its 34 year history, with 2,172 punches thrown across 12 rounds. Much like Miller, Kownacki is a brawler by nature, and often comes out throwing power punches within the first 10 seconds of a fight. His style makes for very entertaining fights, but I struggle to see how he’ll cope against a competent top-10 boxer, who would most likely outbox him and deal with his pressure quite easily.

12 – Dereck Chisora. Record: 32-9-0 (23 KO)

He has the most losses on his record in this list by far, but it feels like Chisora has only just reached his full potential at the age of 35. Following his loss to Whyte last December, which he was arguably winning at the time of the stoppage, Chisora had three fights in 2019. The first was an underwhelming fight against Senad Gashi, before two brutal displays against Artur Szpilka and David Price. His training seems to have paid off so much more recently, as he seems more focused and serious than ever. The Chisora of today never would’ve lost to Agit Kabayel and Robert Helenius, and would’ve given Kubrat Pulev a far more difficult fight. The pressure that Chisora applies to his opponents is unmatched in my opinion, and he could seriously make waves in 2020, with a bout between him and Oleksandr Usyk being rumoured for early next year.

11 – Alexander Povetkin. Record: 35-2-1 (24 KO)

Povetkin has been a top 10 Heavyweight for about 10 years now, but unfortunately for him, never managed to secure a world title. Now at the age of 40, he appears to be slowing down, as his last fight against Michael Hunter showed. Povetkin still gave Hunter a great fight, but he was rocked too many times, and looked significantly slower than he was when he fought Joshua. Despite his age he would still probably beat a vast majority of top 25 Heavyweights, with a serious level of power still in his hands, and he’s still got world class conditioning. He outboxed Hughie Fury in August, proving that he can still beat top fighters, but his days are surely numbered at this point.

10 – Michael Hunter. Record: 18-1-1 (12 KO)

Hunter is a very overlooked fighter, despite amassing an impressive Heavyweight record since stepping up from Cruiserweight last year. His power has carried up well, knocking out 4 of his 7 Heavyweight opponents, and he’s outboxed the others. In September Hunter fought unbeaten Russian Sergey Kuzmin in New York, a fight which I gave him all twelve rounds, as he knocked Kuzmin down in the fifth en-route to a unanimous decision victory. He battled it out with Alexander Povetkin this month, in a fight which I thought he deserved to win, but was ultimately ruled a draw. Hunter’s only loss came in 2017, against Oleksandr Usyk, but has remained unbeaten since, and looks like a huge problem for the Heavyweight division in the next few years.

9 – Kubrat Pulev. Record: 28-1-0 (14 KO)

Kubrat Pulev has done very little to get excited about since his only loss to Wladimir Klitschko in 2014, with his best win coming against Chisora in 2016. He was originally due to challenge Joshua for his titles in late 2017, but had to pull out of the fight due to injury, but has maintained his place as the IBF mandatory thanks to some comparatively weaker match ups since. In 2019, he knocked out Bogdan Dinu and won a very underwhelming unanimous decision against Rydell Booker in November. Pulev is a very talented tactician and often opts to sit on his jab as opposed to fully engaging with his opponents. His more reserved style has helped him beat a decent number of top competitors like Alexander Dimitrenko and Tony Thompson, and he may be facing Joshua as the IBF mandatory early in 2020.

8 – Luis Ortiz. Record: 31-2-0 (26 KO) (2 NC)

Luis Ortiz could’ve very easily become a world champion by now, but top contenders avoiding him for a long time probably mean that it’s too late for him now. He turned 40 in March, although that age is slightly disputed due to his extensive amateur career. In his rematch with Deontay Wilder in November, Ortiz outboxed Wilder for 6 rounds, before ultimately succumbing to his freakish power in the 7th round. Ortiz is still an excellent boxer though despite his age, and is still very strong physically, which means he could still land some big fights in 2020, but I think that ultimately Ortiz won’t do enough to become a world champion at this point.

7 – Joseph Parker. Record: 26-2-0 (20 KO)

2018 was not a great year for Joseph Parker, as he lost his WBO title to Joshua and then lost a unanimous decision to Dillian Whyte. Parker deserved to lose both fights in my opinion but that doesn’t change the fact that he is still a world quality boxer. His footwork is excellent, and has the benefit of being an excellent technician with knockout power. He only had one outing in 2019, stopping Alex Leapai in the 10th round, but was originally due to fight Dereck Chisora in October before pulling out due to illness. Parker is due to return in the US at some point early next year, but no opponent has been confirmed yet.

6 – Andy Ruiz Jr. Record: 33-2-0 (22 KO)

At this point Ruiz needs no introduction. He shocked the world by beating Joshua in June and was shot into global stardom. He fought a perfect fight that night, and was the deserved winner. Unfortunately, he didn’t put up as much of a fight against Joshua the second time round, and lost his titles by a lopsided unanimous decision. Ruiz has an incredibly impressive chin, and hand speed that he has no right to posses at 117 KG plus. He magnificently flew under the radar for a long time before his victory over Joshua, despite his previous world title challenge against Joseph Parker, a fight which many viewers thought he deserved to win. I have absolutely no doubt that Ruiz will continue to cement himself in the Heavyweight picture in 2020, but I can’t see a trilogy fight emerging with Joshua any time soon.

5 – Dillian Whyte. Record: 27-1-0 (18 KO)

GIVE THE MAN A TITLE SHOT. Whyte is the only boxer in this top 10 to not yet challenge for a world title, which is staggering to me. He’s been the highest ranked Heavyweight contender by the WBC since his decision victory over Robert Helenius at the end of 2017. But yet the WBC made Dominic Breazeale Wilder’s mandatory earlier this year instead. He has amassed an exceptional record since his only defeat to Joshua in late 2015, beating Parker, Browne, Rivas and Chisora twice. He has changed his style massively as well, switching from a brawler to a far more technical boxer with an excellent jab. He also possesses probably the best left hook in Heavyweight boxing today. His last bout against Mariusz Wach was underwhelming but he still managed a win despite the fight being made at three weeks notice.

4 – Anthony Joshua. Record: 23-1-0 (21 KO)

I’ve been critical of Joshua in the past, but his performance in his rematch against Ruiz Jr. spoke volumes about the man. To come back from what he did and put on a masterclass in the rematch takes a level of heart and determination that I won’t ever have. He learned a lot of lessons from his first fight with Ruiz in June, adapting to a style that kept him at the end of his jab for the vast majority of the fight. I only gave Ruiz one round in that fight, meaning I scored it 119-109 for Joshua. He made a huge statement in Saudi Arabia, but I still don’t think he’s the best in the division, in fact I see him losing to all 3 boxers ahead of him in the list. In 2020, Joshua has two mandatories to choose from: IBF mandatory Pulev and WBO mandatory Usyk, two very tough fights that could go either way. I think that based on the level of adaptability that he’s showed recently that even if he loses his titles again anytime soon he’ll still be a serious competitor for years to come.

3 – Oleksandr Usyk. Record: 17-0-0 (13 KO)

This may be a slightly confusing one to many people, but I think that Usyk is one of the pound for pound best boxers in the world. The former undisputed Cruiserweight champion has an unbelievable ring IQ, great footwork and a phenomenal engine. There are questions whether he’ll be able to make a mark in the Heavyweight division, but there’s not doubt in my mind that he will. He made his Heavyweight debut in October, stopping Chazz Witherspoon in the 7th round. The two opponents that Usyk is rumoured to face in 2020 are Joshua and Chisora, two very, very difficult fights, but I honestly see him winning both of them. Even if Usyk loses to Joshua I still see him becoming a Heavyweight champion in the next few years, that’s how good I think he is. As an amateur, Usyk beat professional Heavyweights Joe Joyce, Junior Fa and Magomedrasul Majidov, so fighting big Heavyweights won’t be entirely alien for him.

2 – Deontay Wilder. Record: 42-0-1 (41 KO)

The hardest punching Heavyweight in the world, it’s as simple as that. He isn’t the most skilled boxer so it is possible to outbox him, just like Fury and Ortiz did, but it’s almost guaranteed that he’ll find a way to land those big power shots at some point. In his rematch against Ortiz I had him losing every round, up until the point that he landed an absolute peach of a right hand. Wilder also scored the most devastating knockout of 2019, stopping Dominic Breazeale in the first round with one of the best straight right hands I’ve ever seen. He may not be the best technical boxer, but his athleticism, heart and chin make up for it in spades. Most other boxers would’ve been knocked out by Ortiz in the 7th round of their first fight, but somehow Wilder remained on his feet and stopped him in the 10th. If this was a list of pure boxers then Wilder would be very low, but it doesn’t matter, because one slight slip up in your defence and you’re left on your back.

1 – Tyson Fury. Record: 29-0-1 (20 KO)

Yes, I still think that Tyson Fury is the best Heavyweight in the world. Compared to 2018, 2019 was a slightly more disappointing year, but he still won both his fights in very different fashions. Fury stopped Tom Schwarz in the second round in June, and won a unanimous decision against Otto Wallin in September. The latter was a far more difficult fight for Fury, as he was dragged into a brawl by Wallin, but he proved that he’s not just an outside fighter, and if needs be he can get down and dirty and brawl it out with someone. It does have to be mentioned however, that he sustained a cut in that fight that probably would’ve stopped the fight if it was on Wallin. It reminded me massively of the cut that Vitali Klitschko sustained in his fight with Lennox Lewis in 2003, a cut that caused the ref to stop the fight at the end of the 6th round. Fury proved that he can adapt his style though, and that will be massive for him in the coming years. His next fight is set to be a rematch against Wilder in February, a fight that can realistically go either way, but I personally see Fury outboxing him again.

Danny Cipriani is by Far the Biggest Loss at This Years World Cup

It would be unfair to say that I’ve been unhappy with Eddie Jones’ tenure as England head coach so far. How could you be unhappy with a man who’s won two six nations titles, a test series in Australia and has so far maintained a win rate of 76.2%? He’s obviously done very well in the job, but some of Jones’ selection choices throughout his time as head coach have left me scratching my head a bit too much. Jones has continuously left in form players like Dan Robson, Don Armand and Danny Cipriani out of his squads despite them all excelling in the Premiership, and whilst they have all at some point featured for England since 2016, it simply hasn’t been an accurate reflection of the performances that they’ve put in at club level. Under Jones, Robson has played 28 minutes of test rugby, Armand has played 23 and Cipriani has played 94. That sounds like a lot when compared to Robson and Armand but it really isn’t. And whilst I’ve been disappointed with the exclusion of Armand and Robson, the exclusion of Cipriani is something that has really bothered me.

Cipriani, Six Nations 2008

Cipriani burst onto the scene in 2006, when he began making first team appearances for Wasps. He was so immensely different to what English fly-halves were supposed to be like at that point, with many following in Jonny Wilkinson’s footsteps. Cipriani was a running fly-half however, and was actually the fastest player in the Wasps first team squad at that point. He made his debut for England in the 2008 Six Nations, and had a couple of underwhelming performances before starting against Ireland in the final game at Twickenham. Cipriani scored 18 points in a 33-10 victory, and put on possibly the best performance by an England fly-half since Jonny Wilkinson in the 2003 Rugby World Cup final. He was unable to become a permanent member of the England squad however, as his inconsistent play and erratic behaviour eventually caught up with him. He moved to the Melbourne Rebels in 2011, where he helped the Super Rugby team win their first ever competitive match, beating the Brumbies as Cipriani scored 17 points. His erratic off-field behaviour caught up with him again however, and he eventually saw himself dropped from the team in favour of James O’Connor and Kurtley Beale.

Cipriani returned to England in 2012, signing for Sale Sharks, as he began to slowly show flashes of his former brilliance. In 4 years, he played 76 times for the Sharks, scoring 590 points. By the end of his time in Salford, Cipriani was arguably better than he had ever been before, and after joining Wasps in 2016, he was playing the best rugby of his career. Despite Jimmy Gopperth’s outstanding 2015/16 season, Cipriani came straight into the first team, moving Gopperth out to inside centre. Wasps reached the Premiership final that season, losing by 3 points to Exeter Chiefs after extra time. They reached the play-offs again the following year, this time losing to Saracens in the semi-finals. Despite Cipriani not being the first choice goal kicker for Wasps, he still managed an impressive 140 points across 51 appearances for the side up until last year. Cipriani moved to Gloucester for the 2018/19 season and guided them to the semi-finals, picking up the Premiership player of the season award along the way.

Cipriani vs South Africa, 2018

Cipriani has played just twice under Eddie Jones, both in last years tour of South Africa. He came off the bench in the second test and immediately changed England’s attack when he came on, replacing George Ford who at that point just seemed to have run out of ideas. He then started the final test, and played the entire 80 minutes as England won 25-10, setting up England’s only try with a perfectly weighted kick that Jonny May latched onto the end of. I don’t think there’s a better representation of Cipriani’s career with England than Farrell’s reaction to that kick. Farrell stops running looking fed up with Cipriani having decided to kick, only to turn round to find that it had sat up perfectly for May to touch down in the corner. That’s what England have missed a lot throughout Eddie Jones’ reign though. That ability to create something out of nothing. The majority of the time England have relied on being able to take advantage of another teams mistakes, and when there are none, that’s when they’ve really struggled. But Cipriani adds a creative spark that wins games. With one piece of skill and quick thinking he can turn a game on its head.

Owen Farrell is world class. George Ford is good at international level. Piers Francis is yet to prove himself at the top level. Danny Cipriani is world class and he’s barely had the opportunity to prove it at international level. I’m not trying to be harsh on Ford and Francis, but I would happily take Cipriani over both of them in England’s World Cup squad and go into the tournament with 30 players instead of 31. Ford and Francis are excellent players and they’ve done nothing wrong, it’s Jones’s selection policy that should be questioned here. I would happily say that Danny Cipriani is one of the most naturally talented athletes that England has ever produced. I’d put him alongside Steven Gerrard, Lennox Lewis, Kelly Holmes and Jonny Wilkinson. He really is that good, but those 4 had so much more of an opportunity to prove themselves on the world stage. It genuinely upsets me to think that we probably won’t ever see Danny Cipriani play at a world cup. He may never play in a Lions jersey either, but he has deserved both of those things so much. It’s times like these when you just have to think ‘what if?’. If he’d managed to stay out of trouble, if he was far less confrontational with coaches, and if he’d focused a little bit more when he was younger, would we be looking at an all time great of the sport at this point? Unfortunately he never got the opportunity to truly show us.