Heavyweight: 2012, Jun 18-24
Saturday in Newark, #3 Tomasz Adamek managed to win an unimpressive decision over a mostly one-armed version of Eddie Chambers. BJ Flores, delivering what passed for commentary on NBC Sports, somehow thought that Chambers had won the fight. A draw, at best, and maybe as wide as 118-110 Adamek. Now that doesn’t mean the Polish contender looked good. He didn’t. Chambers probably handles him if he isn’t injured for most of the fight. But apparently Adamek has a talent for making opponents’ arms go bad (like Arreola a couple years ago).
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko (156-369-369)
Last Fight: 3/3/2012- TKO4 #16 Jean-Marc Mormeck
Next Fight: 7/7/2012- vs. #11 Tony Thompson
Wlad will be defending the title against #11 Tony Thompson in what will likely be another ho-hum matchup for the Champ. On the bright side, Thompson did put up a relatively spirited challenge the last time the two met in 2008.
1) Vitali Klitschko (193-193-193)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- UD12 #6 Dereck Chisora
Next Fight: 9/8/2012- vs. Manuel Charr (UNR)
Vitali has scheduled what it sounds like will be his final fight. Unfortunately, it’s hardly a fight at all. He’ll take on one of the weakest undefeated fighters you’ll ever see- Syrian Manuel Charr. 2) Tomasz Adamek (1-113-113)
Last Fight: 6/16/2012- UD12 Eddie Chambers (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Adamek managed to bag a significant win over recent-#3 Chambers without impressing in any way, shape, or form. How? Just like in the Arreola fight, his opponent blew out an arm. 3) Alexander Povetkin (1-243-243) Last Fight: 2/25/2012- W*(MD12) vs. CW #5 Marco Huck
Next Fight: 7/14/2012- vs. Hasim Rahman (UNR)
Povetkin’s ludicrous fight with Rahman will now be the co-feature to Haye-Chisora in London. 4) Marco Huck (14-17-17) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- Draw (MD12) vs. CW #7 Ola Afolabi (at CW) Next Fight: Unknown Unfortunately, Huck is apparently making a thinly-veiled attempt to make a pointless fight with weak European cruiserweight paper champion Alexander Alekseev. 5) Tyson Fury (14-48-48) Last Fight: 4/14/2012- TKO5 Martin Rogan (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/7/2012- vs. Vinny Maddalone (UNR)
Fury has taken another low-risk, no reward fight in Vinny Maddalone, the strong but crude American journeyman brawler. The fight will take place in Clevedon, England. 6) Dereck Chisora (14-29-92) Last Fight: 2/18/2012- L(UD12) vs. #1 Vitali Klitschko
Next Fight: 7/14/2012- vs. David Haye (UNR)
The British Board is bitterly opposed to this bout- which they refuse to license- but apparently it is going forward anyway. Get ready for a highly controversial blood-feud between Chisora and recent brawl opponent David Haye, July 14 in London. 7) Eddie Chambers (1-1-1) Last Fight: L (UD12) vs. #3 Tomasz Adamek Next Fight: Unknown Chambers is active again and of course grabs a top-10 spot, but given his arm injury, I would expect another bout with inactivity to come. 8) Robert Helenius (1-64-108)
Last Fight: 12/3/2011- W*(SD12) vs. #18 Dereck Chisora (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Helenius is now the mandatory challenger to #8 Kubrat Pulev’s European title- previously held by Helenius. Helenius is still in the midst of an uncertain recovery from shoulder surgery, however.
9) Kubrat Pulev (1-7-84) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- KO11 #12 Alexander Dimitrenko
Next Fight: Unknown
Might have a Helenius clash on the horizon, though the Finn’s health is a factor.
10) Odlanier Solis (1-14-108)
Last Fight: 5/19/2012- UD12 Konstantin Airich (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown
Considering he was extremely out of shape and had a surgically-repaired knee to worry about, Solis didn’t look too terrible in coasting to victory over a disappointing Konstantin Airich. 11) Tony Thompson (1-108)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO3 Maurice Harris (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/7/2012- vs. Champ Wladimir Klitschko
See Wladimir Klitschko’s comments, above.
12) Seth Mitchell (1-28) Last Fight: 4/28/2012- TKO3 Chazz Witherspoon (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Mitchell was set to fight the Klitschko-promoted Johnathon Banks, a mediocre one-loss prospect who is probably an upgrade from Witherspoon at least in terms of accomplishment, but a downgrade from Ibragimov- but he is now on the shelf until the fall due to a hand injury. 13) Ruslan Chagaev (1-292) Last Fight: 4/21/2012- TKO3 Billy Zumbrun (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The Valuev win is now over 5 years old, and Chagaev’s ranking has suffered as a result.
14) Alexander Dimitrenko (1-75) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- L(KO11) vs. #17 Kubrat Pulev
Next Fight: Unknown
Despite showing the heart of a quitter and the consistency of a random number generator against Pulev, Dimitrenko hangs on to a solid ranking because the other guys in his tier haven’t been winning meaningful fights lately.
15) Chris Arreola (1-170)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- KO1 Eric Molina (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Arreola pulled out of a scheduled fight with journeyman Mike Mollo this weekend with an injury.
16) Denis Boytsov (1-157)
Last Fight: 4/13/2012- UD10 Dominick Guinn (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Boytsov will likely fight in Moscow on August 24, but nothing official yet.
17) Jean-Marc Mormeck (1-108) Last Fight: 3/3/2012- L(TKO4) vs. Champ Wladimir Klitschko Next Fight: Unknown
It’s unclear why or how, but Mormeck’s cruiserweight fight with Lebedev appears to be off- with little fanfare- as Lebedev is working on a Guillermo Jones clash.
18) Bermane Stiverne (1-52) Last Fight: 4/14/2012- UD8 Willie Herring (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
19) Edmund Gerber (1-7) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- UD8 Maurice Harris (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Not the most scintillating effort against a passive Harris, but the old man is what passes for a fringe contender in this division at the moment, and thus Gerber has built himself a ranking. 20) Franklin Lawrence (1-56) Last Fight: 10/28/2011- TKO2 Raymond Ochieng (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown
Prospect Bryant Jennings outclassed journeyman Steve Collins on the undercard, winning a shutout 10-round decision.
It’s hard to feel good about ranking a guy #2 based on a shaky victory over a one-armed fighter, but Povetkin’s hold on that spot was already weakened by the debatable win over blown-up cruiserweight Marco Huck, and a legitimate win over a quality contender is what it is. Thus, Adamek and Povetkin switch spots. Chambers, having become an active fighter again, reclaims a spot in the top 10 at #7, which forces everyone ranked #7 and below last week down one spot each, including Tony Thompson- who exits the top 10 after 107 consecutive weeks in- and Kevin Johnon- who exits the rankings for at least this week after 11 straight weeks on the list.
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko (156-369-369)
Last Fight: 3/3/2012- TKO4 #16 Jean-Marc Mormeck
Next Fight: 7/7/2012- vs. #11 Tony Thompson
Wlad will be defending the title against #11 Tony Thompson in what will likely be another ho-hum matchup for the Champ. On the bright side, Thompson did put up a relatively spirited challenge the last time the two met in 2008.
1) Vitali Klitschko (193-193-193)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- UD12 #6 Dereck Chisora
Next Fight: 9/8/2012- vs. Manuel Charr (UNR)
Vitali has scheduled what it sounds like will be his final fight. Unfortunately, it’s hardly a fight at all. He’ll take on one of the weakest undefeated fighters you’ll ever see- Syrian Manuel Charr. 2) Tomasz Adamek (1-113-113)
Last Fight: 6/16/2012- UD12 Eddie Chambers (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Adamek managed to bag a significant win over recent-#3 Chambers without impressing in any way, shape, or form. How? Just like in the Arreola fight, his opponent blew out an arm. 3) Alexander Povetkin (1-243-243) Last Fight: 2/25/2012- W*(MD12) vs. CW #5 Marco Huck
Next Fight: 7/14/2012- vs. Hasim Rahman (UNR)
Povetkin’s ludicrous fight with Rahman will now be the co-feature to Haye-Chisora in London. 4) Marco Huck (14-17-17) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- Draw (MD12) vs. CW #7 Ola Afolabi (at CW) Next Fight: Unknown Unfortunately, Huck is apparently making a thinly-veiled attempt to make a pointless fight with weak European cruiserweight paper champion Alexander Alekseev. 5) Tyson Fury (14-48-48) Last Fight: 4/14/2012- TKO5 Martin Rogan (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/7/2012- vs. Vinny Maddalone (UNR)
Fury has taken another low-risk, no reward fight in Vinny Maddalone, the strong but crude American journeyman brawler. The fight will take place in Clevedon, England. 6) Dereck Chisora (14-29-92) Last Fight: 2/18/2012- L(UD12) vs. #1 Vitali Klitschko
Next Fight: 7/14/2012- vs. David Haye (UNR)
The British Board is bitterly opposed to this bout- which they refuse to license- but apparently it is going forward anyway. Get ready for a highly controversial blood-feud between Chisora and recent brawl opponent David Haye, July 14 in London. 7) Eddie Chambers (1-1-1) Last Fight: L (UD12) vs. #3 Tomasz Adamek Next Fight: Unknown Chambers is active again and of course grabs a top-10 spot, but given his arm injury, I would expect another bout with inactivity to come. 8) Robert Helenius (1-64-108)
Last Fight: 12/3/2011- W*(SD12) vs. #18 Dereck Chisora (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Helenius is now the mandatory challenger to #8 Kubrat Pulev’s European title- previously held by Helenius. Helenius is still in the midst of an uncertain recovery from shoulder surgery, however.
9) Kubrat Pulev (1-7-84) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- KO11 #12 Alexander Dimitrenko
Next Fight: Unknown
Might have a Helenius clash on the horizon, though the Finn’s health is a factor.
10) Odlanier Solis (1-14-108)
Last Fight: 5/19/2012- UD12 Konstantin Airich (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown
Considering he was extremely out of shape and had a surgically-repaired knee to worry about, Solis didn’t look too terrible in coasting to victory over a disappointing Konstantin Airich. 11) Tony Thompson (1-108)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO3 Maurice Harris (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/7/2012- vs. Champ Wladimir Klitschko
See Wladimir Klitschko’s comments, above.
12) Seth Mitchell (1-28) Last Fight: 4/28/2012- TKO3 Chazz Witherspoon (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Mitchell was set to fight the Klitschko-promoted Johnathon Banks, a mediocre one-loss prospect who is probably an upgrade from Witherspoon at least in terms of accomplishment, but a downgrade from Ibragimov- but he is now on the shelf until the fall due to a hand injury. 13) Ruslan Chagaev (1-292) Last Fight: 4/21/2012- TKO3 Billy Zumbrun (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The Valuev win is now over 5 years old, and Chagaev’s ranking has suffered as a result.
14) Alexander Dimitrenko (1-75) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- L(KO11) vs. #17 Kubrat Pulev
Next Fight: Unknown
Despite showing the heart of a quitter and the consistency of a random number generator against Pulev, Dimitrenko hangs on to a solid ranking because the other guys in his tier haven’t been winning meaningful fights lately.
15) Chris Arreola (1-170)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- KO1 Eric Molina (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Arreola pulled out of a scheduled fight with journeyman Mike Mollo this weekend with an injury.
16) Denis Boytsov (1-157)
Last Fight: 4/13/2012- UD10 Dominick Guinn (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Boytsov will likely fight in Moscow on August 24, but nothing official yet.
17) Jean-Marc Mormeck (1-108) Last Fight: 3/3/2012- L(TKO4) vs. Champ Wladimir Klitschko Next Fight: Unknown
It’s unclear why or how, but Mormeck’s cruiserweight fight with Lebedev appears to be off- with little fanfare- as Lebedev is working on a Guillermo Jones clash.
18) Bermane Stiverne (1-52) Last Fight: 4/14/2012- UD8 Willie Herring (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
19) Edmund Gerber (1-7) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- UD8 Maurice Harris (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Not the most scintillating effort against a passive Harris, but the old man is what passes for a fringe contender in this division at the moment, and thus Gerber has built himself a ranking. 20) Franklin Lawrence (1-56) Last Fight: 10/28/2011- TKO2 Raymond Ochieng (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown
THE WEEK AHEAD: The International Heavyeight Prizefighter tournament in London takes center stage this week, as 8 heavyeights of varying quality hash it out in a series of 3 rounders in a one-night single-elimination tournament. The entrants: Last week’s #20 Contender, Kevin Johnson from the USA, Gatekeepers Albert Sosnowski of Poland and Maurice Harris of the USA, One-loss American Prospect Tor Hamer, Journeymen Marcelo Nascimento of Brazil and Tom Dallas of England, and novice-level prospects Noureddine Meddoun of Morocco and undefeated Tom Little of England.
With three members of the top 50 in the mix and one member of the top 25, it’s almost certain that the winner will emerge with a ranking.
Dan's Weekly Boxer Rankings and Blog 
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