Heavyweight: 2013, Mar 4-10
No in-ring action at heavyweight last week, but #12 Marco Huck and #18 Jean-Marc Mormeck have both gone more than a year without fighting at heavyweight, and both are consequently removed. Huck scheduled a fight this week, but it will be a cruiserweight rematch against Ola Afolabi.
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko (193-406-406)
Last Fight: 11/10/2012- UD12 Mariusz Wach (UNR)
Next Fight: 5/4/2013- vs. Francesco Pianeta (UNR)
Pending approval from the WBA, Wlad will be fighting Italian fringe contending prospect Francesco Pianeta in Mannheim, Germany. It’s hard to knock Pianeta as a fighter because he remains undefeated and was knocked off track by a bout with cancer a couple years ago, but it’s hard to get excited about any fight that, if the underdog won, would be considered the greatest upset in the history of the Heavyweight Championship.
1) Vitali Klitschko (230-230-230)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO4 Manuel Charr (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Vitali hasn’t decided whether to retire or not, but he has very clearly stated he has no interest in David Haye after Haye turned down a fight in September.
2) David Haye (34-34-34) Last Fight: 7/14/2012- TKO5 #6 Dereck Chisora Next Fight: Unknown Haye has indicated that a fight with Vitali may be the only fight that would lure him away from re-retiring. If Vitali’s recent statement is any indication, we’ll never see Haye again. 3) Steve Cunningham (11-11-11) Last Fight: 12/22/2012- L (SD12) vs. #3 Tomasz Adamek (Robbery) Next Fight: 4/20/2013- vs. #6 Tyson Fury Adamek’s erratic behavior has yielded justice. Cunningham beat Adamek, but was robbed. Now he’ll fight Tyson Fury, with the winner to fight Kubrat Pulev for a mandatory shot at Wlad. The fight will be at MSG and will be televised live in the afternoon by NBC. 4) Alexander Povetkin (34-280-280) Last Fight: 9/29/2012- TKO2 Hasim Rahman (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After failing to convince the WBA to deny Wlad a voluntary before fighting him, Povetkin and his team are now raising cain about the 75-25 split the WBA has set for the purse bid. No word on whether he’ll stay busy in the meantime, as it would be hard to imagine the fight happening before August at the earliest. 5) Tomasz Adamek (11-150-150)
Last Fight: 12/22/2012- W (SD12)* vs. CW #4 Steve Cunningham (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Adamek is acting erratic lately, I think it’s fair to say. First he gets busted drunk driving, and now he has turned down the Pulev shot that he “won” by “beating” Cunningham, claiming to have a much more lucrative offer to fight an unknown opponent in Poland- an offer that all the major Polish networks claim to have no part of. He has also denied rumors that he might be fighting Artur Szpilka. 6) Tyson Fury (11-85-85) Last Fight: 12/1/2012- UD12 Kevin Johnson (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/20/2013- vs. #3 Steve Cunningham
See Cunningham’s notes, above. 7) Eddie Chambers (11-38-38) Last Fight: 6/16/2012- L(UD12) vs. #3 Tomasz Adamek Next Fight: Unknown Chambers appeared set to fight Lebedev at cruiserweight, but it now appears that Lebedev will fight Guillermo Jones, instead. 8) Kubrat Pulev (11-44-121) Last Fight: 9/29/2012- KO11 Alexander Ustinov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
With Adamek running scared, Pulev will reportedly defend his EBU title in March or April. Next, he will likely fight the winner of Cunningham-Fury, with the winner becoming Wlad’s IBF mandatory.
9) Dereck Chisora (11-66-129) Last Fight: 7/14/2012- L(TKO5) vs. David Haye (UNR)
Next Fight: 3/16/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Chisora is penciled in for Frank Warren’s 3/16 card at Wembley Arena in London, but won’t find out if he has a license or not until 4 days before. No prospective opponents have been bandied about, so it will likely be a very weak one.
10) Johnathon Banks (11-16-16) Last Fight: 11/17/2012- TKO2 #11 Seth Mitchell Next Fight: Unknown Banks broke his thumb in sparring, scuttling the Mitchell rematch. 11) Odlanier Solis (11-145)
Last Fight: 5/19/2012- UD12 Konstantin Airich (UNR) Next Fight: 3/22/2013- vs. Leif Larsen (UNR)
Solis takes on undefeated Norwegian prospect Leif Larsen in Berlin on March 22. The two had been scheduled to meet in October, but Solis bailed to go straight for Adamek, whom he also bailed on. 12) Tony Thompson (1-145) Last Fight: 2/23/2013- TKO2 David Price (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Thompson wants Fury- who recently signed to fight Cunningham. Price has a rematch clause, but Price himself has indicated he may not be “crying for a rematch,” while Thompson says he wouldn’t consider it unless they paid him a lot better and came to the US. 13) Robert Helenius (1-145)
Last Fight: 11/10/2012- W*(UD10) vs. Sherman Williams (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Helenius was rumored for a March fight with Sprott, but no news since. 14) Alexander Dimitrenko (1-112) Last Fight: 12/21/2012- UD8 Samir Kurtagic (UNR)
Next Fight: 3/9/2013- vs. Ivica Perkovic (UNR)
Dimitrenko is scheduled to return on March 9 in Hamburg. He was rumored to be fighting an untested and inactive 4-0 prospect, but he’s possibly gone even softer with Ivica Perkovic. 15) Chris Arreola (1-207)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- KO1 Eric Molina (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #19 Bermane Stiverne (UNR)
The most cursed single fight in recent memory has again been delayed. This time Arreola’s bronchitis is to blame. He said he can be ready by mid-April, but venues and dates haven’t been sorted out yet. He’s been in active for over a year, but only the most recent delay is remotely his fault, so he’ll get a reasonable opportunity to reschedule.
16) Denis Boytsov (1-194)
Last Fight: 2/15/2013- UD8 Samir Kurtagic (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Boytsov appears to have won the battle of wills with Universum over whether he gets to fight or not. Now the trick will be getting him in against worthwhile opposition. 17) Vyacheslav Glazkov (1-11) Last Fight: 2/23/2013- Draw* (SD10) vs. Malik Scott (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Glazkov got the benefit of the doubt in every close round from two of the judges against Scott. It was just about as close to a robbery as you can get without me calling it that. 18) Malik Scott (1-2) Last Fight: 2/23/2013- Draw* (SD10) vs. #19 Vyacheslav Glazkov Next Fight: Unknown Scott was the victim of a bad decision against Glazkov it’s fair to say, but I stop short of calling it a blatant robbery. I do believe he won 8 of the 10 rounds, but he only won 4 of them with clarity. By easing off the gas in the latter half of the fight, he gave the judges the opportunity to hand it to the house fighter, which 2 of them were all too happy to do. 19) Bermane Stiverne (1-1) Last Fight: 4/14/2012- vs. Willie Herring (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #15 Chris Arreola See Arreola’s notes, above. 20) Franklin Lawrence (1-1) Last Fight: 1/25/2013- Mark Brown (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Despite signing with well-connected promoter Gary Shaw in July 2011, Lawrence has had nothing but stay-busy fights (and he’s not staying all that busy) since before that time.
Everyone ranked #13-17 last week moves up a rank apeice, while #s 19 and 20 each move up 2 places. Rounding out the top 20 are Bermane Stiverne and Franklin Lawrence at #19 and #20, respectively. Stiverne was last ranked 2 weeks ago before Malik Scott’s debut forced him out. Lawrence was forced out last July and returned for a 1 week stint in mid-December, but had been on the outside looking in ever since.
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko (193-406-406)
Last Fight: 11/10/2012- UD12 Mariusz Wach (UNR)
Next Fight: 5/4/2013- vs. Francesco Pianeta (UNR)
Pending approval from the WBA, Wlad will be fighting Italian fringe contending prospect Francesco Pianeta in Mannheim, Germany. It’s hard to knock Pianeta as a fighter because he remains undefeated and was knocked off track by a bout with cancer a couple years ago, but it’s hard to get excited about any fight that, if the underdog won, would be considered the greatest upset in the history of the Heavyweight Championship.
1) Vitali Klitschko (230-230-230)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO4 Manuel Charr (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Vitali hasn’t decided whether to retire or not, but he has very clearly stated he has no interest in David Haye after Haye turned down a fight in September.
2) David Haye (34-34-34) Last Fight: 7/14/2012- TKO5 #6 Dereck Chisora Next Fight: Unknown Haye has indicated that a fight with Vitali may be the only fight that would lure him away from re-retiring. If Vitali’s recent statement is any indication, we’ll never see Haye again. 3) Steve Cunningham (11-11-11) Last Fight: 12/22/2012- L (SD12) vs. #3 Tomasz Adamek (Robbery) Next Fight: 4/20/2013- vs. #6 Tyson Fury Adamek’s erratic behavior has yielded justice. Cunningham beat Adamek, but was robbed. Now he’ll fight Tyson Fury, with the winner to fight Kubrat Pulev for a mandatory shot at Wlad. The fight will be at MSG and will be televised live in the afternoon by NBC. 4) Alexander Povetkin (34-280-280) Last Fight: 9/29/2012- TKO2 Hasim Rahman (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After failing to convince the WBA to deny Wlad a voluntary before fighting him, Povetkin and his team are now raising cain about the 75-25 split the WBA has set for the purse bid. No word on whether he’ll stay busy in the meantime, as it would be hard to imagine the fight happening before August at the earliest. 5) Tomasz Adamek (11-150-150)
Last Fight: 12/22/2012- W (SD12)* vs. CW #4 Steve Cunningham (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Adamek is acting erratic lately, I think it’s fair to say. First he gets busted drunk driving, and now he has turned down the Pulev shot that he “won” by “beating” Cunningham, claiming to have a much more lucrative offer to fight an unknown opponent in Poland- an offer that all the major Polish networks claim to have no part of. He has also denied rumors that he might be fighting Artur Szpilka. 6) Tyson Fury (11-85-85) Last Fight: 12/1/2012- UD12 Kevin Johnson (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/20/2013- vs. #3 Steve Cunningham
See Cunningham’s notes, above. 7) Eddie Chambers (11-38-38) Last Fight: 6/16/2012- L(UD12) vs. #3 Tomasz Adamek Next Fight: Unknown Chambers appeared set to fight Lebedev at cruiserweight, but it now appears that Lebedev will fight Guillermo Jones, instead. 8) Kubrat Pulev (11-44-121) Last Fight: 9/29/2012- KO11 Alexander Ustinov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
With Adamek running scared, Pulev will reportedly defend his EBU title in March or April. Next, he will likely fight the winner of Cunningham-Fury, with the winner becoming Wlad’s IBF mandatory.
9) Dereck Chisora (11-66-129) Last Fight: 7/14/2012- L(TKO5) vs. David Haye (UNR)
Next Fight: 3/16/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Chisora is penciled in for Frank Warren’s 3/16 card at Wembley Arena in London, but won’t find out if he has a license or not until 4 days before. No prospective opponents have been bandied about, so it will likely be a very weak one.
10) Johnathon Banks (11-16-16) Last Fight: 11/17/2012- TKO2 #11 Seth Mitchell Next Fight: Unknown Banks broke his thumb in sparring, scuttling the Mitchell rematch. 11) Odlanier Solis (11-145)
Last Fight: 5/19/2012- UD12 Konstantin Airich (UNR) Next Fight: 3/22/2013- vs. Leif Larsen (UNR)
Solis takes on undefeated Norwegian prospect Leif Larsen in Berlin on March 22. The two had been scheduled to meet in October, but Solis bailed to go straight for Adamek, whom he also bailed on. 12) Tony Thompson (1-145) Last Fight: 2/23/2013- TKO2 David Price (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Thompson wants Fury- who recently signed to fight Cunningham. Price has a rematch clause, but Price himself has indicated he may not be “crying for a rematch,” while Thompson says he wouldn’t consider it unless they paid him a lot better and came to the US. 13) Robert Helenius (1-145)
Last Fight: 11/10/2012- W*(UD10) vs. Sherman Williams (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Helenius was rumored for a March fight with Sprott, but no news since. 14) Alexander Dimitrenko (1-112) Last Fight: 12/21/2012- UD8 Samir Kurtagic (UNR)
Next Fight: 3/9/2013- vs. Ivica Perkovic (UNR)
Dimitrenko is scheduled to return on March 9 in Hamburg. He was rumored to be fighting an untested and inactive 4-0 prospect, but he’s possibly gone even softer with Ivica Perkovic. 15) Chris Arreola (1-207)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- KO1 Eric Molina (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #19 Bermane Stiverne (UNR)
The most cursed single fight in recent memory has again been delayed. This time Arreola’s bronchitis is to blame. He said he can be ready by mid-April, but venues and dates haven’t been sorted out yet. He’s been in active for over a year, but only the most recent delay is remotely his fault, so he’ll get a reasonable opportunity to reschedule.
16) Denis Boytsov (1-194)
Last Fight: 2/15/2013- UD8 Samir Kurtagic (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Boytsov appears to have won the battle of wills with Universum over whether he gets to fight or not. Now the trick will be getting him in against worthwhile opposition. 17) Vyacheslav Glazkov (1-11) Last Fight: 2/23/2013- Draw* (SD10) vs. Malik Scott (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Glazkov got the benefit of the doubt in every close round from two of the judges against Scott. It was just about as close to a robbery as you can get without me calling it that. 18) Malik Scott (1-2) Last Fight: 2/23/2013- Draw* (SD10) vs. #19 Vyacheslav Glazkov Next Fight: Unknown Scott was the victim of a bad decision against Glazkov it’s fair to say, but I stop short of calling it a blatant robbery. I do believe he won 8 of the 10 rounds, but he only won 4 of them with clarity. By easing off the gas in the latter half of the fight, he gave the judges the opportunity to hand it to the house fighter, which 2 of them were all too happy to do. 19) Bermane Stiverne (1-1) Last Fight: 4/14/2012- vs. Willie Herring (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #15 Chris Arreola See Arreola’s notes, above. 20) Franklin Lawrence (1-1) Last Fight: 1/25/2013- Mark Brown (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Despite signing with well-connected promoter Gary Shaw in July 2011, Lawrence has had nothing but stay-busy fights (and he’s not staying all that busy) since before that time.
THE WEEK AHEAD: Saturday in Hamburg, Germany, #15 Alexander Dimitrenko fights low-level journeyman Ivica Perkovic in a pretty pointless fight. And I guess I’ll also report that borderline top-50 undefeated Russian prospect Magomed Abdusalamov will battle one-loss Puerto Rican Victor Bisbal on Friday Night Fights from Atlantic City. The winner will become a clear top 50 fighter and earn the right to be mentioned here without reservation.
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