Bellew Vs Grachev

[Flea Man]

Both had impressive victories at LHW last night, Bellew dominant but the unbeaten (and unheralded) Grachev beating the much better fighter.

Bellew would have a big size advantage here. Could he remain disciplined and focused throughout as Sillakh couldn't? Or would he get tagged too much?

I'd favour Bellew in a competitive fight.

This isn't likely to happen, so who would you match either guy with next?

I thought about this last night during the fight, was thinking that it'd be a cool fight for the European title, before remembering that Grachev wouldn't be eligible for it due to being based in the US.

Much like what would've been the case if Syllakh had done it, if Bellew is on his game and doesn't take him lightly I think he'd win relatively comfortably.

[JFT96]

Haven't seen the Grachev fight as of yet so can't comment on how I'd see him vs Bellew going down but Tony put in another top performance last night, against a domestic level opponent let's not get carried away, and to me highlighted that he's as much an up and coming force in the division as Cleverly is.

If I were him, I'd go for Gutneckht next, even if it meant going to Germany. I don't see why a good prospect shouldn't travel and face a bit of adversity on the way up and if he fought in as composed a manner as last night, I could see him putting any ideas of a robbery out of sight. Taking that Euro belt of a decent operator, certainly a step up from Macintosh, then puts him in an ideal position on the fringes of world class where he can target eliminators or fights with other world level operators. It's still too early, as Tony seems to know himself, for the likes of Pascal, Dawson, Hopkins etc.

For Grachev though, that's a seriously impressive upset. Considering the acclaim Sillakh had got, I'd cash in ASAP and look for the likes of Shumenov, Cloud or Cleverly next. Those 2 belt holders are on the 2nd tier of light heavyweights below the 3 mentionned before, as was Sillakh to most people, so I see no reason why he shouldn't target fights with them.

[Flea Man]

Shumenov Vs Grachev makes sense. I wouldn't be worried about Bellew in with Shumenov either.

Grachev is a bit awkward, but I really don't think he's that good. Despite winning, it was clear that he was levels below Syllakh imo, and while he should be given immense credit for making such a concerted effort and pulling it out in the end, the main reason he won was due to Syllakh being such a twat.

Without knowing the top 10-15 LHW's off the top of my head, I'd say most of them on thier game would beat Grachev.

[JFT96]

I wouldn't put Bellew in a 'world title fight' as of yet. He's got the beating of Shumenov but putting the pressure of the tag of World Champion when he's still progressing could cause more harm than good for him at the moment. I had the same thoughts on Groves-Stieglitz too. We've seen the criticism Cleverly's received due to his dire opposition masqueraded as World title challengers and I personally think his career has stalled rather than moved on since getting the World Champion tag.

I much prefer the route taken by the likes of McDonnell than that of Cleverly, testing himself more and more on the ladder up to be honest.

[JFT96]

Originally Posted by Diamante

Grachev is a bit awkward, but I really don't think he's that good. Despite winning, it was clear that he was levels below Syllakh imo, and while he should be given immense credit for making such a concerted effort and pulling it out in the end, the main reason he won was due to Syllakh being such a twat.

Without knowing the top 10-15 LHW's off the top of my head, I'd say most of them on thier game would beat Grachev.

Well as I say from not seeing the fight, I can't comment on Grachev really but from what was being said in the FNF's thread, he didn't seem to be dominating or anything and might have just got lucky on the night. if that's the case, as I said before I recommends he just cashes in on it as soon as he can. he may as well, he deserves it for such a spectacular win.

[BoxingAnalyst]

This would be a fantastic fight.

Grachev deserves massive credit for beating arguably the best contender in the division, Bellew would be able to command the respect of Gravech, where as Sillakh was boxing nicely but just didn't plant his feet and put enough spite into his shots to keep Gravech humble.

I'd expect it to be very competitive, but Bellew would break Gravech down with his jab and body work early, then bring in the right uppercut (one of Bellew's best shots IMO) to finish the job around he mid-late rounds.

[Flea Man]

Originally Posted by Diamante

Grachev is a bit awkward, but I really don't think he's that good. Despite winning, it was clear that he was levels below Syllakh imo, and while he should be given immense credit for making such a concerted effort and pulling it out in the end, the main reason he won was due to Syllakh being such a twat.

Without knowing the top 10-15 LHW's off the top of my head, I'd say most of them on thier game would beat Grachev.

Is Bellew a top 10-15 LHW though?

He's come on leaps and bounds since leaving Arnie it has to be said.

Originally Posted by Flea Man

Is Bellew a top 10-15 LHW though?

He's come on leaps and bounds since leaving Arnie it has to be said.

I think there's an argument for him being around 15th, though I suppose he's probably just outside of it due to the lack of depth on his record. It was more of a sweeping statement anyways, more just to highlight that I don't think Grachev seems all that good. He's got a lot of raw enthusiasm and heart, and his stance makes him somewhat difficult to hit clean, but he was a bit all over the shop technically. Maybe he'll really kick on from this and make me look stupid(it wouldn't be the first time), but I don't think he can hang with the better fighters - even the upper echelon of ''prospects'' like Bellew - when they're on their game, which Syllakh wasn't. I just don't like the way he applies that pressure, as Atlas alluded to his head always came forward before his body, and every shot was painfully telegraphed. I was actually getting vexed that Syllakh wouldn't throw many uppercuts. Grachev was SO open for them.

I think it's the kind of fight that would do Bellew good though, I don't think there's any real rush for him to start trying to make fights with the best off the back of beating McIntosh. Grachev looks like he could be a solid European-level operator, which is the kind of level I'd like to see Tony move up to now.

[Scotty321]

I fancy Bellew would KO him in 6. McIntosh would be a better match for Grachev.

[Flea Man]

Nice post Diamanté, thanks.

[BoxingAnalyst]

Originally Posted by Flea Man

Is Bellew a top 10-15 LHW though?

He's come on leaps and bounds since leaving Arnie it has to be said.

Definitely top 17 IMO, not top 10 though.

Who trains Bellew? Isn't it his old amateur coach? He's done a stellar job.

[IRONSENSE2002]

tony bellew is a ESB hype job, he stops a guy on accumulation who'd just been ko'd at european level a fight before that, and you give him all the credit in the world and despite this you still tip him to beat cleverly, a fighter whos proven to be above him

[Scotty321]

Originally Posted by IRONSENSE2002

tony bellew is a ESB hype job, he stops a guy on accumulation who'd just been ko'd at european level a fight before that, and you give him all the credit in the world and despite this you still tip him to beat cleverly, a fighter whos proven to be above him

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