Talakhadze would crush him into wine, dude. Just 26, 6'6", 160kg, world record holder in both snatch and clean and jerk, 484kg combined. Nichols version 3.0.
I doubt he'd win a world title at that weight but he can go three rounds and blitz some basketball players.
Hate to say it, but yes. This dude has TERRIBLE skills to be an undefeated world champ. He should have been countered into oblivion long ago. The HW division is ****. I've thought about the debates of higher skill in boxing when people argue against MMA, and Deontay has kind of made a mockery of that. At least his in this era, and in the HW division.
Weightlifting doesn't translate well to boxing, obviously. No flexibility and no cardio. You couldn't just pluck NBA and NFL players into boxing and expect them to be good. But if you started them at the right age, you're talking about extreme athletes and physical anomalies. I mean, look at the bloodlines. Ken Norton Jr. in the NFL, Ron Artest's dad fought in the golden gloves, Evander Holyfield's kid was a prized running back, etc, etc.
Because they are pro NBA players man. Had they started in boxing, who knows. The argument has merit. Not many people want to be punched for a living, they'd much rather do other sports. But this goes for every country, not just the US.
Nah its a very good division, not a patch on the 1990s or before, but Wilder has that mega equaliser. He is like the Julian Jackson of the HW division.
Heavyweight boxing has been like this for awhile. Emanuel Steward used to say starting late as a heavyweight isn’t as detrimental as with the lower weights. So no, not really.
I think the fact that he is built like a welterweight who is actually a heavyweight benefits him a lot. I think it's easy to carry too much unneeded weight around at heavyweight because you dont have to cut weight. I dont think excessive Muscle and fat make good boxers, just my opinion.
Bad example James Harden isn't a great athlete though by NBA standards. A guy like Russell Westbrook for example is light years more athletic than him.
I get what you're suggesting in the OP, but it honestly is a dumb suggestion and illustrates how little you know about the history of the sport. There are periodically those sort of fluky, exception-that-prove-the-rule types who achieve success without a shred of what's thought of as sound fundamental boxing technique - but that doesn't mean that having sound fundamental boxing technique is a bad idea for like 99% of people who lace up gloves.
Yes, he is not well schooled, bad balance, and limited ring IQ, but he has1 punch power, he's pretty fast, and his dimensions are hard to get used to. He's already freakishly long, then he often launches himself forward to punch, so you have no idea when you're out of range. He doesn't really speak badly of boxing, more like the current level at hw. For example. Fury, who so many people see as some really skilled boxer, to me, looks easy to time and ko by a well schooled boxer. He bends over his right leg to slip right hands, the same way every time. A boxer with the skill and experience that you find in the lower weights would have him on the canvas in a few rds.