I am really excited about Pirog. One of the most naturally gifted and athletic fighters in the game today. Pirog at his best is a force to be reckoned with. I would love to see him against GGG or Barker. I don't think Kid Chocolate is ready for him, but I would not be mad at the fight. I also don't think Jacobs will ever be championship level again. If Pirog stays healthy, I only see great things for him. He will be exciting for years to come.
Yes (especially now with Steward gone), and the others at the top of the UK domestic crop as well...Macklin, Murray, McEwan, Saunders... I'd also favor Pirog over them all, but they'd all be competitive.
Gabe and team would have been dumb to turn down a chance to fight on HBO in Madison Square Garden too, no fringe contender should ever turn down such a situation.
In fairness to Lee, we haven't seen how he'll responed under Adam Booth. I'm a huge Steward fan, but I've had lots of questions over the years how he managed Andy. Barker's a talented boxer, but I personally don't see him beating Lee or Macklin. Which of his accomplishments have won you over? His fights with Belghecham and Spada were fairly tight. No questions about Pirog, he's been impressive with his pre-Jacobs fights (a little less so with Maciel and Ishida). Assuming he's fully recovered from the ruptured disk (as much as most people do recover from such a thing), even a rusty Pirog would/should be too much for Barker. I wouldn't doubt, Pirog looking vulnerable with a long layoff and coming off a major injury would be the only way he gets Barker in the ring.