Once again, for the how many millions of times is it now?, Serge has been proven 100% correct about something they tried to lock him up in an insane asylum for Richards has an iron British mandible And Pascal is still packing iron and eating flush bombs for fun at 39 y/o and after a long layoff Pascal fought everyone and their dog and only been dropped or dropped and stopped by a prime murderous punching Krusher Kovalev Chilemba has fought everyone and their dog and only been dropped by the aforementioned Krusher and Vlasov and his only inside the distance loss was on an injury Joe Smith Jr. has never been dropped or stopped, his stoppage loss was due to suffering a badly broken jaw Salamov has never been stopped or as far as I'm aware ever been dropped And Craig Richards who ate everything the big punching Buatsi threw at him, whilst fighting the later's fight and standing in front of him for far too much of it, is packing iron too Lenin Castillo has subsequently been stopped, by Callum Smith. Granted it was a scary KO but it was a perfect right hand from a LHW 2.0 much heavier version of Smith and I don't believe Castillo had ever been dropped prior to facing Bivol This content is protected And that includes Castillo going the distance against a 190-192lb Marcus Browne who can crack (he dropped Browne). Bivol weighs 180-184 max and is not only a division lighter than Browne but he's also a division lighter than Pascal, Chilemba, Joe Smith, Salimov, and I'm guessing Richards and Castillo too given how much bigger they looked than him
Shoddy analysis, mark. Bivol is an example of a masterful boxer who, by dint of being one, deprioritizes attempts to be a puncher. A`la somebody like Mayweather, who hit plenty well at lightweight, or Toney, who cracked like the Dickens at MW. Both of their efficacy decreased as they a) moved up in weight and b) started to become more defense-minded and economic (make you miss, a lot, and once in a while make you pay) as their careers progressed. Bivol has begun and remained at LHW but the same principle applies. He/Mayweather/Toney =/= Malignaggi (although to be fair Paulie could box when he wanted to, when not getting dragged into brawls due to machismo), or any other guys that either chose to stand in the pocket and trade with actual punchers or knew how to do naught else, slugging their guts out and relying on volume and chin to be their guardian angels, without being able to decant a yolk from its membrane. Crazy to me how often casuals lump in guys that aren't even trying or wanting to be KO artists with guys that simply can't punch. To conflate them betrays a stark foundational ignorance of some of the very basics of the sport. Bivol transitions his weight perfectly when he throws. He does just as much as is called for, and exactly within the parameters of what he is setting out to do. He got and kept Álvarez's respect in a way no true feather-fist ever could, however skilled. Labeling him as having "No power" transcends hyperbole, and casts yourself in a ridiculous light. Warm regards, IB
He has power but he's just a horrible finisher. Has no instincts for it. Beterbiev and Bivol might be the widest gap in finishing ability between the top 2 of a division I've ever seen.
"Finishing" isn't and has never been a necessary goal or standard in a boxing match. It's a way to win.
I reject there being anything inherently dishonorable about points victories. As for being conclusive, hell, they can often be more so than lots of stoppages. Take for instance Calzaghe vs. Lacy and Calzaghe vs. Manfredo, as near perfect examples of how - and that's just a snapshot of thirteen months in a single guy's career.
Fair enough. I dont think there is anything inherently dishonorable about points victories. Although I have a different view of negative spoiler type points victories. Certainly a schooling featuring lots of hard punches landed is a conclusive victory. Boxing is a sport that combines skill, athleticism and machismo. Yes, the machismo part is a fundamental part of the sport, not as significant as the other 2 components, but still, you cannot separate machismo from the sport of boxing. It is an innate feature. There is something to be said about stopping your opponent. Agree to disagree perhaps.
I can of course see being turned off by a Lara vs. Canelo type performance, but a Bivol vs. Canelo is hardly the same as that.
He doesn't sit on his punches. Fury also didn't sit on his punches before and people were saying he is featherfisted.
