Heavyweight nowadays is the most boring division. I don't care what happens and the only current heavyweight I'll watch is Usyk. I prefer the lighter divisions and most of my favorite fighters and fights of all time are below 160.
Average guys cannot just hold small boxing champions and hold them down. If you believe this, try go fighting somebody 4 inches shorter than you. No, I don't mean a boxer. Just a regular short guy. And tell me if the fight is easy for you or not. People who never get into fights imagine short people as NPCs who will basically let themselves be thrown down and then punched at until they're KOd. This is not even close to reality. They will try to punch you and resist being thrown down, and they will keep punching you while they're below you even if you end up on top. And it's not easy to keep people pinned without training, as much as people seem to think it is. Just go try it. Naoya Inoue KOs any untrained person who isn't a bodybuilder or like American football player with ease
It depends. I sometimes dont like 2 pillowfisted lower-weight fighters threw unending flurries and not one of them are even wobbled nor do i like slowpoke plodding higher-weight fighters marching slower than my grandma
The reason I love heavyweights and not the lower weight divisions is because I enjoy watching boxers throw no more than 10 punches in a round while spending the rest of the time hugging each other. That to me is real boxing, not the kind of exhibitions of skill, stamina and technique of two evenly matched fighters like you see in the lower weight classes such as super flyweight. **** that.
For me the psychological test of twelve round war is the most interesting course for a fight. You get a lot more of those below HW and CW. Of course when two big guys have a twelve round war it's the best of all worlds and these fights are remembered and rewatched for years. Plus, the only competition for tiny male athletes is horse racing so it's more likely you're seeing the best bantamweight sized athlete in the world. There is something about a HW KO live that is unique and worth experiencing though. The real baddest men in the world are an old man who sniffs hair and a guy who gets really sensitive about people calling him Winnie the Pooh. Tyson Fury put a giant badass to sleep without breaking a sweat in his last fight, but if he tried it outside the ring he might get taken to prison by a 5'2" female police cadet with a taser. I love the variety of boxing, but we only get it because it's far enough removed from real combat.
That’s because you’re a relatively new boxing fan that got into boxing since 2016ish though isn’t it. Sky put a lot of marketing into Joshua and also Whyte/Chisora and got lots of people like yourself into the sport.
I like the lower divisions, but not the 2 lowest ones. Strawweight and Light Flyweight just lack depth, because the main thing in those divisions is actually being that small/light that you would be able to make it. After that you only need moderate talent to make it into a titlefight. It's quite telling that as a European man can make either of those weights and then gets knocked out in 1 by some low level asian fighter for instance, he would still be the #1 in Europe by default. It isn't until Flyweight that there's actually some depth in the division. From there it gets good because their size and weight makes for fastpaced and mobile action.
I think it's mostly for the same reason women's sport doesn't get close to the same attention as the men's... Lower weight classes are an invention to let smaller guys fight on relatively even playing fields (just like women's soccer, basketball, etc is to allow women to play sports without getting hosed). Sometimes lower weights (and women's sport) can be interestingly technical, but you still know you're watching a watered down version that exists purely for inclusivity. On some level, watching professional sports is about watching the absolute best - it's not about how close the contest is, it's not necessarily even about the ultimate display of skill... It's about proving who's the absolute best and appreciating how and/or why that's the case (sometimes it's superior physique, sometimes superior intellect, sometimes superior team tactics and teamwork). The problem with lower weights is simply that whilst it can be great to watch, you know those guys can't compete for a second with the very best of all (because they're physically inferior)... If it was all about the contest, why would we even watch televised or internet streamed sports at all? Wouldn't we just go and watch whatevers on locally? And yet we don't...... Sure, I can and do enjoy the smaller guys, women, under 18's, etc - I just don't value it as much as the open category (in boxing that's men's heavyweight). (I've probably rambled enough at this point)
It's not about weight If you're the size of a malnourished leprechaun toddler but can punch like a LHW that's sexy to me But if you're built like AJ and punch like Paulie that's pathetic and shameful Any fighter, regardless of size, who sports a sub 30 KO% and/or has been cursed with below average punch resistance needs to be mocked and ridiculed mercilessly on social media until they're hounded out of the sport for good because they're disgusting subhuman freaks
I think a lot of those guys would be surprised by how hard even a sub-20% KO ratio professional flyweight could hit them.
I respect a lot of the lower weight fighters and have seen some great fights. Can’t really explain why I prefer welterweight and above over the smaller weights. Good thread, I need to watch a few more little guys fight, I feel like I am doing them a disservice.
It’s interesting if you know who to watch. If you just occasionally drop in on lower divisions you’re most likely gonna see a pillow fight. I’ve always liked them even though I never got fully into it. All those fights are guaranteed to have a lot speed and volume.