Sad. Boxing has a lot of despicable and lazy promoters and managers who are keeping good fighters inactive and ruining their careers.
I get it, good fighters from unpopular countries don't get a chance, while boxing stars use their status by postponing fights and demands, knowing that it is in their power, and casual fans support such fighters...
There seems to be a real lack of understanding in some places how to qualify for heavyweight title shots if you are someone without a powerful promoter. That's why orgs have their regional belts. Lucas Browne won the WBA's Oceania regional belt from some non-entity named Faiga Opelu, defended it once, and he's rated #10 at heavyweight in their world ratings. Lenier Pero won the WBA's Fedalatin belt against another nobody, Jorge Arias, and he defended it twice and he's now rated #5 at heavyweight in their world ratings. The WBA also has a Continental, Intercontinental, and International heavyweight belts. All three of them are currently vacant. If you petition the WBA to fight for one of those belts, and you can literally fight almost anyone and get rated in the WBA's top 15. And each time you defend it, against anyone, you move up the world ratings. Three of the WBA's top 10 heavyweights have WBA regional belts (and most of their regional belts at heavyweight are vacant). Four of the WBA's top 10 cruiserweights have WBA regional belts. Four of their super middleweight and four of their middleweight top 10 rankings have regional beltholders in them. And all the orgs have those belts. Frank Sanchez won the WBO's North American belt against Victor Bisbal a little more than three years ago, and he's made five defenses of it, and he's rated #2 in the WBO's world ratings (and he hasn't faced or beaten any world-rated contenders). Justis Huni cracked the WBO's top 15 in just his sixth pro fight when he won the WBO's Oriental belt against Joseph Goodall. Demirezen could easily win one of those regional belts in any org. Just sign to fight someone and petition the WBA to make it for one of their vacant regional belts. He doesn't need a powerful promoter to try to get top five contenders to try to face him. Just win a regional belt and defend it, and you'll bolt up the ratings and fans will wonder what the hell you're doing. They were literally created so anyone anywhere in the world could get a "world" rating and wouldn't have to sign with a powerful promoter. (***Just checked, it looks like Demirezen won a WBO regional belt, got rated in the WBO top 10, then stopped defending it. No point in winning one if you aren't going to defend it.)
wtf why. lmao. honestly. he beat washington, johnson and kownacki in a row, has never been down, is 32yo and TOP20, won the european title 4x... I mean come on, he would be a top opponent and test for guys like Hrgovic, Makhmudov, Bakole, Sanchez, Dubois, Parker, Joyce, Anderson and and and... damn this germans could at least make Kossobutskiy vs. Demirezen happen!!!
Not the world's most exciting HW but a solid, mid-tier guy who's a tough night's work for most. Thus probably not someone on anyone's radar. Bit of a shame really if that's the reason he's retiring. German-Turkish HWs in general tend to get a pretty raw deal unless they stay in Germany.
Truly a dying sport. I guess the money just isn't there to keep good career-builder fights happening.
"Ali Eren Demirezen announces retirement" Never knew he existed until now. But yeah, why box for pennies when you can drive a truck or attend a door for a dollar?
