With the current WBA super middleweight champion, "Saint" George Groves, expected to move up to light heavyweight after his WBSS Ali Trophy final versus Callum Smith tomorrow, win lose or draw - there's going to be a power void left in the division. Gilberto Ramírez Sánchez's reign with the WBO title has become a joke, with his challengers this year consisting of a Ghanaian with an extremely padded 25-0-1 record and then a Colombian with an extremely padded 23-0 record. David Benavídez was popped for coke and we still have no word from the WBC on whether they intend to strip him of the green belt. That really doesn't leave a lot of promising emergent potential rulers at 168lbs. Fedor Chudinov is chugging along but like his brother Dmitry seems to have found a level just shy of elite - and his most recent victory, over Nadjib Mohammedi, was a robbery IMO. Rocky Fielding is a very weak titlist, occupying the "regular champ" space while Groves is the acknowledged true SMW champ of that org. The winner of José Uzcátegui vs. Ezequiel Maderna will be, along with James DeGale (and possibly Caleb Truax is he lands the rubber-match with Chunky) in the IBF dance. None of these guys I've mentioned so far are burning down the house, in p4p terms. Does that leave room for the Russian Bull, a 33 year old former police officer (and decorated veteran of several combat sports including kickboxing and sambo - as well as briefly dabbling in MMA but getting choked out in 2009 and leaving well enough alone with an 0-1 record) - toiling mostly in the shadows from his 2014 pro debut until popping on the radar for most of us ten months ago with his schooling of Ricardo Mayorga, forcing El Matador to quit on his stool after nine rounds - to slide in and snatch a belt? If the division were as hot as it has been in previous eras, I'd say he probably isn't good enough, but in the post-Groves void to come, especially if GRS continues to hold the WBO hostage and Benavídez outgrows the weight class (a very real possibility) - the hurdles are set fairly low for a "pretty good" fighter to reach the promised land. Sirotkin is currently ranked 5th by the WBA. He recently held the WBO European title, so breaking its top 15 again shouldn't be too great a feat. Sirotkin takes on John Ryder of the UK one month from today, in a final WBA super middleweight title eliminator. I'd favor Sirotkin heavily there, and if Groves beats Smith and then vacates we could see a situation where Rocky Fielding is elevated and I'd definitely give El Toro Ruso a decent shot at beating him
