Can't believe the entire top of the HW division got destroyed in a few months

More than a few months, but yeah. Incredible that after looking so strong in early May, everyone caved in except Joshua.

 

Parker has had a decent year as well, the only decent fight this year at heavyweight was between Parker and Takam.

 

Sadly true ... and we nearly had:
Wilder - Povetkin
Joshua - Klitschko
Fury - Klitschko II
Joshua - Parker

 

Headvetkin was a ****en nobody. Don't even mention him.

 

There's still David Price.

 

Funny how Parker is left out of most posts about the top of the division and Joshua is talked about as the one who everyone else dodges yet Parker has fought Takam and was very willing to fight Joshua until Joshua moved his sights elsewhere and as a result will potentially be also fighting Ruiz in this same year.

So yeah, two of the best heavyweight fights this year could end up being both involving Parker

 

Yeah, this is a disappointment. At least in Wilder's case, he actually got sidelined solely due to some nasty injuries. We had visual proof of both his right arm and hand being in pretty bad shape. Those injuries need time to recover fully, otherwise his career could be in jeopardy. I can't really blame his team for looking out for him long-term. He'll be back, but those arm and hand recoveries need to be handled with care... and that arm needs to be thoroughly rehabilitated until then. He had a pretty bad bicep tear.

Things could still sort themselves a bit though. Then again, I suppose that depends on how you look at the current situation:

-Povetkin had traces of the banned substance Meldonium in his system, but he is fighting Stiverne in an interim bout next. I think he wins this and remains a problem for Wilder to eventually (try to) handle.

-Fury is really just "smoke screening" everything until his UKAD P.E.D. hearing takes place on 11/4. Hopefully the guy is truly getting help if he "seriously" has a recreational drug problem. If so, the best wishes to him... but you never know when it comes to his antics. The UKAD hearing is next week.

-Wladimir's been "conveniently injured" on different occasions in his career, only to turn around and fight looking just like his usual self. This latest "injury report" isn't too different compared to what he did last year, postponing the Fury fight at a late stage (for a month). He'll be alright. Seems like things just weren't looking as favorable for him with the terms of the AJ fight contract. For all we know, Wlad might have been set to swerve towards Browne for the WBA title in Germany, but the WBA might have instead decided to sanction Wlad-AJ after all, following the backlash in the end. So maybe Wlad "got injured" after finding out he was back to square one with AJ in England... and wasn't getting a title for a Lucas Browne fight. Who knows.

-Parker is still on the upside. Fighting Ruiz for a WBO trinket next, so he's still in the process of career advancement. He actually fought and beat Takam this year, so that was a good win for him.

-AJ is looking to make a defense, but unfortunately it's on short notice now. So he's got to make due with someone less than ideal, but he needs to stay focused and take care of business -- and I think he will. The opponent will probably be Price or Pulev.

-Ortiz is fighting Malik Scott in a fight that doesn't really do anything for him. Hearn claims he's got a clear plan for him, so we'll see what it is soon enough.

-Stiverne is fighting Povetkin (who I think beats him). But at least it's an interim. So if he manages to pull out a win, he'll be right back on Wilder's heels in WBC land.

 

All good points, and Ortiz's fight in December could end up really interesting - they aren't likely to mess around with his progression.

 

I hope Hearn can get Ortiz front and center in his next fight


The guy is a beast that would probably knock out all but the top two or three. Make that one or two

 

These guys hardly boxed in all of 2016 anyway. They've been too busy being the "champion". All year they've been "crying wolf" telling us theyre going to fight and then something always comes up. I dont think its been destroyed as its been the same story every month.

 

Joshua, Parker, Ortiz, and Haye are still left.

 

"-Ortiz is fighting Malik Scott in a fight that doesn't really do anything for him. "

This I sort of disagree with.

After an extended break this fight gives Ortiz an opportunity to mentally come back into actual competition mode and to refine his skills against someone of Scott's style. Scott isn't a favorite but he is also isn't a completely safe bet for Ortiz.

But from a boxing/sports fan point of view a strong win would help confirm his status as someone who has the potential win a belt and defend it against the elite HWs at the top of the division. For me I'd like to see Ortiz as being part of the equation for an iconic fight for this era against someone of note. If he can beat Scott convincingly I think this would make a statement that he's got that second tier covered and he's ready to go for a top shelf fight when one presents. Jennings and Thompson are good wins but not enough yet to capture the attention of punters so every fight he can win against someone who has some name recognition is good for his agenda IMO.

 

Definitely see your point, and you raise a good one. However, the way I see it, with all of the hype behind him, Ortiz should already be fighting guys beyond Scott's level. He also hasn't faced many punchers. If he's as good as advertised, then he should walk right through Scott with minimal risk. Going from Scott to a top level (Super) HW with power along with skills is gonna be a real test for him. They definitely need to match Kong better for his next fight. I think Hearn knows what he's doing, so it'll work itself out.

I think we can agree that there are still questions about Luis 'King Kong' Ortiz that need to be answered. We'll get those answers soon enough. Hopefully he proves to be the animal he's suspected to be (with that great amateur pedigree he had) because the HW division needs all of the quality it can get.

 

You forgot STiverne, Parker, Ruiz, and you forgot the best of all, Taishan Dong!