How does the 175lb Division play out over the next yr or so?

The balance of power keeps on shifting, just when it appears its going one direction it changes and back tracks

Calzaghe retired, Dawson was the man and beat the old guard like Johnson and Tarver, then he lost to Pascal to establish a RING title, then Pascal lost to Hopkins, then Dawson beat Hopkins

It appeared that it was Dawsons time in the sun and that Hopkins was done, well in the time since Dawson took a nasty beating by Ward which he may never recover and Hopkins dethroned another belt holder

Dawson has lost all his momentum from the Hopkins fight and the old man just wont go away

Cloud is dethroned, Pascal is often injured and its not clear what happens there, Kovalev is emerging as a new threat

the weight below has 3 or 4 stars that could conceivably move up and be interesting

Hopkins what does he do next? He isnt going to retire and the ball is in his court to fight anybody out there. Cloud and Pascal rematches are unnecessary, Dawson 3 makes real sense. Nobody at the weight really enhances his legacy any further outside Dawson. If he avenges that loss now he can really further his legacy

Dawson well he is the champion even though it doesnt feel like it right now. he got beat up vs Ward, switched trainers and has been kind of quiet. Is the Hopkins win just a short lived hiccup in the light heavyweight picture

If Hopkins and Dawson fight again who wins?

Who do you feel emerges to the top from this situation?

 

I think Kovalev is going to dominate, as long as the others don't duck him.

Dawson vs B-Hop III will be a toss-up

 

I agree, but Kovalev is really a LHW. He's right on the borderline, weight-wise, and at 29 y-o is likely to start gaining a few pounds.

There is probably more money to be made at SMW, so maybe he'll try to still have fights there, but at the same time he's a classic "high risk / low reward" fighter so I doubt the top SMW's will want to face him.

Whatever weight he fights at, nobody is going to beat this guy. He is THE rising star in the sport of boxing

 

think Pascal beats Dawson in a rematch
Pascal will beat Cloud then Dawson will fight Cloud and beat him
Dawson vs Hopkins III wont happend Dawson would win easily again, Dawson's style is all wrong for Hopkins

 

Brähmer also could do some noise....

 

I don't know that Hopkins vs. Pascal III is unnecessary, at all.

 

I agree with this statement. I don't get why so many on here are saying that Hopkins was out of shape and unprepared for the second fight with Dawson.

 

Nah. He only squeaked by Gutknecht, I can't see him beating anyone in the top 10.

 

if cleverly leaves fish eyes he could get the big fights & kick ass

 

Brähme beat him coming from a long lay off. He is no talker... if he says he can do much better I believe him.
Sure he can beat people in the Top 10... there are some boxers who are not that good. Also Brähmer can punch and has a solid chin (30 KOs) so he always has a KO chance.
He will fight in April we will see:bbb
Back then he was World Champion (two years)! I still think he has something left

 

Interesting.

I didn't really notice that, but I was keying more on Campillo as he was always one of my favorite fighters.

Kovalev's balance & footwork are usually excellent. - and I mean PERFECT. Maybe the crafty Campillo was frustrating Kovalev, and throwing him off his game a bit.

I'll have to watch the Campillo fight again.

 

I wonder if Calz would ever consider a comeback to fight B-Hop??

 

OK, I watched the fight again, and I still don't quite see it, though it's probably the worst footwork I've ever seen from Kovalev. (which still isn't bad)

What I see, that might be what you are referring to, are two things:

1: Kovalev would sometimes back up with his head back, sort of like Wlad. This is not ideal, as it puts his balance back, negating the chance for a powerful counter, but it is not typical of Kovalev. My guess is that he was purposely doing this because of Campillo's very long reach. It certainly didn't hurt him, it just removed a few offensive opportunities.

2: Quite a few times, Campillo actually pushed Kovalev back, both with his gloves and with his shoulder. This obviously caused Kovalev to "semi stumble" backwards. That's not a flaw in his technique, though. Campillo was crafty enough to do this, without leaving holes in his defense. There isn't much an opponent can do against it, Campillo is just a great boxer.

 

I think Kovalev becomes top dog, I wouldn't mind seeing him face Dawson, Shumenov or Braehmer

 

Kovalev! Kovalev! Kovalev!

Bad Chad is a mental patient at this point. Hopkins won't fight Kovalev ever.
Cloud is what he is. Who can stand up to Kovalev?