How much does weight matter in boxing?

Way too many factors to answer such a question.
14 lb could simply be too much to compete against while with others it could mean nothing..

So, it ranges from meaning every single thing to meaning absolutely nothing. Good enough?

 

Depends on the fighter and also on what weight class you are dealing with.

 

Well...it can make the difference between one fighter having the ability to totally destroy the other. Take a look at the Canelo/Khan KO:

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It depends on how closely they are matched in other areas.

If they are very closely matched you bet the 14lbs can sometimes be an advantage.

Then again depending on the specifics it might not be a help.

 

It definitely matters a lot but like everyone has said, it depends on the situation as each case is different.

Matters in lower weight classes in my opinion, especially 14lbs. Not so much for heavyweights...

Kind of a broad question...

 

Let's put it this way, GGG isn't moving up weights is he? If 15 pounds didn't matter much, he should have fought Betterbiev, Ward and Kovalev by now. The weight difference is magnified in the lower divisions.

 

Nichols nearly had needle legs outta there

 

In the lowest weights 13lbs is 5 weightclasses. I believe there are too many of them, certainly in the lowest classes, but if that had no to little effect you would have seen many "5 weight champions" running around with the current amount of available belts.

That's how much effect it can have, but it doesn't always of course.
In the HW division it has far less effect, certainly when it's due to fat turning it into a hinderance instead.
Joshua wouldn't care if Fury against all odds came back and fought him at 310lbs+. He'd actually welcome it.

Fight night weight is a very big thing. McClellan used to come in close to the Cruiserweight limit (190 at the time) in 160lbs fights. That obviously proved to be a huge advantage against his opponents that rehydrated to around 170 instead.
And we all know about the Gatti vs Gamache fight of course.

 

It could mean your opponent is a couple of inches taller than you but with the same proportionate muscle mass as you.

 

It is physical. It matters. Seldom would it be a disadvantage at least when talking about professional combatants.

Calderon famously gave up like 20 pounds to Cazares in his first fight at 108 for the crown and overcame it in a close battle. However, you didn't see Calderon ever move up and fight at 112 even though there were fighters who would have entered the ring less than Cazares had.

As for this newfound fad of obsessing in-ring weights, people simply do not get it. Many are clueless.

 

It is real. It's there. But it is also 100% part of the sport. If you want to kill yourself to make a weight and then dump on an excess of water, you can do that and it does happen all the time. If you want to be on weight three weeks in advance and put on maybe two pounds of water weight after the weigh in, you can do that and while it is very rare to see it does happen.

 

Obviously the lower the weight class the bigger deal the face value weight and even body mass percentage are. The higher, the lesser.

 

well a good example is roman Gonzalez last fight fought at a weight far to high for someone his size