My top 7 heavyweight prospects

Top young heavyweight prospects:

1 ) Filip Hrgovic. age 25. 3-0. 3 Ko's. 6'6" tall with excellent speed, skills, and accuracy. Hrgovic has as battle-tested of a chin as you can find in the amateurs. He was never stopped or floored and should have beaten Yoka in the Olympics with fair judging. He's also got perhaps the best foot speed I ever see in a man his size and very long arms. He hits hard, how hard remains to be seen but fight changing power from one punch is there. Versatile in attack with body punches. This skilled super heavyweight needs some refinement on defense vs. counters, but he can learn. He already steps back quickly after he scores. Very aggressive. I think he's #1 rated heavyweight by 2022.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/813758[/url]

Career track. Is being moved quickly. Could be ready for a top ten opponent as early as 2020.

Compares to: A mix between Vitali and Wlad Klitschko, a bit faster than Vitlai and more fluid ( with I think a near equivalent chin ), not quite the puncher of Wlad, but more versatile in the attack.


2 ) Ivan Dychko. Age 27. 4-0, 4 KO's, Dychko is very tall ( 6'9" ) and by my guess has a reach of 84" or more. He moves exceptionally well for his size and has a quick 1-2. He looks to have put on some muscle weight since turning professional and could be a real nightmare type to matchup up, too big and tall for the shorter fighters, and too fast and rangy for the larger fighters who aren't in great shape. His power is good, not great. Dychko has octopus like the potential to clinch if he wants to. Only stopped once in the amateurs by the best puncher around. Key to his success is can he maintain a fast pace.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/813592[/url]

Career Track, medium speed

Compares to: Tyson Fury, with a bit more power, with Akinwande like ability to spoil things if he wants to.


3 ) Daniel Dubois. age 20. 6-0, 6 Ko's The 6'5" 20-year-old has a pair of steam irons for fists that explodes and violently moves when they land, sapping the will to fight back against his overmatched opponents quickly. A very rare type of puncher, I think. His skills seem good offensively. His stamina, durability, and Ring IQ are anyone's guess at this point. On the plus side, he has been very active. I'm rating him ( perhaps a bit too high for now ) high base on potential.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/787430[/url]

Career Track, medium speed, and being only 20 he should take his time.

Compares too: Tua, Lewis or Wlad as a puncher, but at his age, we need to see a lot more before comparing him to anyone.


4 ) Oleksandar Teslenko. Age 25 11-0, 9 Ko's.
Teslenko has fast hands ( Maybe the fastest on the list ) and very good power. These traits quickly stand out on film. The jab is quality good, and so is the hook. He fights out of Canada and needs better competition soon. At only 6'4" tall 225 pounds, he's one the smallest on the list, but I think he would be making a mistake to add more weight as it could cost him some speed.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/727779[/url]

Career Track, slow. Needs to find better than domestic Canadian based opponents.

Compares to Corrie Sanders. A bit more refined on offense, not quite the puncher though. Size is similar.


5 ) Arslanbek Makhmudov. Age 28 1-0 1 KO's. The Russian is about 6'5 to 6'6" tall, 250-260 pounds and hits a ton. How hard? Comparable power to George Foreman so they say. He won his last 12 world series of boxing matches in a row, stopping a durable Nistor along the way. 12 matches in a row at the world series of boxing is very impressive as its a pro like amateur tournament. Will need some seasoning and that could be a problem due to his power as lower level opponents won't last long. Perhaps the most intimating looking guy on the list, Makhmudov could play the top henchman in a James Bond movie.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/817769[/url]

Career Track. Slow.

Compares to: A more skilled and powerful version Alexander Ustinov.


6 ) Tony Yoka. Age 25. 3-0, 2 Ko'. No one doubts Yoka's offensive skills. He is perhaps the most polished offensively of the group with very good hand speed. His problem is his chin is suspect to punchers, and while he's a good puncher, he's far from a great one that can get respect based on his power alone. His toughness to me appears average. This means defensive skills and defensive work are a must. Yoka has some trouble in his 3rd fight, a bad sign for any top prospect. His team has his next scheduled fight in April, a sign they are going to work on a few things.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/795843[/url]

Career track, started off fast, I think is being moved to a more medium pace now.

Compares to: Tyrell Biggs. An outstanding amateur, but not quite durable enough for the pro's.


7 ) Joe Joyce. Age 32 1-0, 1 KO. Joyce isn't a young gun at age 32. He's not likely to get much better. He's enormous and brutish at 6'6" tall. And he can really hit hard to the head or body. Some think his technique on offense and defense is average and they are correct, on the other hand, he's aggressive and proved his stamina a bit in his debut by stopping a decent Lewison in 8 rounds. Joyce fights again soon.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/811429[/url]

Career Track, very fast, he's 32 and his promoters will probably roll the dice on a fight vs. a top 25 opponent as early as 2019.

Compares to: A poor man's George Foreman.

 

Kuzmin has been a pro since 2014 and he's 30, so he really doesn't fit the new pro's angle. I place him 3rd or 4th on the list.

I'm not a big believer in Sirenko. He's young ( age 22 ) but I wonder how durable he is. Sirenko looks to be one of the weakest punchers' on the list ( Most of these guys listed can really punch ) and his completion has been very week so far. Weaker then everyone mentioned. Some of those matches in South Africa almost look like a fix. If I went to the top 12 prospects, maybe he's 11th or 12th. At age 22 he has a lot of time. Skills are good.

 

Rock wasn't very good in the amateurs ( could not even qualify as one of the 3 best in the America's for the Olympics ). His completion was very weak in his first 9 fights, a sign he's not close to ready. Maybe Rock is the top USA prospect, but these days that's as much as an endorsement as a backhanded compliment. He needs to watch his weight.

[url]http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/752985[/url]

If I went top 15, I think he'd make the cut.

 

I'd put Usyk a 1B if he moves up. Yes--I think Hrgovic is that good, even at 3-0.

I'd pick Usyk to beat Wilder, Charr or Parker. Not Joshua, but he'd have a chance.