Perspective on Wlad, and the HW division

This is not a Wlad hating thread.

He looked very good tonight, and he was obviously trying to make a good impression to HBO and the U.S. fans.

He wanted to deliver a crowd pleasing performance, and he did just that.

It was a great knockout.

But as I watched the fight, I shook my head and thought to myself 'how did HW boxing become so bad?'

The fact that Pulev was the number 1 contender, and was widely regarded as Wlad's toughest test for a long time, just speaks volumes to me on how weak this division is.

Let's be brutally honest here.

I like Pulev, and he was game and he tried his best.

But he's not in any way a great fighter.

Wlad is a very good-great HW, but his competition is very weak.

People are asking if many HW's could have taken that shot at the end.

My answer, is no. Definitely not.

However, would Pulev have troubled many HW champs of the past?

Again, I'll say no, definitely not.

So I'll give credit to Wlad for looking so dominant, and for being in incredible shape at his age, and putting in a great performance.

But this division is weak, and he did not beat a great fighter tonight.


Thoughts?


:good

 

I'm not looking for originality.

Answer the questions, or ignore the thread.

I like Wlad.

I think he's overrated, but he deserves credit.

He's looked so dominant in his last few fights.

But who's he fighting?

The HW greats of the past would have had no trouble whatsoever with Pulev tonight.

You can praise the performance, but it has to be put into perspective.

 

Exactly.

The division is weak.

 

There is no criticism of Wlad.

The point I'm making, is that Pulev was rated the number one contender, and was regarded as Wlad's toughest test in a long time.

So that speaks volumes of the strength of this division.

In other era's, Pulev would just have been an average HW at best.

 

I'm a knowledgeable fan of the sport.

Which former greats does Pulev beat?