Exactly this. Until he shows what he can do against the really big and powerful heavies, it's at least a question mark. The comment that he manhandled Vlad. Come on...who really saw that? Plus sparring is sparring. It is not the same as an actual fight. Even if it happened, who knows what the heck they were working on at the time. I wish Usyk well. I hope he does great at HW. But until he proves otherwise, his size is a concern.
You don't think weight is an advantage in boxing? It's kinda self-explanatory bearing in mind it's weight and not height - for example - which is used to define the sport's different categories...
Nothing but hype and talk up to this point. Don't care what he did at cw or what he did in the ams. He's never fought professionally at heavyweight and one has to ask themselves why he didn't start his career there and start getting big pay days early if it was going to be so easy
Still, I'd like you to explain it to me. How does 40+ lbs of flab on a comparable, if slightly shorter, frame translate into a usable advantage in boxing?
1. Controlling the clinches and in-fighting 2. Leaning on an opponent, pushing him down and fatiguing him 3. Additional power from the additional mass in combination with division-leading speed 4. Extra weight probably helps a fighter take bigger shots. All of this in Ruiz case while remaining, in the eyes of many and evidentially, the fastest HW in the division with decent stamina. Those are four solid reasons I can think of and here's a fifth... 5. Boxing has weight classes for a reason.
1. Ruiz doesn't clinch much, and his in-fighting tends to be clean. 2. Ruiz is short and doesn't/can't lean down on fighters as a general rule. 3. Ruiz doesn't utilise his mass in punching as much as someone like Wilder. 4. Possibly. I'll concede this point. Yes it does. So that fighters who are in shape can fight other in-shape fighters at a similar weight to them. Ruiz is as far from in-shape as you can get, and could quite conceivably fight at CW if he bothered to train the way a professional should.
So you're questioning how he uses his weight advantage, not the advantage itself. I'll accept that distinction.
What about a guy like Tyson Fury. It's his size and weight coupled with his ability to box and move at that size that is his biggest advantage. A sub 6 foot tall Tyson Fury is Joey Dawjeko with an English accent. A Deonty Wilder without freakishly long arms is probably a journeyman. Size and power matter in HW boxing. So does technique and tenacity. It's a question of if Usyk's boxing ability and tenacity can offset others advantages in reach, power or mass. We shall see.
Usyk isn’t really slick, relies on a high guard rather than movement. Isn’t hard to catch with a right hand. Fury on his day is a legit slickster, with amazing head/upper body movement for his size.
Which 147 pounder beat a CW? When Porter fought Usyk in the AMs, Usyk was a green teenager who had not his his growth spurt. Once he grew and matured, Porter wouldn’t stand a chance. Usyk grew into an elite amateur. They would never allow a guy like Porter to fight the CW version of Usyk.
When Usyk was green and before his growth spurt. You don’t really think 146 pound Shawn Porter beat full grown Usyk do you? Shawn is tough but he ain’t that tough. Usyk was a different fighter (much skinnier/smaller) when they met. Today’s Usyk would destroy Porter, no disrespect to Porter, a guy I like. Usyk is one of the best PFP fighters in the game. I think he will be successful at HW but am waiting to see him at the weight before making any bold predictions. Skill size, he is best in the division but you still have to fight and beat guys to prove yourself and he hasn’t done it yet. HW boxing just got more exciting. Thank God for that...
Some think there are NO currently ranked decent big guys, only people who pick soft touches or old men in title fights. There are no Klitschko’s or Lewis’ active.
