Who is the next american Heavyweight Hope?

I think the better question is, who is the next British Heavyweight hope?


:think

 

Wilder. The fight may have exposed weaknesses, but he won it fair and square, and he answered questions about his chin. There is no way the American public is not going to ride this.

And lets be honest, as long as he stays away from Wlad and Povetkin, he should keep his title for awhile.

 

I will be honest, i thought Wilder did ok, hes no superstar and Stiverne was a bit dissapointing but he didnt get knocked down, or out, went 12 rounds and mostly listened to his corner and used his attributes (jab) to limit his opponants punches. This was seen as his 1st real test, his 1st live opponent and i think he came thought it well.

I never saw anything that would get me too excited but i cant knock his victory last night.

 

But again, it is not my point. The American fanboys are going to ride this thing regardless.

"He proved his chin...he went 12...he beat a live body....he's a champ...)

It may or may not be true. But they are going to sell it.

 

Povetkin is his probable mandatory.

I don't really think he answered questions about his chin, he was in reverse gear for 12 rounds against a plodder so he didn't ship that many. Granted he took a few good shots so it's not complete glass but it's still an open question.

 

There is no doubt in my mind that Povetkin will beat the doors off of him. None.

In the short term, it will be Povetkin and Wladdy. In the long term, Wilder is not only going to have to contend with Joshua and the Furies, but Usyk and Kuryashov are going to be heavyweights eventually. I don't see him winning a lot of those fights.

But hell, he won tonight, so he is in the game.

 

Povetkin vs. Wilder is a good fight. I'm not so sure Sasha would just obliterate the new champ as some are here - Wilder showed he can fight be hand the jab and he always was quick. Povetkin would have to work hard to get inside to chop down that tree. Maybe he could do it, but maybe not. I think Wladimir's sheer physical size (he carries 25 pounds of muscles more than Wilder on a frame 2 inches shorter) might well make him too much for Wilder and to a lesser extent Fury could pose similar problems.

 

But he knocked out former cruiser champ and legit heavyweight contender Juan Carlos Gomez with a glancing blow in 1.

He will be a heavyweight some day. He has sickening power.

Also, he is billed as 6'2" 1/2, so he is not small.

 

i called it before both are bums

 

Wilder deserves some kudos he answered a lot of questions last night.

His chin isn't as bad as many suspected. He took some good shots off a proven puncher. Now that's not to say he has a good chin, the shots he took were sporadic, he never took any sustained pressure or a huge bomb to regard his chin as good, but it's not glass.

He showed he could box a bit off the back foot. Though his movement was predictable. Once he chose direction he stayed with it he never mixed up his movement but then he didn't have to, Stiverne followed him like a dog following it's master. I suspected we were going to see him box rather than bomb him out after he came in so light, he fooled everyone by adopting a far more conservative approach.

He showed he could execute a game plan ad stick to it, he never got sucked into Stiverne's trash talk and games.

He showed he could go 12 rounds though it was at his pace he was rarely under any consistent pressure. But the conditioning seems to be there.

Wilder proved he now belongs at this level and is a genuine contender, no longer a prospect or an enigma. But flaws are still there and I still don't see him as having anything but a punchers chance against Wlad. He is still wild when he opens up, often squaring up and flailing away like a novice. His shot selection is sometimes erratic, those uppercuts from distance were ridiculous and he still often drops the right too much which is why Stivere had some success with the left hook.