Worst Contender This Decade?

I forgot about Vitali. Vitali has a good case for having been lineal after Lewis and beat Peter who was near the top of the division at the time, so his case for being a "real" champion was pretty good.

The issue is that Vitali retired at the end of 2012 and the WBC belt wasn't contested for by Stiverne until May of 2014. Wlad beat the second best guy in the division when he beat Povetkin in 2013 and was only guy in the division holding any title, hence the vacant WBC title meant next to nothing when Wilder won it.

 

What annoys me is you have dangerous looking prospects out there like Miller, Konwnacki, Jun Long Zhang, Pletchko to name but four, but we get served up an out of shape inactive 39 year old that didn't throw one punch. Wilder hasn't proven anything to me here. When Povetkin demolished the superior and in shape Perez with one shot, that was a significant result, not this freak show. You may as well have put in the Worm or Hard Roc.

 

The WBC screwed it up by rating Stiverne. If not for that, Breazeale would've been in there. Or they could've let Ortiz fight since it was blood pressure meds.

 

Vitali vacated the belt one month shy of 2014.


http://www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/...bc-champion-emeritus-vacates-heavyweight-belt

The two highest rated fighters by the WBC then fought for the vacant belt. Stiverne won , then Wilder beat Stiverne.
Wilder beat a legitimate champion. Stiverne wasn't a bogus champ like Martin who picked up the IBF after it was unlawfully stripped from Fury.
Vitali wasn't stripped. He willingly vacated. The IBF belt Joshua won meant less than the WBC belt Wilder won.
Joshua's other belt - the WBA - was vacant when he won it.