There's a great fighters like the Klitschkos here but there's also been beltholders and top 10 fighters who wouldn't come near a title shot in other eras.
that can be said just about any era but the 1970's which was loaded from top to bottom with good Heavyweights.
Its the klitchko fans who try and turn this era into a good era...i mean c'mon-valuev is a champ...give me a break..these hw are garbage...they couldn't contend with a prime lewis, prime tyson, prime holyfield, prime riddick, prime ali, etc...man the list goes on and on..these guys are just garbage...anyone who thinks otherwise must not have seen the talent in the earlier years!!
So immensely strong that an ancient George Foreman was able to win 2 belts. Back in the 90's all people talked about was how much the division sucked, same in the 80's. It has become a tradition to complain about how bad the HW division is.
Pretty much, those two are good fighters in any era, outside of that we are hoping for a blown up cruiser to add excitement to the division.
Yep, it is getting better. Fights like Wlad vs glass jaw'd & shot Rhaman, Haye ve 38 yr old Barrett, James Toney fighting at 40, Valuev having the fight of his life against 46yr old Holy. Yep, it sure is getting better. Got anything else you would like to add?
From the 90's i could name a few guys that would be long reigning beltholders in todays HW Ruddock, Golota, Tua, Bruno, Mercer, Mcall, ...... Apart from the Klits the division sucks
Very true...I remember back in the 90's when I thought the division was pretty damn exciting and yet always hearing/reading how weak it was. I especially remember when Evander won the title how much abuse it took with the "a blown up cruiserweight is the champ, what a joke the division is". Another example is Ray Mercer...Do you remember how big a joke he was looked at after his losses to Jessie Ferguson and Larry Holmes? Today Ray Mercer gets quite a bit of respect and that's something he seriously lacked during his prime. I even remember reading mags in the 70's and even those heavyweights were ragged on in there day by fans of the previous generation. In heavyweight boxing you just don't get your proper dues till you're retired 5-10 years.
You have two dominant champions in Wlad and Vitali, three talented unknowns in Arreola, Povs and Haye and then a cloud of dust. The HW division lacks two things- True litmus tests opponents for up and coming prospects and up and coming prospects worth caring about.
And thats why guys like Arreola & Haye are overrated by new fans of the sport. Boxing needs new prospects.