Editor’s Letter: Heavyweight is still the pressure zone of the boxing world

2023 is going to be a huge year for the weight class. At its peak, we hope it’s when we have our most important fight since Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield fought twice in 1999, with Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk in talks to meet in a contest that will decide the first globally recognized number one since the retired Lewis. Just below them, former belts Deontay Wilder and Andy Ruiz Jnr are about to collide in a thrilling knockout and Anthony Joshua hopes to restore the confidence that has driven him to a decade-long run of winning form. previous century.

The buzz around Joshua’s opponent continued as we started shooting, with unproven Demsey McKean (22-0) suddenly an uncertain lead. Predictably, McKean’s name received widespread frustration on social media as the 32-year-old was clearly inexperienced at anything resembling the top level. McKean hasn’t beaten anyone of note and, from an independent standpoint, is barely in the top 50 heavyweights. But even if McKean, we are told, will Not As Joshua’s rival (and, in fact, just the latest in the boxing red herring line), one can certainly understand exactly why he might be the perfect opponent.

It’s an inch-by-inch mismatch but after two straight losses to Usyk, an ‘easy’ fight might be just what Joshua’s doctor ordered. “AJ” has not fought at this level since he knocked out Gary Cornish, then 21-0, in September 2015 and has earned his right to return to contention, especially if this is indeed the case. The first of three matches scheduled for the year . It’s the kind of comeback many past belts and champions have gone through before trying to reclaim the title. However, Joshua’s managers (258), promoters (Matchroom) and broadcasters (DAZN), should brace themselves for the harshest criticism, should they choose to compare Joshua vs. McKean or someone like him on a pay-per-view platform.

Mike Tyson, for example, after a modest 1990 loss to Buster Douglas by a predictable, predictable, comical match at the boundary, attacked the heavy cruiser, Henry Tillman in one HBO’s (non-PPV) double-fight with George Foreman-Adilson Rodrigues from a separate movie. bill. Tyson’s Tillman bombshell (chosen in large part because he beat Mike at the amateur level which gives some plot twists) is now largely forgotten but it has succeeded: Tyson looks spectacular again, he felt indestructible again, and more worthwhile trials against Alex Stewart and Razor Ruddock soon followed. In short, whoever Joshua takes on at this point isn’t a problem, that’s what it leads to.

Similarly, the first opponent of the new Queensberry signing, Moses Itauma, will be just an exercise in catching the ball. However, Itauma, who just turned 18 on December 29, is another heavyweight looking to borrow a line or two from Mike Tyson’s hymn.

Presented today (Tuesday, January 10) by promoters as boxing’s most promising star, Itauma is in a hurry to break Tyson’s record as the title holder. youngest weight in history. Incredibly talented, Chatham’s Itauma has built a reputation for fearing more than keeping to himself against some of the world’s biggest heavyweights in scrims. BN heard first-hand stories from trainers and boxers who witnessed and faced Itauma’s power in the gym. One successful amateur even swore never to face this heavy-handed young man again after participating in an attack behind closed doors, only to have his heart tighten when he received It turned out that he was booked for a year later as against Itauma. Not only does his strength make the heavy teenager such a bad proposition, he also seems to have patience, intelligence, and a bit of grit.

Regardless of his reputation and apparent skill set, it was still an almighty requirement for southerners to go from respected amateur at the school, grassroots, and youth level into professional heavyweight champion for two years. When Tyson beat Trevor Berbick to lift the WBC belt in November 1986, he was 20 years 5 months and 8 days old, which means that in April/May 2024 Itauma needs to challenge the leaders if he broke many things. year has been considered an unbreakable record.

Tyson, of course, emerged in a different era when the pressurized, hyperbolic world of social media didn’t exist and didn’t have the fanfare of a world-renowned promoter behind him. He turned professional in March 1985, three months before he was 19 years old.^order birthday. By the end of the year, Tyson — perfectly guided by managers Bill Cayton and Jim Jacobs in performances by various promoters — had hit a staggering 15-0 (15). But it is his form in 1986 that highlights the size of the mountain Itauma must conquer if he is to reach the same heights in a similar amount of time.

In February 1986, in his first match on national television, he defeated his competitor Jesse Ferguson in a match that alerted the world to his abilities. If Mike “Iron” was still active today, there was no way he could have been kept a secret for so long. In May 1986, Tyson went through 10 rounds twice, against seasoned James “Quick” Tillis and Mitch Green, before knocking out Marvis Frazier, Jose Ribalta and Alfonzo Ratliff in consecutive months for the second time. First to win the main belt. Time varies in the same extreme.

That’s not to say Itauma won’t continue to achieve great things in the heavyweight division. It’s merely a cautionary note not to get too impulsive and more importantly not to let the stresses of professional boxing – or the exposure that comes with success in 2023 – weigh on a boxer’s shoulders. young and talented artist.

Sooner or later that pressure becomes a burden. The kind that Anthony Joshua feels so deeply today, and Tyson feels as soon as he turns Trevor Berbick’s legs into a paste.