Barring another person scoring a surprising upset, the race for Fighter of the 12 months could also be Oleksandr Usyk’s to win or lose.
Usyk scored one of many largest victories of 2024 in Could, when he received a break up resolution over Tyson Fury to turn out to be the undisputed heavyweight champion. Their rematch is scheduled for December 21 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
There are nonetheless 4 months remaining on this yr, and practically as lengthy till Usyk-Fury II takes place, however that doesn’t imply it’s too early to look at the Fighter of the 12 months race.
We already know who might be preventing in September. It’s unlikely that rather more of observe might be added to October’s calendar, given the time wanted to coach for a struggle and market the occasion. Within the coming weeks, we’ll probably hear from promoters and networks about their schedules for November and December.
What meaning:
We will remove a number of fighters from competition simply primarily based on the truth that they received’t be performing a second time this yr, and that their first and solely win received’t be sufficient.
For instance, meaning no second set of honors for Terence Crawford, voted the Fighter of the 12 months in 2014 by the Boxing Writers Affiliation of America. Crawford’s lone look of 2024 might be his shut however strong victory over Israil Madrimov on August 3 for a junior middleweight title.
And we are able to take a look at the fighters who may have carried out a number of instances, however whose victories simply don’t carry sufficient weight for the award.
Meaning tremendous middleweight champ Canelo Alvarez, named Fighter of the 12 months in 2019 and 2021 by each The Ring journal and the BWAA, isn’t going to be acknowledged for a 3rd time for his Could victory over Jaime Munguia and his probably win over Edgar Berlanga in a pair weeks.
Naoya Inoue was the plain selection in 2023 after he received the undisputed junior featherweight championship over the course of two fights, dominating unified titleholders Stephen Fulton and Marlon Tapales. However he received’t repeat in 2024 primarily based on his TKO of high contender Luis Nery in Could and his struggle with second-tier challenger TJ Doheny on Sept. 3. Even when he provides a 3rd struggle in opposition to the likes of Sam Goodman or Murodjon Akhmadaliev, that might make for a advantageous yr, simply not a Fighter of the 12 months.
Nor will Junto Nakatani, in any other case a pound-for-pound expertise, get the honors regardless of three appearances — one thing too uncommon on this period of inactivity — bringing a sixth-round technical knockout over Alexander Santiago for a bantamweight world title, a first-round knockout of Vincent Astrolabio and an upcoming Oct. 14 protection in opposition to Petch CP Freshmart.
This has not been an amazing yr in boxing. Not when so many fighters are so inactive. And never when so most of the fights we did obtain simply haven’t moved the needle.
All of which turns into painfully clear when reviewing the checklist of 2024’s high fighters and what they’ve carried out. A lot of their campaigns can be seen simply as “good” or merely “strong” had been this most different years.
Let’s look, then, at that checklist, which we’ve damaged down into the highest candidates, some honorable mentions, and some unlikely eventualities — large upsets in opposition to overwhelming favorites — that might in any other case create an apparent winner.
High Candidates:
Oleksandr Usyk: Usyk gave the impression to be headed towards defeat in Could, with Tyson Fury hurting him repeatedly to the physique. However Usyk adjusted, wobbled Fury, dropped him within the ninth spherical and had Fury in bother. The choice was shut, although not controversial. Usyk obtained the sting on two of the three judges’ scorecards. This victory alone over Fury, the very best heavyweight lately, made Usyk the undisputed champ and would make him the highest candidate for Fighter of the 12 months even had been it his sole look in 2024. There’s a rematch scheduled, although, and one other clear win over Fury this December would affirm Usyk as the simple choose. That will be Usyk’s second time successful the award; he was honored by The Ring and the BWAA in 2018 for his three ultimate appearances at cruiserweight, when he received choices over Mairis Briedis and Murat Gassiev to turn out to be the undisputed champ at 200, then got here from behind on the scorecards to cease Tony Bellew.
Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitriy Bivol winner: The winner of this struggle will turn out to be the undisputed mild heavyweight champion. Beterbiev additionally fought in January, taking out former tremendous middleweight titleholder Callum Smith in seven rounds; Smith had regarded good beforehand in his two latest appearances at 175. Beterbiev and Bivol had been initially supposed to fulfill in June. When Beterbiev pulled out with an harm, Bivol stopped undefeated however unheralded Malik Zinad. Bivol received Fighter of the 12 months as soon as earlier than, in 2022 for his resolution wins over Canelo Alvarez and beforehand unbeaten Gilberto Ramirez.
Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez: Rodriguez blasted by way of the highest junior bantamweight on the planet, and a longtime pound-for-pounder, when he knocked out Juan Francisco Estrada in June. To date that’s Rodriguez’s sole look for 2024, nevertheless it was fairly a formidable victory in fairly a formidable trend. Rodriguez could struggle as soon as extra this yr. Relying on who he faces and the way he does, Rodriguez’s case could get even stronger.
Honorable Mentions
Though we dominated out Inoue and Nakatani for Fighter of the 12 months earlier on this column, every might nonetheless benefit honorable mentions for an honest 2024.
Inoue: That is wholly depending on whether or not Inoue wins his second look of 2024, as he’s anticipated to do, after which notches a 3rd win in opposition to a very good challenger earlier than the yr is out. Inoue’s victory over Nery in Could noticed the junior featherweight champ come off the canvas to cease an excellent opponent. Inoue’s bout this Tuesday in opposition to Doheny doesn’t strengthen his case, although it’s a suitable means for Inoue to stay busy. If Inoue finishes the yr by persevering with to wash out the 122-pound division, maybe in opposition to Goodman or Akhmadaliev, then this may go down as an honest yr for “The Monster,” who in any other case has already crushed the very best on this weight class however isn’t bodily prepared but to maneuver on to the following.
Nakatani: Nakatani has ultimately begun to cross over into wider consciousness, notably after his highlight-reel knockout of Andrew Moloney in 2023 at junior bantamweight. That struggle received Nakatani a world title in a second weight class. However this column is about this yr. Earlier in 2024, Nakatani earned a title in his third, division stopping bantamweight beltholder Alexandro Santiago in six. Then Nakatani blasted by way of contender Vincent Astrolabio in lower than a spherical. For his subsequent outing, Nakatani will face the 76-1 Petch CP Freshmart, who has fairly the padded document and whose lone loss got here in opposition to Takuma Inoue in 2018. Inoue has since gone on to win a world title at 118.
There are another names that additionally might deserve acknowledgement for a advantageous yr — relying on what they do subsequent in 2024 — even when their wins received’t put them in competition for high honors. They embody:
Daniel Dubois: In June, Dubois stopped unbeaten contender Filip Hrgovic on cuts for an interim heavyweight belt. On September 21, Dubois — who was since upgraded to the complete IBF titleholder — will defend in opposition to Anthony Joshua. Joshua has received 4 straight since struggling back-to-back losses to Usyk and has been ranked the third-best heavyweight behind Usyk and Fury.
Gervonta “Tank” Davis: To date, Davis has solely fought as soon as in 2024, however he scored a high quality win along with his eighth-round knockout of unbeaten light-weight contender Frank Martin. It’s a disgrace that Davis was unable to land fights with fellow titleholders Vasiliy Lomachenko and Shakur Stevenson. Wins over both would’ve propelled Davis towards the highest of this checklist. As an alternative, Davis is anticipated to return within the coming months in opposition to a foe whose identify has not but been decided. If that struggle winds up being in opposition to Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela — who upset Isaac Cruz in August for a junior welterweight title — then a second win for Davis would make for a fairly good yr.
Fernando Martinez: Martinez has additionally solely fought as soon as to this point this yr, and that win was an excellent one, seeing him go to Japan to win a transparent resolution over Kazuto Ioka, lengthy one of many high 115-pounders round. Martinez unified two world titles within the course of. It’s attainable that the 2 males might have a rematch on New 12 months’s Eve, and one other victory for Martinez would solely strengthen his case for being probably the greatest fighters of 2024.
Liam Paro: Paro captured a junior welterweight world title in June with a unanimous resolution victory over Subriel Matias, who had knocked out everybody he’d ever confronted — even his earlier loss to Petros Ananyan was avenged two years later by TKO. Paro went into hostile territory in opposition to Matias and didn’t simply survive; he received convincingly, even when he needed to make it by way of some problem to get there. If Paro is ready to add one other high quality win, then he deserves an honorable point out. That chance might are available in a unification bout with Devin Haney, which is a risk for later this yr. Some will see a win over Haney as meaningless, given how Haney regarded in opposition to Ryan Garcia. And it’s true, Haney did look flawed and susceptible, although that vulnerability got here in opposition to a foe who was stronger because of deliberately lacking weight and resulting from using performance-enhancing medication. Nonetheless, if Paro finishes 2024 with wins over Matias and Haney, plus two world titles in his assortment, that ought to go down as a fairly good yr.
Tyson Fury: That is if, and provided that, Fury wins demonstratively in his rematch with Usyk. Some could bristle at together with a fighter who misplaced earlier within the yr. Nevertheless, a dominant victory for Fury would reestablish him because the true king of the heavyweight division, basically writing over the shut loss to Usyk of their first assembly. Lennox Lewis and Hasim Rahman went 1-1 in opposition to one another, however Lewis is seen as being the winner of their rivalry by advantage of his rematch win.
Unlikely Upsets In opposition to Overwhelming Favorites
There aren’t many circumstances of somebody being Fighter of the 12 months primarily based solely on one large upset.
Maybe the newest instance is George Foreman, chosen by the BWAA in 1994 because of his one-punch come-from-behind KO of Michael Moorer. (The Ring went with Roy Jones Jr., whose three victories that yr included a second-round TKO of Thomas Tate in a middleweight title protection after which a unanimous resolution over James Toney to seize a brilliant middleweight belt.)
Maybe Buster Douglas would’ve received in 1990 had his lone struggle that yr been his historic knockout of Mike Tyson. Alas, Douglas returned to the ring later that yr and was promptly dispatched by Evander Holyfield.
Glen Johnson’s knockout of Roy Jones Jr. in 2004 was additionally beautiful, nevertheless it in all probability wouldn’t have been sufficient on condition that Jones had been knocked out by Antonio Tarver simply 4 months beforehand. However, Johnson was certainly named the highest fighter that yr by each The Ring and BWAA. That’s as a result of his three-fight marketing campaign noticed him outpoint Clinton Woods for a vacant mild heavyweight belt, knock out Jones after which take a break up resolution over Tarver to turn out to be The Ring’s champion at 175.
Trying on the remaining schedule for 2024, two of the very best fighters on the planet — Inoue and Canelo — are dealing with opponents seen as having little probability at victory. Meaning these odds-on favorites received’t be capable to use these bouts to make their case for Fighter of the 12 months. But when these underdogs rating a exceptional upset?
TJ Doheny: If TJ Doheny had been to beat Naoya Inoue on Sept. 3, that win alone — Doheny additionally defeated a 7-0-1 prospect in Could — would give him a really sturdy case.
Edgar Berlanga: The identical could be stated for Berlanga defeating Canelo on Sept. 14. Berlanga has regarded as if he’d in any other case reached his limits at tremendous middleweight. It might be surprising if he had been by some means in a position to do what different, far-better 168-pounders couldn’t.
And yet one more identify for us to probably embody:
Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela: If Valenzuela faces “Tank” Davis later this yr, he wouldn’t be as a lot of an underdog as Doheny is in opposition to Inoue or Berlanga is in opposition to Canelo. But a win over Davis would completely make Valenzuela a high candidate for Fighter of the 12 months honors. Davis is seen as probably the greatest all-around fighters on the planet, somebody with great energy, boxing capacity and ring savvy. Valenzuela already has one very strong win along with his August break up resolution over Isaac Cruz for a junior welterweight title. Including a win over Davis wouldn’t be the cherry on high; it could be an entire rattling freezer stuffed with ice cream.
Observe David Greisman on Twitter @FightingWords2. His e book, “Preventing Phrases: The Coronary heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is obtainable on Amazon.
