Boxing Fighter of the Year – The 57th edition of the TnS Boxing Podcast focuses on who is the “Fighter of the Year” for 2017. This past calendar year has been a terrific one for the sport of boxing as the sport delivered action of an extremely high level in multiple weight classes.
https://soundcloud.com/getmoresports/talk-n-shoot-podcast-episode-57
The heavyweight division was at the forefront in 2017. Wladimir Klitschko returned to face Anthony Joshua in London’s Wembley Stadium and the pair delivered a classic bout that saw both men get up off the canvas to continue fighting. In the end, the fight saw Joshua dispatch Klitschko in the eleventh round to claim supremacy in the heavyweight division. Joshuaappears ready to rule the divisionas a showdown with WBC world titlist Deontay Wilder looms.
Meanwhile in the super flyweight division, Roman “Chocolatito” entered 2017 the #1 pound for pound fighter in the world but that all came apart at the hands of Thailand’s Sor Rungvisai. Rungvisai beat “Chocolatito” in an upset of the year candidate and then he did it again, winning the rematch in much more convincing fashion. His knock out of “Chocolatito” signaled a changing of the guard in a weight class that is loaded with talent.
Ukranian Vasyl Lomachenko is calling the featherweight and super featherweight classes his these days, as he went 3-0 in 2017. He dispatched Jason Sosa, Miguel Marriaga and Guillermo Rigondeaux, all decorated champions or former world champions. They call him “Hi-Tech” and his frenetic style has caught on with modern boxing fans and he is still under 30 years old. Next up for Lomachenko is a potential move up to the lightweight division.
At light heavyweight all-world performer Andre Ward cleaned out his second weight class by beating former kingpin Sergey Kovalev for a second time in the early part of the year. Ward chose to retire shortly afterwards, leaving the weight class back open at the top. By the end of 2017 Kovalev had returned with a KO performance of his own over Vyacheslav Shabranskyy. Badou Jack emerged to grab the first of Ward’s vacant titles, making him a two weight class world champion and an operator in the weight class as well.
Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin got it on in 2017 and nothing was settled in the middleweight division. BIlly Joe Saunders used guile and style to become a player at middleweight, as he dispatched slugger David Lemieux to retain his WBO world title. Jermall Charlo emerged in the weight class as well as he and twin brother Jermell had massive years in fighting in separate weight classes for the first time.
And then there is the welterweight division where it seems that a unification showdown is in the making for 2018. Errol Spence has grabbed the IBF world title, the WBC and WBA belts sit with Keith Thurman and the two spent 2017 lining up that big time match-up. Now operating at welterweight is Terence Crawford, who is the #1 pound for pound fighter in the world today. Crawford is scheduled to meet Australia’s Jeff Horn, who owns the WBO world title in the first half of 2018.
Though there is so much to talk about, this latest TalknShoot Boxing Podcast focuses on the final candidates for “Fighter of the Year” in 2017.
The “Final Three” candidates:
Vasyl Lomachenko / WBO world super featherweight champion, 3-0 in 2017, 10-1 overall record, with 8 knock outs.
Sor Rungvisai / WBC world super flyweight champion, 2-0 in 2017, 44-4-1 overall record, with 40 knock outs.
Anthony Joshua / WBA and IBF world heavyweight champion, 2-0 in 2017, 20-0 overall record, with 20 knock outs.
Boxing Fighter of the Year / Check out more boxing news and features at The Sweet Science.
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