Wladimir Interview '6 belts in boxing'?

[supacook2k]

Just read the story on the main page and in it wladimir is quoted as saying "There are six belts that exist in boxing and I remember there has always been the question who is the champion in the heavyweight division, which version is more important, which champion is stronger and better"

Now the 6 sought after belts that i'm aware of is WBC,WBA.IBF,WBO,IBO & The Ring

my question is, Is the IBO now recognised as a what i would call a "full world title"? I have always thought it was a fringe title and not officially recognised by the big 4. If the bigger more popular fighters were/are happy to fight for the IBO title e.g Lewis,Hatton,Klitschko,Mayweather,Hopkins,Jones Jr , then why dont the big 4 bodies recognise it as an official world title.

Please correct me if anything i said it wrong but it is just my understanding at the moment.

[dondada]

Just read the story on the main page and in it wladimir is quoted as saying "There are six belts that exist in boxing and I remember there has always been the question who is the champion in the heavyweight division, which version is more important, which champion is stronger and better"

Now the 6 sought after belts that i'm aware of is WBC,WBA.IBF,WBO,IBO & The Ring

my question is, Is the IBO now recognised as a what i would call a "full world title"? I have always thought it was a fringe title and not officially recognised by the big 4. If the bigger more popular fighters were/are happy to fight for the IBO title e.g Lewis,Hatton,Klitschko,Mayweather,Hopkins,Jones Jr , then why dont the big 4 bodies recognise it as an official world title.

Please correct me if anything i said it wrong but it is just my understanding at the moment.

I wouldn't worry about who 'the big four' recognise. F**k them. They're the biggest problem in boxing today. Depends whether you think it is, or not, I suppose.

[MightyWarrior]

my question is, Is the IBO now recognised as a what i would call a "full world title"?

No at all. It's a joke belt, recognised by no one.

[Chambers2]

They're all joke belts IMO, it's all about the fights rather than the belts.

i.e. Carl Froch > Ricky Burns

[T.M.K]

Ther are 4 big belts in boxing (should only be one).... but surely he included the other two because he is a gentleman, a BUSINESS man, and it makes sense to hype-up the acheivement as much as possible.

best wishes,

Col/T.M.K

[johnswan1]

The Ring belt is the only one that counts really. The rest can be bought.

[johnswan1]

So how many current Ring champions out there do you think are undeserving of the title of champion of their division?

[johnswan1]

So how many current Ring champions out there do you think are undeserving of the title of champion of their division?

I don't know. I don't keep up with The Ring titles and last I read there was only 3 or 4 of them. As per my original point, the belt lost a lot of legitimacy almost immediately so should be viewed alongside the rest of them. It is a manufactured title, invented solely for the purpose of bringing an air of legitimacy to TV boradcasts. just another version of an ABC belt with all the problems this brings.

None are perfect but the Ring titles and ratings, although subjective and open to debate, are voted upon by a panel of and are not influenced by sanctioning fees or third parties with a vested interest. They are the only named title worth giving any credibility. Who cares that they rated Calzaghe ahead of Ottke? I'm sure there will be some who feel Froch-Ward should not be for the title while Bute is on the scene. The success of the magazine itself is not even an issue here. What magazine hasn't seen sales take a tumble given the rise of the web, particularly one in a sport as out of the mainstream as boxing is (at least in the primary market of the magazine, the US). Sales are not bad because their ratings are shit.

[Josh1111]

Apparently the IBO has the best ranking system?

[fasteddie]

for me there are only two proper belts wbc and ibf,the wba has gone right down in my estimation cause of the wba interim the wba proper the wba super world titles i just want a belt that says this is our champion and this is our ranked top 10 list the champion has to fight the number 1 contender at all times, none of this sh1t were you can fight someone who is in the top ten,fight the number one then you can call yourself the world champion. ibo is a bolloxed organisation,who did hatton,lewis,wlad or anyone else who holds this belt win it off? as far as im concerned the ibo just give it to the person who they think is the best in the division it comes part and parcel with the ring belt

[johnswan1]

for me there are only two proper belts wbc and ibf,the wba has gone right down in my estimation cause of the wba interim the wba proper the wba super world titles i just want a belt that says this is our champion and this is our ranked top 10 list the champion has to fight the number 1 contender at all times, none of this sh1t were you can fight someone who is in the top ten,fight the number one then you can call yourself the world champion. ibo is a bolloxed organisation,who did hatton,lewis,wlad or anyone else who holds this belt win it off? as far as im concerned the ibo just give it to the person who they think is the best in the division it comes part and parcel with the ring belt

The Ring belt has to be won in the ring between the highest ranked two guys. Despite what KG says, most debates on Ring rankings are on the ordering of those ranked 1-3. The title is always won when their ranked 1&2 guys fight each other and these guys are always highly ranked fighters, unlike the alphabet titles where most number one contenders don't even have a top ten ranking with any of the other bodies.

[foxwoods]

the ring belt is the only one worth taking notice of these days, sad but true.

[mickeyb]

We should start a Boxrec British & Irish Board title, and award it to whoever we think is the consensus #1 in each division.

As some on here could argue about the colour of grass, we'd need a few tie breakers. I suggest that, should no consensus be reached, whoever has the fittest other half gets to decide. By way of proof, entrants would have to post pics of their girlfriend/boyfriend/wife/blow-up-doll hand bra-ing in their pants with "I am [insertusernamehere]'s other half" written on their body in permanent black marker.

If, after serious masterba... er, consideration no winner can be chosen, 2nd tie breaker is whoever has the oldest dad.

Once we have a list, we sent them a belt we make out of papier-mâché and pipe cleaners, in return for a modest sanctioning fee. All proceeds to go towards hiring a Boxrec Ringcard Girl.

[Deadendgeneration]

for me there are only two proper belts wbc and ibf,the wba has gone right down in my estimation cause of the wba interim the wba proper the wba super world titles i just want a belt that says this is our champion and this is our ranked top 10 list the champion has to fight the number 1 contender at all times, none of this sh1t were you can fight someone who is in the top ten,fight the number one then you can call yourself the world champion. ibo is a bolloxed organisation,who did hatton,lewis,wlad or anyone else who holds this belt win it off? as far as im concerned the ibo just give it to the person who they think is the best in the division it comes part and parcel with the ring belt

What about the fragmentation of WBC Diamond, Sliver etc?

[Emmseegee]

Sadly id agree that the ring belt is the only one worth noticing, someone before was correct also that The Ring magazine rankings have been fiddled in the past but that gives them something else in common with the real organisations then eh?

The ring belt is controlled better than other titles, if we had to choose a set of rules and conditions for holding a title i think the way the ring belt operates would be closest. Look at a list of previous Ring belt holders and im sure there will be less "poor names" in there than the lists associated with the abc's. Infact we should maybe start calling them the a-z's instead of the abc's.

The amount of titles have became so ridiculous that for me that i concentrate mainly on the myth of the best P4P, sadly again thats down to opinion and creates a lot of arguments.

The control of titles etc is a complete joke, its like the equivalent of football teams claiming to be champions if they win the charity shield or five aside masters. Shambles

[Flump]

The Ring belt is not a bastion of integrity. They ignored their own criteria in a mad dash to crown Vitali as king when he beat Sanders. The Ring also recognised Calzaghe after Lacy despite ignoring Ottke’s legitimate claims on the title, presumably because he’s Sven Ottke.

Didn't Ottke retire well before that fight? He was the IBF champ which I'm sure is what Lacy held?

I believe that's right. 4 sanctioning bodies is horrendous. Three champions per division per sanctioning body is an absolute disgrace. Compared to that The Ring has to be the one to look up to, even if they're a Golden Boy promotion.

[crusader]

The Ring belt is by far the most credible. Sure, there might be some reasons to bash it, but there is only one Ring champ per division, and all of them are deserving of their top ranking. More often then not both of these things cannot be said about the boxers who hold other titles.

[mickeyb]

The Ring belt is by far the most credible. Sure, there might be some reasons to bash it, but there is only one Ring champ per division, and all of them are deserving of their top ranking. More often then not both of these things cannot be said about the boxers who hold other titles.

There's considerably less than one in most divisions...

I'm inclined to agree though - the Ring title is the shiniest turd.