Kovalev-Mikhalkin, Barrera-Bivol HBO doubleheader March 3

[Freedom2013]

According to Dan Rafael.

http://www.espn.com/espn/now?nowId=21-40013056-4

[Jip]

Good fightnight

[jamamb]

barrera v bivol is fornicating great

mikhalkin on a good run but not at kovs level. r they playing it safe with kov now.

[gilgamesh]

I like both fights. Barrera vs Bivol is definitely the more intriguing of the two bouts.

[Mexi-Box]

Great, great card. Mikhalkin has been on a pretty good win streak. He's a better fighter than Shabranksyy. Barrera/Bivol is the icing, though.

[Enlightened-One]

Am I imagining things?

Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings, but he's challenging Sergey Kovalev for their world championship, assuming Main Events asks the WBO to sanction him as a qualified title challenger.

Similarly, Vyacheslav Shabranskyy wasn't listed in the WBO's top-15 ratings when his bout against Sergey Kovalev was initially announced, but his ranking was subsequently elevated after Main Events successfully lobbied the WBO to agree to sanction the fight for their vacant world title.

What the fûck is going on? I'm confused!

The WBO are utterly fûckîng rancid!

[jamamb]

yep mate, its like kovs team pick the opponent and then the wbo approves them. mikhalkin does have a respectable resume over last few years but he should be easy for top guys. they r in the project of rebuilding kov as a monster in public opinion.

[Enlightened-One]

yep mate, its like kovs team pick the opponent and then the wbo approves them.

It's weird though. What's the purpose of the WBO's rankings and rules if they can be circumvented so effortlessly by promoters?

Whilst Igor Mikhalkin and Vyacheslav Shabranskyy aren't the worst fighters to have ever stepped foot inside a ring, neither were considered world class by anyone and neither are qualified to trade punches with Sergey Kovalev.

It's an utter disgrace that Main Events and the WBO are flagrantly colluding to maintain the Krusher Kovalev revenue stream.

[boxing_rocks]

I would prefer Kovalev vs Barrera but the Cuban declined again.

[Enlightened-One]

I would prefer Kovalev vs Barrera but the Cuban declined again.

I agree, Barrera would've been a far better choice of opponent.

That being said, if Main Events insists on submitting a lowball offer, they cannot subsequently proclaim "duck!" whenever they're rejected.

Kathy Duva could have picked one of the top-15 ranked WBO challengers, but instead they chose someone that isn't even rated.

This is the second consecutive fight where Main Events has matched Sergey Kovalev against an opponent not even rated by the WBO, ESPN, BoxRec or The Ring.

[boxing_rocks]

Barrera is also promoted by Main Events, so I think it was probably a fair offer.

[Freedom2013]

Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings, but he's challenging Sergey Kovalev for their world championship, assuming Main Events asks the WBO to sanction him as a qualified title challenger.

Mikhalkin will be in the new WBO rankings, and deservedly so. He's BoxRec #11 at light heavyweight, higher than Shabranskyy was.

[victor-romeo]

Damn good card, I will be on the couch on the prescribed time, at the prescribed date.

[Enlightened-One]

Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings, but he's challenging Sergey Kovalev for their world championship, assuming Main Events asks the WBO to sanction him as a qualified title challenger.

Mikhalkin will be in the new WBO rankings, and deservedly so.

Igor Mikhalkin's latest victory came against a journeyman that isn't a top-15 fighter... and this shouldn't earn him a ranking.

We had the same situation with Vyacheslav Shabranskyy, he too wasn't ranked by the WBO until Main Events asked them to sanction Krusher's fight for their vacant WBO title.

Stop arguing with emotions, because we're talking about real-world facts that cannot be disputed.

[Mexi-Box]

Who cares about rankings? FFS, you guys are clowns. Bitch and moan that titles mean nothing then get mad when a title fight happens wherein an opponent is unranked by an organization.

Kovalev/Mikhalkin is a good fight. Nothing else needs to be said Mikhalkin is arguably a top ten fighter. Not sure how you can put Joe Smith Jr. above him like BoxRec and Ring does.

[Mexi-Box]

Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings, but he's challenging Sergey Kovalev for their world championship, assuming Main Events asks the WBO to sanction him as a qualified title challenger.

Mikhalkin will be in the new WBO rankings, and deservedly so. He's BoxRec #11 at light heavyweight, higher than Shabranskyy was.

Igor Mikhalkin's latest victory came against a journeyman that isn't a top-15 fighter... and this shouldn't earn him a ranking.

We had the same situation with Vyacheslav Shabranskyy, he too wasn't ranked by the WBO until Main Events asked them to sanction Krusher's fight for their vacant WBO title.

Stopping arguing with emotions, because we're talking about real-world facts that cannot be disputed.

Who would you put above Mikhalkin in the ratings? TBRB has him deservedly in the top 10.

[Enlightened-One]

Mikhalkin will be in the new WBO rankings, and deservedly so. He's BoxRec #11 at light heavyweight, higher than Shabranskyy was.

Igor Mikhalkin's latest victory came against a journeyman that isn't a top-15 fighter... and this shouldn't earn him a ranking.

We had the same situation with Vyacheslav Shabranskyy, he too wasn't ranked by the WBO until Main Events asked them to sanction Krusher's fight for their vacant WBO title.

Stopping arguing with emotions, because we're talking about real-world facts that cannot be disputed.

Who would you put above Mikhalkin in the ratings? TBRB has him deservedly in the top 10.

Stop arguing with facts. Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings. According to the WBO's rules, he shouldn't be challenging for their world title and his most recent victory came against a journeyman.

He isn't a world-class fighter.

Vyacheslav Shabransky wasn't a world class fighter either, but people are forgetting that he too wasn't ranked by the WBO when his bout against Sergey Kovalev was initially made.

FFS! We're talking simple concepts here!

[boxing_rocks]

Kovalev
Beteebiev
Stevenson
Gvozdyk
Jack
Bivol
Barrera
Alvarez
Pascal

Already 9. There are also Smith Jr, Mekhontsev, Chilemba, Browne who are likely better than him.

[Mexi-Box]

Igor Mikhalkin's latest victory came against a journeyman that isn't a top-15 fighter... and this shouldn't earn him a ranking.

We had the same situation with Vyacheslav Shabranskyy, he too wasn't ranked by the WBO until Main Events asked them to sanction Krusher's fight for their vacant WBO title.

Stopping arguing with emotions, because we're talking about real-world facts that cannot be disputed.

Who would you put above Mikhalkin in the ratings? TBRB has him deservedly in the top 10.

Stop arguing with facts. Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings. According to the WBO's rules, he shouldn't be challenging for their world title and his most recent victory came against a journeyman.

He isn't a world-class fighter.

Vyacheslav Shabransky wasn't a world class fighter either, but people are forgetting that he too wasn't ranked by the WBO when his bout against Sergey Kovalev was initially made.

FFS! We're talking simple concepts here!

No, you're talking out of your ass.

What the hell is a world class fighter? Dude is in the top 10 with a respectable resume. I guess being in the top 10 of you division doesn't mean anything then?

I'm not arguing about the WBO's garbage rankings. It's like getting angry at the IBF's rankings. Belt's rankings mean nothing. The fact that you are stuck on that shows how mindless you are.

[Enlightened-One]

Mikhalkin [is] BoxRec's #11 at light heavyweight, higher than Shabranskyy was.

According to BoxRec, Canelo is the number one pound-for pound fighter, with Luis Nery, Jeff Horn and Miguel Berchelt all being rated in the top-ten, above the likes of Oleksandr Usyk, Carl Frampton, Naoya Inoue and Errol Spence Jr.

So BoxRec's rankings are fûckîng shît!

[Enlightened-One]

Who would you put above Mikhalkin in the ratings? TBRB has him deservedly in the top 10.

Stop arguing with facts. Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings. According to the WBO's rules, he shouldn't be challenging for their world title and his most recent victory came against a journeyman.

He isn't a world-class fighter.

Vyacheslav Shabransky wasn't a world class fighter either, but people are forgetting that he too wasn't ranked by the WBO when his bout against Sergey Kovalev was initially made.

FFS! We're talking simple concepts here!

No, you're talking out of your ass.

What the hell is a world class fighter? Dude is in the top 10 with a respectable resume. I guess being in the top 10 of you division doesn't mean anything then?

I'm not arguing about the WBO's garbage rankings. It's like getting angry at the IBF's rankings. Belt's rankings mean nothing. The fact that you are stuck on that shows how mindless you are.

ESPN or The RING?

Fûckîng delusional cheerleaders!

The next thing you'll be claiming is that Sergey Kovalev would earn the right to be considered fighter of the year 2018 when he inevitably forces an early stoppage victory over Igor Mikhalkin.

[Mexi-Box]

Kovalev
Beteebiev
Stevenson
Gvozdyk
Jack
Bivol
Barrera
Alvarez
Pascal

Already 9. There are also Smith Jr, Mekhontsev, Chilemba, Browne who are likely better than him.

Are you serious?

Also, if you really get down to it, Mikhalkin has a better resume than Bivol. Chilemba hasn't fought since last year and he's on a 3 fight losing streak. Have you even watched Mekhontsev? Dude should've lost against journeyman Alexander Johnson. You don't know how to rank. Easy work .

[Mexi-Box]

Stop arguing with facts. Igor Mikhalkin isn't rated in the WBO's top-15 rankings. According to the WBO's rules, he shouldn't be challenging for their world title and his most recent victory came against a journeyman.

He isn't a world-class fighter.

Vyacheslav Shabransky wasn't a world class fighter either, but people are forgetting that he too wasn't ranked by the WBO when his bout against Sergey Kovalev was initially made.

FFS! We're talking simple concepts here!

No, you're talking out of your ass.

What the hell is a world class fighter? Dude is in the top 10 with a respectable resume. I guess being in the top 10 of you division doesn't mean anything then?

I'm not arguing about the WBO's garbage rankings. It's like getting angry at the IBF's rankings. Belt's rankings mean nothing. The fact that you are stuck on that shows how mindless you are.

ESPN or The RING?

Fûckîng delusional cheerleaders!

The next thing you'll be claiming is that Sergey Kovalev would earn the right to be considered fighter of the year 2018 when he inevitably forces an early stoppage victory over Igor Mikhalkin.

I've not said that, and I mentioned a 3rd party that has Mikhalkin ranked in the top 10. The fact that you are going on about belt's garbage rankings like they mean anythign at all show you are completely clueless. The Unenlightened One.

[Enlightened-One]

No, you're talking out of your ass.

What the hell is a world class fighter? Dude is in the top 10 with a respectable resume. I guess being in the top 10 of you division doesn't mean anything then?

I'm not arguing about the WBO's garbage rankings. It's like getting angry at the IBF's rankings. Belt's rankings mean nothing. The fact that you are stuck on that shows how mindless you are.

ESPN or The RING?

Fûckîng delusional cheerleaders!

The next thing you'll be claiming is that Sergey Kovalev would earn the right to be considered fighter of the year 2018 when he inevitably forces an early stoppage victory over Igor Mikhalkin.

I've not said that, and I mentioned a 3rd party that has Mikhalkin ranked in the top 10. The fact that you are going on about belt's garbage rankings like they mean anythign at all show you are completely clueless. The Unenlightened One.

How many top-15 175lbs fighters has Igor Mikhalkin beaten?

At the time when Sergey Kovalev's last two WBO world title bouts were made, both opponents weren't considered world class by ESPN, The RING and more importantly the WBO. That is a fact!

[victor-romeo]

Kovalevs working, and Mihalkin may proved to be dangerous , he is already way above one of Bernard Hopkins challenger Morrade Hakkar if you want a chuckle. I am not sure about Garcia's opponent Lippinets.. the point is you don't have to fight a tough one every time out ..Kovalev and Duva are making $$ thats why they are in business and the card is very intriguing.