Should Crawford be Whining?
Posted: 10 Dec 2017, 19:26
A couple days ago I read about Crawford whining that even if Lomachenko defeats Rigo, he, not Loma, should be the 2017 Fighter of the Year.
Now why this is so important to Crawford, I don't know. Today's fighter seem to focus more on public recognition than they do on actual achievement.
Well, Lomachenko did get the "W" last night over the lethargic Cuban, but does that entitle him to the award as Crawford fears?
I'm not certain either boxer really qualifies, but in fairness, it hasn't been exactly a bumper year for outstanding achievement by any fighter.
Crawford beats lightly regarded Diaz in a ho-hum matchup and then admittedly looks very impressive in stopping Indongo to unify the 140 lb. titles.
But until Indongo won his belts over Troyanovsky and Burns, he wasn't really very high on the boxing radar.
Nice accomplishments by Crawford, but FOTY worthy? Doesn't seem close.
Loma picked up 3 wins this year, but 2 were versus no-hopers like Sosa and Marriaga, and the third last night against undersized Rigo. Even Lomachenko downplayed the significance of that win, pointing to the size discrepancy.
By today's standards 3 title wins might be enough to win him the award, but he didn't do anything truly special. Loma did the expected.
Wilder had a couple of sizzling KO wins over contender Washington and a lights out performance over respected former champ Stiverne. So why not Wilder?
But he only fought twice. Again, is that enough to justify the honor, no matter what Crawford insists?
I might as well throw Joshua into the mix. I can't overlook his KO over the revered Wlad and his stoppage of Takam.
But again, that's just 2 fights. And Klitschko was at the very end of the line. Takam was a late substitute fringe contender.
I can't go with AJ.
Some probably like Mikey Garcia. Impressive performances this year, but his 2 (again just 2) bouts were against the fairly unproven alphabet champion Zlaticanin and a somewhat faded (and jaded) Broner.
Mikey's in the mix but you can't say "Wow!" about his 2017.
Yeah, I like Canelo, even if he was saddled with a draw against Golovkin.
He easily dominated the much bigger Chavez Junior without working up much of a sweat, and then turned in a head turning, career performance against a real, legitimate middleweight.
Still, if the judges called it a draw, it's a semi-blemish on the Mexican's record, and probably puts him out of the running for FOTY.
So maybe I have to go with that rugged and unheralded Thai guy, Sor Rungvisai, the one who shook up the world by twice defeating perhaps the then #1 P4P fighter in the world, Chocolatito.
Some dispute the first bout's outcome, but the judges gave it to Sor Rungvisai, and that's what counts.
In the rematch, the Thai left no doubt, manhandling Gonzalez by KO and sending him into retirement. For the time being, at least.
So that's who I'm going with. That little Thai warrior. He too had only 2 bouts in 2017, but that seems to be an unfortunate trend, and I can't buck it.
To his credit, Sor Rungvisai twice beat an elite champion who was unbeaten in 46 bouts. That's as good as it gets.
And whether or not he wins that FOTY honors, I want to be at the Fabulous Forum in February when Sor Rungvisai locks horns with all-action Juan Francisco Estrada.
Maybe that will be the 2018 Fight of the Year fought by the 2017 Fight of the Year.
Now why this is so important to Crawford, I don't know. Today's fighter seem to focus more on public recognition than they do on actual achievement.
Well, Lomachenko did get the "W" last night over the lethargic Cuban, but does that entitle him to the award as Crawford fears?
I'm not certain either boxer really qualifies, but in fairness, it hasn't been exactly a bumper year for outstanding achievement by any fighter.
Crawford beats lightly regarded Diaz in a ho-hum matchup and then admittedly looks very impressive in stopping Indongo to unify the 140 lb. titles.
But until Indongo won his belts over Troyanovsky and Burns, he wasn't really very high on the boxing radar.
Nice accomplishments by Crawford, but FOTY worthy? Doesn't seem close.
Loma picked up 3 wins this year, but 2 were versus no-hopers like Sosa and Marriaga, and the third last night against undersized Rigo. Even Lomachenko downplayed the significance of that win, pointing to the size discrepancy.
By today's standards 3 title wins might be enough to win him the award, but he didn't do anything truly special. Loma did the expected.
Wilder had a couple of sizzling KO wins over contender Washington and a lights out performance over respected former champ Stiverne. So why not Wilder?
But he only fought twice. Again, is that enough to justify the honor, no matter what Crawford insists?
I might as well throw Joshua into the mix. I can't overlook his KO over the revered Wlad and his stoppage of Takam.
But again, that's just 2 fights. And Klitschko was at the very end of the line. Takam was a late substitute fringe contender.
I can't go with AJ.
Some probably like Mikey Garcia. Impressive performances this year, but his 2 (again just 2) bouts were against the fairly unproven alphabet champion Zlaticanin and a somewhat faded (and jaded) Broner.
Mikey's in the mix but you can't say "Wow!" about his 2017.
Yeah, I like Canelo, even if he was saddled with a draw against Golovkin.
He easily dominated the much bigger Chavez Junior without working up much of a sweat, and then turned in a head turning, career performance against a real, legitimate middleweight.
Still, if the judges called it a draw, it's a semi-blemish on the Mexican's record, and probably puts him out of the running for FOTY.
So maybe I have to go with that rugged and unheralded Thai guy, Sor Rungvisai, the one who shook up the world by twice defeating perhaps the then #1 P4P fighter in the world, Chocolatito.
Some dispute the first bout's outcome, but the judges gave it to Sor Rungvisai, and that's what counts.
In the rematch, the Thai left no doubt, manhandling Gonzalez by KO and sending him into retirement. For the time being, at least.
So that's who I'm going with. That little Thai warrior. He too had only 2 bouts in 2017, but that seems to be an unfortunate trend, and I can't buck it.
To his credit, Sor Rungvisai twice beat an elite champion who was unbeaten in 46 bouts. That's as good as it gets.
And whether or not he wins that FOTY honors, I want to be at the Fabulous Forum in February when Sor Rungvisai locks horns with all-action Juan Francisco Estrada.
Maybe that will be the 2018 Fight of the Year fought by the 2017 Fight of the Year.
