By Gav Duthie: We all know things can change, but as it stands, Tyson Fury’s future is cloudy, Oleksandr Usyk is 35 years old, his country is in the middle of one war, and Anthony Joshua will have a hard time coming back from another. loss at the top end of the sport.
Deontay Wilder returns, but will he be the same? This era is not over, but it is definitely in its twilight. Over the years we’ve heard that Joshua is just another Frank Bruno, that Fury is just a big chump after fighting John McDermott, that Wilder can’t box, but isn’t it time before it’s all over to just appreciate how good is this? heavyweight boxing era has been.
Ok, could have been better; There is still time. Will we get the great undisputed UK fight between Fury and Usyk? Could Wilder knock out Usyk or AJ? We may never know, but we’ve already had some great nights, so let’s not complain about what didn’t happen, what might have been, and appreciate what we’ve seen in the last ten years or so.
Here is my complete list of the top 20 fights of this era between fighters currently or at some point in the last ten years.
The list
Note: I have omitted Wladimir Klitschko despite being active during this period, as he is considered the king of the previous era.
(20) Anthony Joshua vs. Joseph Parker
(2018, Joshua UD12)
A bit disappointing in terms of action. These two were considered the top prospects in the division simultaneously. Parker was the first to claim a world title, then Joshua beat Charles Martin and Klitschko. Parker boxed well at times but seemed content to survive. The referee prevented any internal action from happening, so it ended up as a comfortable and uninspiring call for AJ. It still has to rank as one of his best wins, albeit on paper.
(19) Tyson Fury vs. Dillian Whyte
(2022, Fury TKO 6)
Over 1,000 days in the making, and Whyte never showed up. Fury didn’t let it in and controlled Whyte at the end of the jab all night. However, he was a magnificent uppercut to close out the show. He could have finished any heavyweight fight in history.
(18) Usyk vs. Joshua 2
(2022, Usyk SD 12)
A much better performance from AJ, but it wasn’t enough. Just when it seemed like AJ had turned the screw in round 9, Usyk came back stronger and more clinical in the last three rounds. This truly defined Usyk as the king of the heavyweights in Fury’s absence.
(17) Anthony Joshua vs. Kubrat Pulev
(2020, Joshua KO 9)
Once again, just a fight that turned out to be much easier for Joshua than he had anticipated. Pulev is a top fighter with a good jab and ring IQ, but he was no match for AJ that night. This fight, more than any other for me, showed how good a boxer Joshua is, but not good enough to have a chess match with Oleksandr Usyk. AJ closed out the show with a great 1-2 combination.
(16) Fury vs. Wilder 2
(2020, Fury TKO 7)
He’s not the best in terms of how one-sided he was, but it was amazing to see how optimistic Fury was. No one could believe how different he was from the first fight and how he demoralized Wilder into going on the defensive. It was a one-sided blowout that Mark Breland rightly stopped and threw in the towel.
(15) Joseph Parker vs. Andy Ruiz
(2016, Parker MD 12)
An interesting match with a dubious decision. Ruiz started off fast and landed some great combinations, but he slowed down as the fight went on. Parker was given the go-ahead to win the vacant WBO world title after Tyson Fury’s first sabbatical due to his mental health following the Klitschko fight.
(14) Anthony Joshua vs. Andy Ruiz 2
(2019, Joshua UD 12)
A great boxing performance from Joshua, but Andy Ruiz did himself no favors. He enjoyed his earlier success over the big man too much and got too fat and out of shape. Joshua didn’t engage, but controlled the fight with the jab and lateral movement.
(13) Joe Joyce vs. Daniel Dubois
(2020, Joyce O10)
A little angry. Frank Warren promoted both men, but his goose that lays the golden egg was definitely Dubois. Daniel started strong and landed big shots early; the difference was that Joyce was a much thicker tree than Dubois was used to felling. Joyce hit Dubois with a thud all night. This fight would be better if it weren’t for the ending where most feel Daniel quit. However, Dubois has since returned well.
(12) Oleksandr Usyk vs. Anthony Joshua
(2021, Usyk UD 12)
One for the purest. I feel like AJ boxed better than most people realize, but Usyk was just better. Joshua fought the wrong fight, and though many rounds were close, Usyk seemed to land a better shot or two each round to take it. Hopefully AJ will fight differently this weekend to make the show better to watch.
(11) Anthony Joshua vs. Alexander Povetkin
(2018, Joshua TKO 7)
A better fight than AJ’s previous victories because Povetkin managed to have quite a bit of success with his jumping left hooks. The Russian had won over the British fans with his knockout of David Price before, and AJ certainly had to pay attention. However, Joshua closed out the show brilliantly, handing Povetkin his first knockout loss.
(10) Dillian Whyte vs. Joseph Parker
(2018, Whyte UD 12)
Parker surprisingly took this fight just four months after losing to Joshua. Personally, I thought he would outplay Whyte, but the ‘Bodysnatcher’ signaled his intentions early, knocking Parker down with a forearm, hinting that he was going to throw everything at the New Zealander. Parker came back late and dropped Whyte in the final round. Whyte was very stunned at the end, but held on for a deserved victory on the cards.
(9) Ruiz v Joshua
(2019, Ruiz TKO 7)
What a shock this was. The first three rounds were business as usual. A good uppercut, left hook and down goes Ruiz. Now to finish him off, how wrong we were. AJ got caught up in the exchange and never fully recovered. Ruiz stopped a stunned Joshua in the seventh to become the first world heavyweight champion of Mexican descent.
(8) Wilder v. Ortiz 2
(2019, Wilder KO 7)
The Cuban made good adjustments from the first fight, outboxing Wilder in the first six rounds. He was way ahead on all cards until Wilder did what he does. A straight right hand dropped Ortiz and he was unable to get back up.
(7) Whyte vs. Chisora 1
(2016, Whyte SD 12)
What an absolute barn. Incredible action from start to finish. It went back and forth all the way, with each punch thrown with ill intent. I felt that Chisora had done enough, but they both deserved the win. Whyte was given the nod and justified the win by stopping Chisora in a subsequent rematch.
(6) Joshua vs. Whyte
(2015, Joshua TKO 7)
Part of me feels that even though Joshua is a better fighter in 2022, the 2015 version of him had a better chance of beating Usyk. AJ used to be aggressive to the point of recklessness. He marched forward for most of this fight with little regard for what Whyte could do. Joshua was injured for the first time in this fight, but he was a ruthless fighter and got a big KO after a gripping battle.
(5) Hunter vs. Bakole
(October 2018, Hunter TKO 10)
A completely random under-the-radar fight between an American and Congolese fighter at the York Hall in England. It was a high risk, low reward fight for both men, with Hunter recently moving up to heavyweight. Bakole has improved considerably since that day, he recently defeated Tony Yoka, but Hunter boxed very well in a great fight with a nice stoppage in the final round.
(4) Fury v Wilder 1
(2018, Draw 12)
It seemed like a stretch after three years out and two prep fights that Fury would agree to face Wilder, but he did and he outboxed him. Wilder, to his credit, never stopped and looked to score an impressive ko in round 12. Fury somehow got up after looking down and out and put it on Wilder for an impressive final round. The fight was scored a draw, but Fury got his revenge in the next two outings.
(3) Whyte vs. Povetkin 1
(2020, Povetkin KO 5)
This gets so high just for the knockout. It was pretty one-sided with Povetkin looking 40 years old. Whyte knocked him down twice and completely dominated him. They say power is the last thing lost and Povetkin pulled an impressive hook out of nowhere to destroy Whyte.
(2) Wilder v Ortiz 1
(2018, Wilder TKO 10)
To Wilder’s credit, everyone avoided Ortiz, but he faced King Kong, and the man of the division was called the boogeyman. It was a great fight with Wilder looking on his feet in the seventh round. He rallied to stop Ortiz in the 10th but was entertaining the whole time.
(1) Fury v Wilder 3
(2021, Fury TKO 11)
What a way to end a rivalry. It was a trilogy that few asked for after the second fight was so one-sided. It got in the way of Fury v Joshua, but it was worth it. It seemed to be going the same way as the second fight with Fury dominating, but in round 4, he walked straight into a right hand and left again and again. Wilder said in the last fight that he wanted to come out with his shield, and that’s exactly what happened. Fury dropped Wilder to the face to retain the title from him in his first defense.
