Despite Pandemic, 2020 Proves to be a Year of Great Comebacks and Takeover
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 25 Dec 2020
Despite the Covid 19 pandemic grinding boxing---and practically, almost everything---to a halt for about half of its regular annual run, 2020 proves to be a year of great comebacks and takeovers.
Tyson Fury started it in February knocking out erstwhile undefeated, dreaded KO artist WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder in the seventh round to regain a share of the titles in boxing's premier division after a long period fighting and banishing his own personal devils.
Fury was himself almost given up as another of Wilder's dramatic late round KO victim when he was sent crashing to the canvas with a few minutes remaining in their first fight in October 2019. Miraculously, he recovered and went on to finish strongly to at the very least salvage a draw in a fight many believed he even won.
In the second fight, Fury left very little to doubt as he immediately imposed his superiority in size and skills and went on to savage Wilder who was coming in at his lightest to score the stoppage.
The stage is now being set for a meeting between Fury and his fellow British multiple world title holder Anthony Joshua for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world early next year.
A few days after the Fury victory, another contemporary who like Fury turned from a toast to toasted of boxing, Nicaragua's Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez turned back the hands of time to knock out UK's Khalid Yafai to regain a share of the super flyweight world titles, this time the WBA belt.
Gonzalez who was regarded as the planet's best pound for pound fighter after previously winning world titles at light flyweight, flyweight and super flyweight while being almost untouchable, lost two bouts to Thailand's Srisaket Sor Rungvusai in 2018 and came crashing down to earth.
Gonzalez takes out Yafai.
With the victory over Yafai and an impressive first WBA super flyweight title defense over Israel Gonzales, Chocolatito is set to meet Mexico's WBC titlist Juan Francisco Estrada also early next year to determine the best of the super flies.
Estrada is generally considered as the capo tutti di capi, the boss of the bosses at 115 lbs but Gonzalez held a win over him going back to their light flyweight days. Filipino Jerwin Ancajas is the IBF titlist while Japanese Kazuto Ioka and Kosei Tanaka will dispute the WBO belt on New Year's Eve.
Another significant comebacks notched during the year about to end were those of Alexander Povetkin in the heavyweight and Gennady Golovkin in the middleweight.
Povetkin wins over Whyte.
Povetkin who was all but dismissed as a spent bullet or worst, a damaged goods proved that his championship fight days are not yet over when he knocked out the highly rated and regarded Dillian Whyte of the UK to grab the latter's interim WBC heavyweight crown in October.
The 40 year old Russian veteran who previously lost two tries for the world title against Wladimir Klitschko on points and Anthony Joshua by knockout in 2018 came off the floor thrice before delivering the haymaker against the tough, hard punching Whyte in the fifth round.
Meanwhile, Golovkin who was being labeled as on the slide after losing most of his middleweight titles to Canelo Alvarez showed that he is back to his old lethal self by stopping Polish challenger Kamil Szeremeta in seventh round to retain his WBO crown.
Golovkin drops Szeremeta.
With the win, Golovkin who earlier gained a share of the titles by defeating Sergei Derevyanchenko has reestablished himself as still the closest rival to Canelo in the middleweights, rekindling the fire of a possible trilogy.
The year also saw the sudden emergence of Teofimo Lopez and Panya Pradabsri which brought an abrupt end to the long established reigns in the lightweight and minimumweight divisions of two of boxing's highly respected champions, namely Vasily Lomachenko and Chayapoon Monsri also known as Wanheng Menayothin.
Lopez made good on his vow to takeover the lightweight class as he wrested all but one of the world titles in the division from Lomachenko who once even was regarded the best pound for pound boxer in the world.
Lopez puts the pressure on Loma.
Lopez dominated the first six rounds, bucked Loma's strong rally in the next five rounds and regained control in the final round to win on all of the judges scorecards.
Pradabsri may have caused Menayothin to rue to decision to not retire with boxing's best record as he defeated his more illustrious countryman by decision to finally yank away his long held WBC minimumweight crown in Thailand.
It was a triple whammy that hit Menayothin as he lost not only his undefeated record and former world best 54-0 slate but the world title he has had since 2014. He also stands to lose on the lucrative contract he signed last year with Golden Boy Promotion.
The Thai great only had Covid pandemic to blame as it prevented him from going to the US and his foreign challengers in coming to Thailand prompting him to plan on retiring and when he changed his mind, forcing him to defend against a fellow Thai just to stay busy.
He and his camp never thought that they would fall to Pradabsri whose previous title attempt was a points loss against Chong Zhao Xiong of China in 2017.
Canelo (R) connects with a left hook at Smith.
As 2020 draws to a close, Canelo Alvarez's own continuing great comeback and continuing takeover of superstardom remain as the pro boxing's top story.
This absent serious challenge from the old superstar and former pound and pound king Manny Pacquiao and long emerging stars as Terrence Crawford and Errol Spence whose own rivalries need to be translated to actual epic ring confrontations among them.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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