10 heavyweights to watch when the Klitschko's are gone

With heavyweight boxing apparently dead with no sign of recovery, is it’s demise being truly over-stated or is the division really going to be a write off for the next decade or so?

Well in all honesty, no, it’s not dead, heck it’s not even dying. The Klitschko’s dominance may not be the most exciting thing in the divisions history, though it’s only due to their complete dominance that the division is being written off. They are 2 tactically astute fighters who control opponents with such ease that they make the top challengers look like novices and, excuse the term, bum. Plenty of the fighters below the Klitschko’s can and have put on brilliant bouts with each other, most notably 2010’s excellent fight between Tomasz Adamek and Chris Arreola. Though Travis Walker’s controversial loss to Alex Leapai was another heavyweight clash worth watching if you can track it down.

A quick look at the top heavyweight shows that there is a changing of the guard coming. David Haye has “promised” (take that as you wish) to retire by the end of October, Vitali Klitschko is nearing 40 and at 34 (35 in March) Wladimir Klitschko is surely nearer his retirement than many may imagine. Other fighters who may not have a long career at the top include Tomasz Adamek (35 in December) and Alexander Ustinov (also 35 in December) as well as the already faded fighters like Ray Austin, Evander Holyfield, David Tua, Juan Carlos Gomez, Hasim Rahman and Jean Marc Mormeck.

Every fighter mentioned so far (apart from Haye) is 34 or older, though what about those under 30 that are likely to come through when the division eventually opens it’s self up to the next generation of fighters?

Kubrat Pulev, Age-29, record 10-0 (5)
Although Pulev is 30 later this year he is easily one of the most promising younger heavyweights out their. Skilled, solid, with decent power and speed it’s not that Pulev stands out in single category but is a solid all rounder who is being pushed well and matched toughly. A former stand out amateur Pulev turned professional in 2009 and debuted in September that year by stopping Florian Benke. Since then Pulev has beaten Gbenga Oloukun, Zack Page, Matt Skelton, Danny Batchelder, Dominick Guinn and most recently Paolo Vidoz. Not bad at all for a 10 fight novice. Currently ranked #15 by Boxrec.com and #25 by the IBO Pulev is well on the way to making his mark on the division in a big way.

Eddie Chambers, Age-28, record 35-2 (18)
It’s hard to believe that Chambers is only 28 (29 in March) he seems to have been around for ages and is undoubtedly the best bet for America to win a heavyweight title in the next 5 years. A skilled speedy fighter who is often unfairly described as a “fat cruiserweight”, has mixed it at the highest level and although thoroughly out classed by Wladimir Klitschko he put up a good showing for several rounds against Alexander Povetkin. Chambers has fast hands, fast and clever footwork though lack any real sting on his power and hasn’t scored a stoppage in over 2 years (stopping Livin Castillo in October 2008). Chambers holds several noteworthy victories including decisions against Calvin Brock, Samuel Peter, Alexander Dimitrenko and Dominick Guinn so is almost certainly one of the ones to watch unless he does decide to drop to cruiserweight.

Robert Helenius, Age-27, record 14-0 (9)
Helenius is a highly ranked Finnish fighter, dubbed “The Nordic Nightmare” he has managed to go from impressive to poor almost between showings which is a shame. At a little over 6’6’’ Helenius has the natural height to be a “modern” heavyweight and although his weight seems to fluctuate he never comes in looking excessively poor. The current EU champion is highly respected by those who follow the European heavyweight scene and is climbing the rankings well since he turned professional in May 2008. Helenius has a series of solid wins over the likes of British fighter Scott Gammer, Gbenga Oloukun, Taras Bydenko, former heavyweight champion Lamon Brewster and the then 12-0 Gregory Tony. Though he looked relatively average in beating Atilli Levin in 2 rounds last time out. Currently ranked #17 by Boxerc.com and #12 by the IBO Helenius is likely to be given a few simple fights to build his record before progressing to the next level.

Manuel Charr, Age-26, record 16-0 (8)
Although the Beirut born German based fighter had a pretty poor 2010 it looks like some of his problems are sorted out and he can once again be “The Diamond Boy”. Charr’s last fight was a poor showing in beating experienced journeyman Zack Page, though he does hold stoppage wins over Owen Beck, Gbenga Oloukun and Robert Hawkins. Charr had a lot of problems due to his right to work in Germany, though with those sorted it seems as if the Syrian national could well be on his way to trying to make an impact. He’s not one I would back to be a world contender though he will certainly be a player at the European level and could perhaps go on to hold the EBU title at some point. Amazingly Charr is ranked #14 with the IBO, a long way from his Boxrec.com ranking of #38 (which seems more plausible) perhaps showing more about the IBO’s limitations than anything else.

Mike Perez, Age-25, record 12-0 (10)
A Cuban southpaw should be all you need to know but there is more to it than that. The man known as “The Rebel” is now based in Cork, Ireland and can do a bit of everything, his main problem maybe his size (he’s only 6 foot dead) though with Irish boxing on the up and up theirs no chance why he can’t become a real challenger in the post-Klitschko era. He was a top amateur before defecting in 2007 and ever since he has been creeping carefully up the rankings. Though his career has had some gimmicks involved, such as beating both Edgars Kalnars and Tomas Mrazek on the same card. To date his best win is against Zack Page though 2011 should see him stepping up his opposition.

Denis Boystov, Age-24, record 28-0 (23)
Just weeks from turning 25 Boystov is one of the highly ranked contenders on every boxing fans lips. A Russian born German based fighter with skill, power, speed and confidence should be a star, though Boystov’s career has been rocky the past year and maybe for the foreseeable future, hand problems threaten to end what seemed to be a one way road to the top. Boystov has the aggressive nature fans of the division love to see, he was a brilliant amateur at youth and cadet level before turning professional in 2004 as just an 18 year old. He has run up one of the longest streaks of wins of any active heavyweight fighter and certainly the most notable streak with wins against Jason Gavern, Taras Bydenko and Vinny Maddalone so far. Boystov’s hand problems, he’s required 2 surgeries in the past 12 months or so, could be the problem that dogs his career and perhaps costs him his power, though for now he’ll remain as one of the most exciting young heavyweights out their. Boystov is currently ranked #23 by Boxrec.com, #8 by the IBO, #7 by Ring magazine (who state his record as 26-0 21KO’s), #9 by ESPN.com, holds top 15 ranks with the 4 world bodies (WBA #2, WBC #3, WBO #4 and IBF #11) and is Fight news’ #7. If his hands hold up their really shouldn’t be a limit for Boystov in a post Klitschko heavyweight scene.

Andrzej Wawrzyk, Age-23, record 20-0 (10)
Polish heavyweights haven’t had a great reputation, Andrzej Golota being the most famous (other than current star Tomasz Adamek) who crumbled or got himself DQ’d in his biggest fights or Tomasz Bonin who got beaten every time he faced anyone even half decent. Albert Sosnowski is decent enough though never going to be a world beater (as shown by his showing against Vitali Klitschko) however Wawrzyk could be the man to change all that. So far the man known as Chemek has beaten Tomasz Bonin, Aleksiy Mazykin and a variety of journeymen. Aged 23 however “Chemek” has plenty of time to step up his competition. Stood at 6’5’’ he’s an ideal height and at around 230 he’s a decent weight as well though he needs to add some beef to his punches before progressing having won his last 5 fights straight by decision and has won 7 of his last 10 by decision. Boxrec rank him at #52 whilst the IBO go for #68 which seems about right for a fighter this far from his prime.

Edmund Gerber, Age-22, record 13-0 (8)
Gerber is a true baby in the division, not 23 until the latter half of this year he turned professional in 2007 soon after turning 19 and has risen carefully through the rankings. He has shown fairly basically faults that will need correcting over the next 5 or 6 years if he’s going to be the star I think he can be, though with power, youth, good match making and time to gain experience there is no real reason why the 6’3’’ can’t go far. He is generally facing decent journeymen at the moment, guys like Marcel Zeller, Lee Swaby, and Colin Kenna, though his true ability was shown when he beat Rene Dettweiler in 2 rounds to start 2010. Gerber is scheduled to take on Britain’s Paul Butlin next, oddly it’ll be his 3rd Brit in a row (behind Kenna and Swaby) maybe he’ll start chasing down the British prospects next. Ranked at #44 with Boxrec.com and #40 by the IBO it’s hard not to think he’ll do something one day, even if that day isn’t until nearer 2020.

Andy Ruiz Jr, Age-21, record 7-0 (5)
This is a selection more on the advise of the few that have seen the over-weight Mexican than anything else. Ruiz from Baja California is nicked named “The Golden Destroyer” and some are dubbing him a serious contender to be Mexico’s first heavyweight champion. To make any sort of mark the talented youngster will need to make a serious change, his weight needs to drop drastically from the 260-270 that he currently is to nearer 230-240, though he has made a good start since he turned pro weighing over 290. He has surprisingly speed and movement for such a big guy and was a well thought of amateur who at one point was tipped for the 2012 Olympics before turning over to the professional ranks. He is yet to face any sort of a test at all as a professional and it will be years before he does, though a Mexican heavyweight is always worth some sort of interest. He was described by Ring magazine as a looking like “a baby-faced Hispanic version of Butterbean” after holding his own in a sparring session with MMA fighter Andrei Arlovski. The same Ring article also said that Ruiz was 95-5 as an amateur so could seriously be one to add to your watch list on boxrec.com.

Some of these may be a long wait until we see them reaching their potential though in the post-Klitschko boxing era they could all make a serious impact. Keep an eye on them. As you can see I’ve picked a fighter aged every year from 29-21 giving a nice range of fighters at different points of their growth, I’d be