2021 was a memorable year for the sport of professional boxing with some exciting contests, big name victories and more than a few shock results. England’s Tyson Fury finished his long-running feud with American Deontay Wilder, defending his WBC title with an incredible KO win over the Bronze Bomber. Fellow Brit Anthony Joshua wasn’t as convincing, losing his clutch of titles to former cruiserweight unified champion Oleksandr Usyk.
The Gypsy King was favourite to defeat Wilder having knocked him out in the second fight of three while Ukrainian Usyk surprised even the most experienced boxing traders working online betting in Canada. It was a rollercoaster 12 months but it’s not time to loosen your safety harness. In fact, it’s time to buckle up as we prepare to go again.
Will 2022 pick up where the previous year left off and deliver us plenty more talking points. Those with an interest in boxing certainly hope so but have had to endure a slow start. Only a small number of shows were held in the United States in January while the British Boxing Board of Control moved to postpone all fights scheduled for the opening month to help assist in the country’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The wheels are already in motion to ramp up the coverage heading towards spring and with promoters, managers and fighters already eager to make up lost ground, this could be the year we get to see the big fights finally happen. Those unification bouts fans have been dreaming of but have, as yet, failed to materialise.
Tyson Fury v Oleksandr Usyk
This is the big one – the fight every boxing fan and lover of sports wants to see. It’s the heavyweight title unification fight that would give us something we haven’t had in the sport for far too long. One recognised champion of the world at the division. Tyson Fury holds the WBC title while Usyk owns the rest.
A winner takes all fight that would sell out any venue in the United Kingdom, America or anywhere else in the world. The financial gain will be huge for everyone involved with the bout likely to smash all pay per view figures. Fury is the naturally bigger man, being taller and stronger but Usyk showed when beating AJ that size isn’t everything.
Daniel Jacobs v John Ryder
John Ryder is a famous name in British boxing having been involved in some fantastic all UK bouts throughout his career. He’s an entertaining fighter who comes to apply pressure from the first bell and entertain his army of fans. Can he do it again here or has the Englishman bitten off more than he can chew in Daniel Jacobs.
Unlike the bout above, this one has already been confirmed for the 12th February at the Alexandra Palace in London, England. Jacobs will enter the ring as the hot favourite with most respected pundits and bookmakers. He brings a stunning 37-3-0 record with 30 of his wins coming by way of knockout. His last defeat was against Saul Alvarez on points in 2019 at the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas and the scorecards were closer than many expected.
Errol Spence Jr v Yordenis Ugas
Errol Spence Jr isn’t a big name outside of boxing circles but he’s one of the most talented fighters in the sport at the minute and lays claim to a place in the pound for pound top 10. The American carries a professional record of 27 wins from as many fights with 21 knockouts recorded along the way. The southpaw fighter from Texas is the current keeper of the WBC and IBF world welterweight titles, having beaten Danny Garcia last time out. He is said to be keen on a meeting with Yordenis Ugas.
The Cuban now fighting out of Miami has a CV detailing 27-4-0 with a dozen knockouts. He last lost to Shawn Porter back in 2019 but has since returned to win his last four wins on the bounce and got the better of Manny Pacquiao on points in his last outing. Ugas is a supremely technical fighter but does he possess the power to trouble Spence? Fight fans hope that is a question we receive an answer to this year.