Big fights on the horizon

THERE is a reason why fights involving YouTubers have been receiving a lot of media mileage lately.

Fights fans have been turned off by the inexplicable refusal of pro boxing’s top guns to face each other in the ring. On social media, the marquee names of the sport would trade insults and tease an unadulterated slugfest in the ring, only to back off and settle for the patsies in their divisions.

Disappointed, fight fans have turned their attention to the YouTubers.

No great expectations in these fights given the lack of fistic talent, but just the same fans have come to enjoy the carnival-like atmosphere and, yes, the action-packed fights. Their skills limited, the YouTubers prefer to just hammer away.

The real champs remained unperturbed until the YouTubers started raking in big bucks. It’s one thing to just sit back and enjoy the “laughable” fights of the YouTubers, it’s another when they start taking a huge slice of the money pie that is supposed to be exclusive for the real boxers.

Lo and behold, some of the biggest names in pro have now decided to cease from feasting on leftovers and give the fans the real meal, err deal.

Some great fights are being lined up and boxing fans cannot help but jump out of their seats.

After protracted negotiations, lightweights Ryan Garcia (23-0, 19 knockouts) and Gervonta “Tank” Davis (28-0, 26 knockouts) finally agreed to face each other on April 22 at the 20,000 capacity T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

No legitimate world title is at stake and the bout will even be fought at a catchweight (136 pounds), but it does not really matter given the explosive power of Garcia and Davis. Believe it or not, tickets for the fight sold out within five minutes after they became available. There are even reports that some tickets are being re-sold and commanding as high as $49,000.

Garcia-Davis is not the only big fight on the menu.

In the lightweight (130 pounds) division, a battle for the undisputed championship is being finalized between WBA-WBC-IBF-WBO champ Devin Haney and former champ Vasiliy Lomachenko. Barring hiccups, the two will meet on May 20 in Las Vegas.

Haney is 29-0 with 15 knockouts while Lomachenko totes a record of 17-2 with 11 knockouts. Both are highly skilled boxers. A fight involving the two is going to be like watching Picasso and Raphael compare strokes.

Ukraine’s Lomachenko is 35 years old and may no longer be the fighter he used to be. Still, it will be interesting to see how Haney will handle the most skilled fighter he has ever faced.

Boxing’s premier division, the heavyweight class, is looking to join the fun.

Promoters are burning the midnight oil to bring into fruition an April 29 showdown between WBAWBO-IBF heavyweight champ Oleksandr Usyk (20-0, 13 knockouts) and WBC champ Tyson Fury (33-0, 1 draw, 24 knockouts).

The Wembley Stadium in London has been targeted as a venue, but the fight still hangs in the balance owing to Fury’s outrageous demands.

Recently, it was revealed that Usyk has accepted a 70-30 monetary split in favor of Fury. However, Usyk has made it clear that if the April 29 fight date is moved, the monetary split is no longer acceptable.

There is a reason why Usyk’s camp is insisting on the April 29 fight date. They know Fury is not in good shape and may end up cramming to whip himself in condition in just six weeks.

Fury is quick to make another demand. After Usyk agreed to the money split, Fury now does not want a rematch clause to be included in the fight contract.

For somebody who has been bragging about how he will make mincemeat of the smaller Usyk, it’s a surprise Fury does not want to meet Usyk back-to-back.

While Fury-Usyk remains unclear, the junior featherweight (122 pounds) showdown between WBCWBO champ Stephen Fulton and Japanese superstar Naoya “The Monster” Inoue is a done deal for May 7 in Yokohama, Japan.

The negotiations were a breeze with both fighters expressing their clear desire to face each other. Inoue is moving up in weight after winning titles in the light flyweight (108 pounds), super flyweight (115 pounds) and bantamweight (118 pounds) divisions.

Fulton-Inoue is the best match in the lower weight class. Fulton offers great hand speed and boxing skills while Inoue boasts of pressure and destructive punching power.

The good times are rolling, indeed. Let’s hope the trend continues. The last thing we want is to tune in to another battle of the YouTubers.