SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The year 2021 will not pass as the most productive for boxing in Quebec, pandemic of COVID-19 obliges.
The two main promoters, Groupe Yvon Michel (GYM) and Eye of the Tiger Management (EOTTM) presented a total of 12 galas, including only five in Quebec and only two in Montreal by Groupe Yvon Michel.
EOTTM was the most active with eight evenings in 2021 while GYM went there with four galas.
EOTTM focused its efforts in Mexico with four galas. Quebec inherited two evenings and the other two took place in Shawinigan and in the United States. At GYM, we held a gala in Quebec City and three others in Montreal.
Naturally, the event of the year was the return to his hometown of Artur Beterbiev after an absence of more than five years.
No offense to Andre Ward, who claims that Beterbiev seemed more and more vulnerable especially during his last outing against Marcus Browne, we don’t need to rack our brains to find our boxer of the year, at least here in Quebec.
Who else but King Arthur?
Beterbiev successfully defended his WBC and IBF light heavyweight crowns in his native country last March. He eclipsed Adam Deines by 10th-round referee stoppage and last month handed Marcus Browne his first knockout loss in the professional ranks.
Despite a large gash in the forehead which required 17 stitches, the result of a whim in the fourth round, Beterbiev managed to abdicate his rival in the ninth engagement.
He remains the only world champion with a perfect record: 17 fights, 17 wins, 17 knockouts.
Beterbiev is currently waiting for a new rival. Normally, he would face Joe Smith (27-3, 21 KOs) who defeated last-minute replacement Steve Geffrard (20-1, 14 KOs) in Verona last Saturday.
Rivas is second
2021 marked the arrival of an 18th weight class and it was none other than Colombian Oscar Rivas who benefited the most by securing the first crown at the expense of star Ryan Rozicki of Sydney, New Zealand. -Scotland.
Rivas was to face Bryant Jennings for the new world title, but the American refused to be vaccinated to come to Quebec. Eventually, he was replaced by the Canadian.
It was not an easy task for Rivas even though his inexperienced rival was 13-0, 13 KOs. The Colombian won the decision by counts of 115-112 x 2 and 116-111 to claim the world super-heavyweight crown and thus inscribe his name forever in the boxing record books.
What does 2022 hold for him?
A defense of his title against his first contender Evgeny Romanov (16-0, 11 KOs), a 36-year-old veteran who fought all his fights in Russia.
Among amateurs, Romanov passed the K.-O. to Deontay Wilder, during a confrontation between the United States and Russia in 2008.
At 6’0”, he’s not that tall for a boxer of his weight but that doesn’t seem to be a handicap as he’s also ranked tenth among the top heavyweight contenders in the WBO.
In his last ten fights, he has gone 9-1-0 – % KO.
He is expected to retain his title in 2022.
Third choice Christian Mbilli
My third choice goes to the Frenchman, native of Cameroon, Christian Mbilli. The WBC recognizes him at his fair value by awarding him 8th place among the best aspirants to the crown of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
He has fought three fights in 2021 and emerged victorious each time. In short, he won 17 of the 18 rounds he played against his 3 rivals.
In his last match against Ronald Ellis (18-2-2, 12 KOs) he had a perfect record on two of the fight’s judges and the other official went for a 99-91 count.
As for the other two victims, Ronny Landaeta and Antonio Gutierrez, they were never able to resist Mbilli’s attacks.
When he arrived in Quebec, Mbilli said he was coming here to fulfill his dream. That of becoming world champion and he is on the right track. Now remains to challenge the Mexican king Alvarez. What is not done.
One day, I believe that Mbilli will be world champion.
Fourth choice Marie-Eve Dicaire
My fourth choice goes to Marie-Ève Dicaire mainly because she has become world champion again.
She delivered two matches in 2021 and like ten other boxers before her, she had to lower her flag to the incomparable Claressa Shields.
Nine months after that setback, she managed to once again become the IBF Super Welterweight Champion, scoring her first knockout. in career at the expense of the Mexican Cynthia Lozano (9-0).
What does 2022 hold for him?
She improved a lot in the loss to Shields, but she should be involved in fights where she can show that she is a world power by competing against boxers of the caliber of Hanna Rankin (11-5, 2 KOs) and Patricia Berghult (15-0, 3 KOs).
Fifth pick Arslanbek Makhmudov
Arslanbek Makhmudov is a kind of phenomenon that is rarely encountered. Is he as good as his 13-0, 13 KOs? where have we served him rivals of little value?
Makhmudov has everything to succeed and who knows… To become world champion. But for that, he must recruit choice rivals. Unfortunately, many shun it like the plague.
At the moment, he is ranked 9th in the WBC’s top contenders for the Tyson Fury crown and 8th in the WBA.
During 2020 and 2021, he fought two fights per year. He won them all by knockout. from the first round. This means that in two years, he worked in the ring for 7 minutes and 17 seconds. It’s not enough to consider facing the best heavyweights in the world.
Makhmudov has everything to succeed. He is relatively young at 32. He’s big and he kicks like a mad ox.
We’ll see what he does when he comes before 42-year-old veteran Marius Wach (36-7, 19 KOs), a pugilist who was beaten by a knockout. on three occasions during his career and who has already withstood ten and twelve attacks against Wladimir Klitschko, Dillian Whyte and Hughie Fury.
He has never lost by K.-O. before the 8th, 9th or 12th engagement except that he has not fought since December 12, 2020.
David Lemieux
David Lemieux is not among my top five candidates simply because he has only fought once in 2021, against a certain David Zergarra, in Cuernavaca, Mexico, a marginal boxer who has lost his last four fights .
2022 heralds better times for the ex-world champion. First of all, he will be a dad next March. Then, he should face David Benavidez next spring.
He will be overlooked by the odds in this clash against Benavidez, but when you have a strike force like his, anything can happen. If he loses, he will become number two at EOTTM, behind Christian Mbilli.
Simon Kean
Next February, Simon Kean will have delivered only one boxing match in the last two years and it was in Mexico that he eclipsed his rival Don Haynesworth (16-5-1), a chubby pugilist from nearly 300 pounds, defeated in his last five bouts.
Some dispute his talent, but the fact remains that he is the best Canadian with a 26th place in BoxRec.
Just like Makhmudov, it is high time to increase the quality of his opponents to really know his qualities and his faults in the ring.
Erik Bazinyan
He is 26 years old, he is undefeated (26-0, 20 K.-O.) and he is ranked 8th in the WBO Unfortunately, much like the other boxers in our country, he only fought one fight in 2021 and it was in Mexico that he defeated Scott Sigmon by referee stoppage in the 2nd round).
He is one to watch in 2022. He has the talent and the punch to succeed.
Steve Claggett
At 32, Steve Claggett rolls his bump as best he can. In 2021, he fought two fights in Quebec and Mexico. He lost by split decision against Mathieu Germain (18-2-1) and passed the K.-O. in the 4th round to Emanuel Lopez (30-13-1) in Mexico.
I wish him a third game against Germain. Clagett is 32 years old and is unlikely to ever be world champion.
He’s still a good boxer. A kind of policeman for the youngest of us.
Mikael Zewski
“You must not break a dream”, as Raymond Berthiaume sang so well. But it is not by delivering a single fight per year that one can aspire to a championship match.
This is the case of Mikael Zewski (35-2, 23 K.-O.), who won the decision over Dilan Loza Burgos (15-4-1), at the IGA stadium, in Montreal, last August.
Like all the others, the current pandemic is not helping the boxers’ cause that much, but Zewski will be 33 when he appears before his family in Trois-Rivières on March 25. You have to start doing it fast.
His rival will be Serhil Bohachuck (22-0, 20 KOs), a powerful puncher who has knocked out everyone he has faced except Brandon Adams (22-3) who put him through his unique setback last March. A referee stoppage in the 8th round in Puerto Rico.
It’s make or break in 2022.
Steven Butler
Steven Butler spins a bad cotton. He has only fought one fight in 2021 and he lost by referee stoppage in the 5th round against Jose de Jesus Macia (27-10-3). He has fought only once since his loss by referee stoppage in the 6th round against Ryoata Murata.
He’s only had two fights in the last two years, which isn’t enough. Especially since he lost them both by K.-O.
At 26, he needs to pull himself together and forget his two consecutive defeats.
Yves Ulysses Jr.
He fought only one fight in 2021 which he won by referee stoppage in the 5th round over David Théroux (16-4). His name is still ranked 14th in the WBC light welterweight but he is injured.
Aged 33, he must return to competition as soon as possible, because at the moment he is standing still.
Kim Clavel
The year 2021 has not been easy for Kim Clavel. She fought only one fight and won by unanimous decision over Maria Soledad Vargas, at IGA Stadium last August and she will not be able to participate in the next GYM gala on January 29th due to injury.
Because of her dedication during the COVID-19 pandemic, she won the Pat Tillman Award for Community Involvement and Time made him one of its ten personalities of the year.
The talent is there and we will certainly see her again in 2022.
Happy boxing!
