SecondsOut 2013 Divisional Superlatives

By Derek Bonnett: As another fruitful year of professional fisticuffs wraps up, SecondsOut honored boxing’s greatest practitioners and non-participants with such accolades as Fighter of the Year, Fight of the Year, Trainer of the Year, Service to Boxing, etc. However, among the 170 ranked SecondsOut fighters and beyond, a multitude of fighters go unrecognized for their less obvious contributions to the sport inside of a single division. Each fighter brings something special into the ring and honors their weight class with unique qualities.

The following is a divisional breakdown of boxers and the various superlatives I would award them with. There can only be one Fighter of the Year, but here I can honor seventeen separate fighters for being the Best Boxer or Best Puncher in their respective class. I can alert SecondsOut fans of various fighters On the Rise across the divisions, who one day may be featured in my weekly column On the Move. Most of these superlatives are obvious, but some require explanation. For example, the Is He Still Around? award acknowledges fighters for lengthy careers regardless of their success or someone who has fallen off the radar. The Deserves a Title Shot nod refers to a fighter who deserves a chance at SecondsOut’s currently ranked number one fighter in the division in 2013, even if he already holds a title.

These superlatives reflect my own thoughts and were comprised entirely for fun and in the interest of sparking boxing discussion and debate. As usual, for further boxing discourse, contact Derek DBO Bonnett on Facebook.

Happy New Year!

Heavyweight

Best Puncher: Deontay Wilder

Best Boxer: Wladimir Klitschko

Most Protected: Deontay Wilder

Is He Still Around?: Ruslan Chagaev

Matchmaker’s Dream: Tyson Fury vs Tomasz Adamek

On the Rise: Mike Perez

Deserves a Title Shot: Kubrat Pulev

Most Fun to Watch: Tyson Fury

On Their Way Out: Seth Mitchell

Underrated: Dereck Chisora

Cruiserweight

Best Puncher: Guillermo Jones

Best Boxer: Marco Huck

Most Protected: Brad Pitt

Is He Still Around?: Silvio Branco

Matchmaker’s Dream: Yoan Pablo Hernandez vs Krzysztof Wlodarczyk

On the Rise: Thabiso Mchunu

Deserves a Title Shot: Grigory Drozd

Most Fun to Watch: Rakhim Chakhkiev

On Their Way Out: Eddie Chambers

Underrated: Ilunga Makabu

Light Heavyweight

Best Puncher: Sergey Kovalev

Best Boxer: Bernard Hopkins

Most Protected: Blake Caparello

Is He Still Around?: Allan Green

Matchmaker’s Dream: Sergey Kovalev vs Adonis Stevenson

On the Rise: Cedric Agnew

Deserves a Title Shot: Jean Pascal

Most Fun to Watch: Adonis Stevenson

On Their Way Out: Gabriel Campillo

Underrated: Andrzej Fonfara

Super Middleweight

Best Puncher: Carl Froch

Best Boxer: Andre Ward

Most Protected: Maxim Vlasov

Is He Still Around?: Brian Magee

Matchmaker’s Dream: Carl Froch vs George Groves II

On the Rise: James Degale

Deserves a Title Shot: Edwin Rodriguez

Most Fun to Watch: Carl Froch

On Their Way Out: Arthur Abraham

Underrated: Sakio Bika

Middleweight

Best Puncher: Gennady Golovkin

Best Boxer: Martin Murray

Most Protected: Matt Korobov

Is He Still Around?: Sergio Mora

Matchmaker’s Dream: Gennady Golovkin vs Sergio Martinez

On the Rise: Eamonn O’Kane

Deserves a Title Shot: Daniel Geale

Most Fun to Watch: Sergio Martinez

On Their Way Out: Nobuhiro Ishida

Underrated: Brian Vera

Junior Middleweight

Best Puncher: James Kirkland

Best Boxer: Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Most Protected: Sergey Rabchenko

Is He Still Around?: Yuri Foreman

Matchmaker’s Dream: Miguel Cotto vs James Kirkland

On the Rise: Jermell Charlo

Deserves a Title Shot: Erislandy Lara

Most Fun to Watch: Alfredo Angulo

On Their Way Out: Delvin Rodriguez

Underrated: Demetrius Andrade

Welterweight

Best Puncher: Marcos Rene Maidana

Best Boxer: Timothy Bradley

Most Protected: Leonard Bundu

Is He Still Around?: Luis Collazo

Matchmaker’s Dream: Luis Carlos Abregu vs Marcos Rene Maidana

On the Rise: Kevin Bizier

Deserves a Title Shot: Keith Thurman

Most Fun to Watch: Jesus Soto Karass

On Their Way Out: Josesito Lopez

Underrated: Jessie Vargas

Junior Welterweight

Best Puncher: Lucas Martin Matthysse

Best Boxer: Danny Garcia

Most Protected: Cesar Rene Cuenca

Is He Still Around?: Ricardo Williams Jr.

Matchmaker’s Dream: Lucas Martin Matthysse vs Ruslan Provodnikov

On the Rise: Viktor Postol

Deserves a Title Shot: Karim Mayfield

Most Fun to Watch: Ruslan Provodnikov

On Their Way Out: Mike Dallas Jr.

Underrated: Mauricio Herrera

Lightweight

Best Puncher: John Molina

Best Boxer: Terrence Crawford

Most Protected: Edis Tatli

Is He Still Around?: Luis Ramos Jr.

Matchmaker’s Dream: Rustam Nagaev vs Omar Figueroa

On the Rise: Terry Flannigan

Deserves a Title Shot: Raymundo Beltran

Most Fun to Watch: Rustam Nagaev

On Their Way Out: Miguel Acosta

Underrated: Paulus Moses

Junior Lightweight

Best Puncher: Takashi Uchiyama

Best Boxer: Mikey Garcia

Most Protected: Jose Felix Jr.

Is He Still Around?: Mzonke Fana

Matchmaker’s Dream: Mikey Garcia vs Takashi Uchiyama

On the Rise: Will Tomlinson

Deserves a Title Shot: Javier Fortuna

Most Fun to Watch: Alejandro Perez

On Their Way Out: Gamaliel Diaz

Underrated: Arash Usmanee