By Derek Bonnett: As another fruitful year of professional fisticuffs wraps up, SecondsOut will honor 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 Under the Radar 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 or a mabfan@comcast.net.
Happy Holidays!
Heavyweight
Best Puncher: Wladimir Klitschko
Best Boxer: Wladimir Klitschko
Most Protected: Bermaine Stiverne
Is He Still Around?: Juan Carlos Gomez
Matchmaker’s Dream: Tomasz Adamek vs David Haye
On the Rise: David Price
Deserves a Title Shot: Kubrat Pulev
Most Fun to Watch: Tyson Fury
On Their Way Out: Dereck Chisora
Underrated: Johnathon Banks
Cruiserweight
Best Puncher: Rahkim Chakhkiev
Best Boxer: Marco Huck
Most Protected: Pawel Kolodziej
Is He Still Around?: Jean Marc Mormeck
Matchmaker’s Dream: Marco Huck vs Yoan Pablo Hernandez
On the Rise: Mateusz Masternak
Deserves a Title Shot: Francisco Palacios
Most Fun to Watch: Yoan Pablo Hernandez
On Their Way Out: Enad Licina
Underrated: Francisco Palacios
Light Heavyweight
Best Puncher: Lucian Bute
Best Boxer: Chad Dawson
Most Protected: Beibut Shumenov
Is He Still Around?: Luis Garcia
Matchmaker’s Dream: Jean Pascal vs Tavoris Cloud
On the Rise: Andrzej Fonfara
Deserves a Title Shot: Nathan Cleverly
Most Fun to Watch: Gabriel Campillo
On Their Way Out: Bernard Hopkins
Underrated: Isaac Chilemba
Super Middleweight
Best Puncher: Adonis Stevenson
Best Boxer: Andre Ward
Most Protected: Marco Antonio Periban
Is He Still Around?: Peter Manfredo Jr.
Matchmaker’s Dream: Mikkel Kessler vs Carl Froch II
On the Rise: Thomas Oosthuizen
Deserves a Title Shot: Mikkel Kessler
Most Fun to Watch: George Groves
On Their Way Out: Don George
Underrated: Edwin Rodriguez
Middleweight
Best Puncher: Gennady Golovkin
Best Boxer: Sergio Martinez
Most Protected: Gilberto Romero Sanchez
Is He Still Around?: Anthony Mundine
Matchmaker’s Dream: Gennady Golovkin vs Sergio Martinez
On the Rise: Peter Quillin
Deserves a Title Shot: Gennady Golovkin
Most Fun to Watch: Sergio Martinez
On Their Way Out: Joachim Alcine
Underrated: Darren Barker
Junior Middleweight
Best Puncher: James Kirkland
Best Boxer: Austin Trout
Most Protected: Demetrius Andrade
Is He Still Around?: Demetrius Hopkins
Matchmaker’s Dream: Saul Alvarez vs Floyd Mayweather Jr.
On the Rise: Keith Thurman
Deserves a Title Shot: Erislandy Lara
Most Fun to Watch: Alfredo Angulo
On Their Way Out: Miguel Cotto
Underrated: Carlos Molina
Welterweight
Best Puncher: Juan Manuel Marquez
Best Boxer: Timothy Bradley
Most Protected: Charlie Ota (Two Years Running)
Is He Still Around?: Nate Campbell
Matchmaker’s Dream: Juan Manuel Marquez vs Timothy Bradley
On the Rise: Jessie Vargas
Deserves a Title Shot: Kell Brook
Most Fun to Watch: Andre Berto
On Their Way Out: Victor Ortiz
Underrated: Antonin Decarie
Junior Welterweight
Best Puncher: Lucas Martin Matthysse
Best Boxer: Amir Khan
Most Protected: Cesar Rene Cuenca
Is He Still Around?: Anthony and Lamont Peterson
Matchmaker’s Dream: Brandon Rios vs Danny Garcia
On the Rise: Khabib Allakhverdiev
Deserves a Title Shot: Brandon Rios
Most Fun to Watch: Mike Alvarado
On Their Way Out: Paul McCloskey
Underrated: Karim Mayfield
Lightweight
Best Puncher: Adrien Broner
Best Boxer: Adrien Broner
Most Protected: Darly Perez
Is He Still Around?: Jason Litzau
Matchmaker’s Dream: Ricky Burns vs Adrien Broner
On the Rise: Raymundo Beltran
Deserves a Title Shot: Richard Abril
Most Fun to Watch: Antonio Demarco
On Their Way Out: Jorge Linares
Underrated: Sharif Bogere
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