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 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 2015, 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: Wladimir Klitschko
Best Boxer: Wladimir Klitschko
Most Protected: Deontay Wilder
Is He Still Around?: Eddie Chambers
Matchmaker’s Dream: Kubrat Pulev vs Alexander Povetkin
On the Rise: Bryant Jennings
Deserves a Title Shot: Tyson Fury
Most Fun to Watch: Tyson Fury
On Their Way Out: Dereck Chisora
Underrated: Christian Hammer
Cruiserweight
Best Puncher: Denis Lebedev
Best Boxer: Marco Huck
Most Protected: Jordan Shimmell
Is He Still Around?: Jean Marc Mormeck
Matchmaker’s Dream: Rahkim Chakhkiev vs Denis Lebedev
On the Rise: Dmitry Kudryashov
Deserves a Title Shot: Thabiso Mchunu
Most Fun to Watch: Denis Lebedev
On Their Way Out: Juan Carlos Gomez
Underrated: Youri Kayembre Kalenga
Light Heavyweight
Best Puncher: Sergey Kovalev
Best Boxer: Adonis Stevenson
Most Protected: Sean Monaghan
Is He Still Around?: Enzo Maccarinelli
Matchmaker’s Dream: Sergey Kovalev vs Adonis Stevenson
On the Rise: Artur Beterbiev
Deserves a Title Shot: Jean Pascal
Most Fun to Watch: Sergey Kovalev
On Their Way Out: Chad Dawson
Underrated: Eleider Alvarez
Super Middleweight
Best Puncher: Carl Froch
Best Boxer: Andre Dirrell
Most Protected: Jonathon Gonzalez
Is He Still Around?: Peter Manfredo Jr.
Matchmaker’s Dream: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs Carl Froch
On the Rise: Fedor Chudinov
Deserves a Title Shot: James DeGale
Most Fun to Watch: Carl Froch
On Their Way Out: Brian Vera
Underrated: Gilberto Ramirez Sanchez
Middleweight
Best Puncher: Gennady Golovkin
Best Boxer: Martin Murray
Most Protected: Caleb Truax
Is He Still Around?: Ossie Duran
Matchmaker’s Dream: Miguel Cotto vs Gennady Golovkin
On the Rise: Billy Joe Saunders
Deserves a Title Shot: Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
Most Fun to Watch: Andy Lee
On Their Way Out: Marco Antonio Rubio
Underrated: Dmitry Chudinov
Junior Middleweight
Best Puncher: Saul Alvarez
Best Boxer: Erislandy Lara
Most Protected: Jack Culcay
Is He Still Around?: Joshua Clottey
Matchmaker’s Dream: Jermell Charlo vs Saul Alvarez
On the Rise: Julian Williams
Deserves a Title Shot: Jermell Charlo
Most Fun to Watch: Saul Alvarez
On Their Way Out: Carlos Molina
Underrated: Cornelius Bundrage
Welterweight
Best Puncher: Keith Thurman
Best Boxer: Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Most Protected: Brad Solomon
Is He Still Around?: Randall Bailey
Matchmaker’s Dream: Timothy Bradley vs Marcos Rene Maidana
On the Rise: Sadam Ali
Deserves a Title Shot: Keith Thurman
Most Fun to Watch: Manny Pacquiao
On Their Way Out: Luis Collazo
Underrated: Ionut Dan Ion
Junior Welterweight
Best Puncher: Lucas Martin Matthysse
Best Boxer: Danny Garcia
Most Protected: Frankie Gomez
Is He Still Around?: Ali Funeka
Matchmaker’s Dream: Adrien Broner vs Ruslan Provodnikov
On the Rise: Viktor Postol
Deserves a Title Shot: Viktor Postal
Most Fun to Watch: Ruslan Provodnikov
On Their Way Out: John Molina
Underrated: Mauricio Herrera
Lightweight
Best Puncher: Terence Crawford
Best Boxer: Terence Crawford
Most Protected: Eduard Troyanovsky
Is He Still Around?: Gamaliel Diaz
Matchmaker’s Dream: Tommy Coyle vs Anthony Crolla
On the Rise: Dejan Zlaticanin
Deserves a Title Shot: Denis Shafikov
Most Fun to Watch: Tommy Coyle
On Their Way Out: Rustam Nagaev
Underrated: Anthony Crolla
Junior Lightweight
Best Puncher: Takashi Uchiyama
Best Boxer: Mikey Garcia
Most Protected: Romain Jacob
Is He Still Around?: Edner Cherry
Matchmaker’s Dream: Orlando Salido vs Takashi Miura
On the Rise: Adrian Estrella
Deserves a Title Shot: Francisco Vargas
Most Fun to Watch: Orlando Salido
On Their Way Out: Celestino Caballero
Underrated: Bryan Vasquez
Featherweight
Best Puncher: Nicholas Walters
Best Boxer: Vasyl Lomachenko
Most Protected: Thabo Sonjica
Is He Still Around?: Rocky Juarez
Matchmaker’s Dream: Nicholas Walters vs Jhonny Gonzalez
On the Rise: Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar
Deserves a Title Shot: Lee Selby
Most Fun to Watch: Evgeny Gradovich
On Their Way Out: Akifumi Shimoda
Underrated: Simpiwe Vetyeka
Junior Featherweight
Best Puncher: Carl Frampton
Best Boxer: Guillermo Rigondeaux
Most Protected: Kid Galahad
Is He Still Around?: Rolly Lunas
Matchmaker’s Dream: Carl Frampton vs Guillermo Rigondeaux
On the Rise: Rey Vargas
Deserves a Title Shot: Chris Avalos
Most Fun to Watch: Carl Frampton
On Their Way Out: Jeffrey Mathebula
Underrated: Luis Rosa
Bantamweight
Best Puncher: Shinsuke Yamanaka
Best Boxer: Tomoki Kameda
Most Protected: Petch Sor Chitpattana
Is He Still Around?:Luis Melendez
Matchmaker’s Dream: Jamie McDonnell vs Tomoki Kameda
On the Rise: Randy Caballero
Deserves a Title Shot: Liborio Solis
Most Fun to Watch: Stuart Hall
On Their Way Out: Christian Esquivel
Underrated: Rodrigo Guerrero
Junior Bantamweight
Best Puncher: Naoya Inoue
Best Boxer: Naoya Inoue
Most Protected: Sho Ishida
Is He Still Around?: Luis Alberto Lazarte
Matchmaker’s Dream: Carlos Cuadras vs Naoya Inoue
On the Rise: Ryo Matsumoto
Deserves a Title Shot: Paul Butler
Most Fun to Watch: Kohei Kono
On Their Way Out: Hernan Marquez
Underrated: Zolani Tete
Flyweight
Best Puncher: Roman Gonzalez
Best Boxer: Roman Gonzalez
Most Protected: Nawaphon Por Chokchai
Is He Still Around?: Juan Hernandez
Matchmaker’s Dream: Juan Francisco Estrada vs Roman Gonzalez II
On the Rise: Takuma Inoue
Deserves a Title Shot: Juan Carlos Reveco
Most Fun to Watch: Koki Eto
On Their Way Out: Rocky Fuentes
Underrated: Edgar Sosa
Junior Flyweight
Best Puncher: Rey Loreto
Best Boxer: Donnie Nietes
Most Protected: Paiphrob Kokietgym
Is He Still Around?: Sammy Gutierrez
Matchmaker’s Dream: Donnie Nietes vs Pedro Guevara
On the Rise: Ryoichi Taguchi
Deserves a Title Shot: Milan Melindo
Most Fun to Watch: Pedro Guevara
On Their Way Out: Nkosinathi Joyi
Underrated: Ganigan Lopez
Strawweight
Best Puncher: Francisco Rodriguez Jr.
Best Boxer: Hekkie Budler
Most Protected: Jeffrey Galero
Is He Still Around?: Florante Condes
Matchmaker’s Dream: Wanheng Menayothin vs Hekkie Budler
On the Rise: Alexis Diaz
Deserves a Title Shot: Kosei Tanaka
Most Fun to Watch: Katsunari Takayama
On Thier Way Out: Merlito Sabillo
Underrated: Carlos Buitrago
For further boxing discussion, contact Derek DBO Bonnett on Facebook. Also, be sure to "LIKE" the SecondsOut.com page on Facebook.
January 5, 2015