Last week, Turki Alalshikh went on Twitter and asked for 10 fights that fans would like to see by the end of this year and 2025. As you probably know by now, 'His Excellency' has quickly become a primary power broker, and has the influence to make things happen.
Love it or hate it, 'the Riyadh Season' and their deep pockets have made fights that otherwise wouldn't have been a reality (namely, Oleksandr Usyk-Tyson Fury, and the upcoming light heavyweight clash between Dmitry Bivol-Artur Beterbiev) come to life.
The criteria I have for the bouts I want to see consummated are very simple: would it provide some action, and does it have at least some historical importance to it?
So here are my 10 suggestions -- in no particular order -- for Mr. Alalshikh....
- Gervonta Davis vs. Shakur Stevenson
You would hope that this match-up doesn't become another version of Errol Spence-Terence Crawford, where a fight is a bit over-marinated as one guy dies on the vine. But this would be the classic boxer versus puncher pairing. Both hail from major east coast cities, (Baltimore and Newark), which would generate a lot of heat.
One needs a star making fight. The other needs a credible opponent.
Mikey Williams/Top Rank
- Vasiliy Lomachenko vs. William Zepeda
Lomachenko, is the newly crowned IBF champion, and he showed that he's still a formidable fighter by stopping George Kambosos. Zepeda -- who is rated number one across the board at 135 -- is an all-action fighter. He is the human full-court press with his two-fisted pressure. How would 'Loma' deal with the constant onslaught of 'Cameron'? This would be a battle of the number two (Lomachenko) and three (Zepeda) lightweights in the world according to Ring Magazine.
- Bivol-Beterbiev winner vs. David Benavidez
So the B's battle on October 12 for the undisputed light heavyweight title. Benavidez, a former world champion at super middleweight, stated his intentions to ply his trade at 175 for the time being. Either bout would be a highly anticipated affair. Bivol and Benavidez go back awhile, as they have sparred in the past. On the flip side, a Beterbiev-Benavidez fight would be fireworks.
PBC
- Jesse 'Bam' Rodrigez vs. Junto Nakatani
There is plenty of talk about either of these two multi-weight division champions one day challenging a certain 'Monster' from Japan. Well, I'd like to see these two square off to see who gets first dibs. Rodriguez, the southpaw technician from San Antonio, is the Ring Magazine champion at 118. Nakatani is rated first at bantamweight. Both boxers are now on numerous pound-for-pound lists.
- Terence Crawford vs. Tim Tszyu or Vergil Ortiz
'Bud' is coming off a tough 12 round decision over Israil Madrimov, in which he captured the WBA junior middleweight title. Despite his loss to Sebastian Fundora back in late March, I still consider Tszyu among the elite at 154, and he's an ambitious sort. As for Ortiz, he came out victorious against Serhii Bohachuk a few weeks ago in a 'fight of the year' candidate. How would Crawford fare against these hungry young upstarts at age 37?
German Villasenor
- Jaron Ennis vs. Eimantas Stanionis
Anyone who has read my columns that past few years knows how high I am on 'Boots'. Simply put, I think he's one of the best pure talents in the sport. But to be honest, his resume' is a bit lacking. He needs some live dance partners. Truth of the matter is that 147 doesn't have the star power it did a few years ago. But in Stanionis he would be facing a hard-nosed, rugged grinder, that wouldn't back away from a fight. Currently Ennis and Stanionis are the two top rated welterweights by Ring.
- Naoya Inoue vs. Rafael Espinoza
OK, lets get this clear, I still believe Inoue has to take care of business with 'MJ' Akhmadaliev before climbing up another weight class. But when he does, the freakishly tall (6'1) Espinoza would present a daunting challenge. 'El Davino' burst onto the scene last year as he defeated Robeisy Ramirez in thrilling fashion to win the WBO 126 pound title.
Naoki Fukuda
- Christian Mbilli vs. Jaime Munguia
Do I really have to sell you, or Turki, on this one? Quite simply this would be a slugfest between two offensively oriented guys who could just continually chuck leather at one another all night. Both are entertaining, and have also shown to be vulnerable. This could very well become a war of attrition.
- Zhilei Zhang vs. Martin Bakole
I admit, this may not have all that much historical significance (although, it would matter in terms of the current heavyweight landscape) but I'm not here to overthink this. What we have here is a battle between two big (very big, in fact) men who punch exceedingly hard. Neither would have any difficulty finding one another inside the ring. This fight is actually being discussed, and in my opinion, should this occur, the winner becomes the leading contender for the heavyweight title.
Riyadh Season
- Jai Opetaia vs. Gilberto Ramirez
Yeah, I know some of you may not particularly like this. But hey, it's my list, and I liked what I saw out of 'Zurdo' in his cruiserweight debut as he won the WBA belt against Arsen Goulimirian. Get this, the usually methodical Ramirez, was actually pretty entertaining that evening as he peppered Goulimirian with a multitude of combinations and showed he could take a cruiserweight shot. Opetaia is considered the game's best cruiserweight and the Ring Magazine champion. And for as good as he is, Opetaia needs some recognizable names on his ledger.
3KR
This week on 'the 3 Knockdown Rule', Mario Lopez and I welcome middlweight contender, Hamzah Sheeraz' and his trainer, Ricky Funez, in-studio:
THE 3 KNOCKDOWN RULE EPISODE 57 | HAMZAH SHEERAZ IN-STUDIO INTERVIEW
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