Cruiserweight/SM Tournament - World Boxing Super Series

[Beanz]

This looks absolutely fantastic! Much, much better than the super-six (remember Ward especially and Froch weren't fancied/favourites when it started)

The cruiser comp is awesome. Someone is going to have to pick between Kudryashov, Huck and Perez as their "gimme!!!" fight. That's meant to be your "EASY" fight. Fascinating.

And now Smith and Eubank Jr have been added to SM that looks terrific too. Finally Jamie 'broadmoor' Cox gets a shot - either a told you so, or a told ya so, win or exposed. Is Rob Brant the new Ward?

Wow, the addition of Callum Smith to the SMW is brilliant. Even for non Brits the potential for matchups between him, Groves and Eubank is fantastic news. Did you have any bets early on for the Super Six (eventual winner etc) or did you wait until the later stages?

[GAME]

This looks absolutely fantastic! Much, much better than the super-six (remember Ward especially and Froch weren't fancied/favourites when it started)

The cruiser comp is awesome. Someone is going to have to pick between Kudryashov, Huck and Perez as their "gimme!!!" fight. That's meant to be your "EASY" fight. Fascinating.

And now Smith and Eubank Jr have been added to SM that looks terrific too. Finally Jamie 'broadmoor' Cox gets a shot - either a told you so, or a told ya so, win or exposed. Is Rob Brant the new Ward?

Wow, the addition of Callum Smith to the SMW is brilliant. Even for non Brits the potential for matchups between him, Groves and Eubank is fantastic news. Did you have any bets early on for the Super Six (eventual winner etc) or did you wait until the later stages?

Yeah both tournaments are looking great now. Interesting that eubank Abraham winner will enter because I was convinced jnr was going to defend an ibo title in leisure centres on itv Ppv for the rest of his days but he will have to fight good fighters if he enters this. Callum gave up a chance at the wbc title to do this so he must be confident but my concern for him is his trainer. He can't go out with his ear muffs on taking punches with no strategy like Gallagher instructs all his fighters to do. He needs a better trainer if he wants to compete at this level. George groves will start as one of the favourites and him vs eubank or smith in this tournament would be great

as much as I'm looking forward to the super middleweight tournament the cruiserweight one is going to deliver the best fights. Hard to believe that in this day and age the champs would be willing to put ego aside and fight the best with the exception of Tony bellew. He's looking for a final payday with Ward and isn't serious about being the best cruiserweight but would call himself p4p best if he won vs SOG.

usyk I agree should start as odds on to win the tournament but Maris breidis has a great boxing brain and can bang so he's one of the favourites. Gassiev is a beast with a Ko punch so he's gotta be up there. You can't write off a guy like kudryashov either, he's always dangerous and you've gotta give mike Perez a chance especially now he's dedicated. Greats fights wherever you look

[powerpuncher]

Im assuming it's just single elimination?

[Master]

Do the winners of their respective weight divisions fight one another at catch weight?

[Ron Swanson]

Glowacki and Feigenbutz confirmed as reserves

[Ron Swanson]

I know you can't judge people just on appearance, but if I was going to judge the people in charge of this I would say each looks like a crook

[Ron Swanson]

Groves selects Cox and says it's a long tournament so he wanted an easy fight first. Cox says he looks forward to burying a seed

[Kirkland Laing]

I know you can't judge people just on appearance, but if I was going to judge the people in charge of this I would say each looks like a crook

There's supposed to be $20 million in prize money or some figure like that?

Why would anybody put that kind of money up to make these fights? How do they expect to make it back? The promoters are just being handed millions of dollars to put fights on?

[Master]

World Boxing Super Series: Oleksandr Usyk and Murat Gassiev to meet in Moscow

Oleksandr Usyk and Murat Gassiev will fight for all four world cruiserweight titles in the World Boxing Super Series final in Moscow on 21 July.

The bout was set up when Russia's Gassiev beat Yunier Dorticos in the tournament semi-final in February and originally scheduled for 11 May.

But Ukraine's Usyk - who beat Mairis Briedis in his semi-final in January - suffered an injury in April.

Usyk, 31, is WBC and WBO champion, and Gassiev, 24, has the WBA and IBF belts.

Each fighter started the World Boxing Super Series with one world title but picked a second up during the knockout tournament, creating a final at Moscow's Olimpiyskiy Arena where all four titles are on the line.

Both men carry undefeated records into the final, where the winner will be the first recipient of the Muhammad Ali Trophy presented to the tournament's champion.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/boxing/44662243

[Fenster]

This looks absolutely fantastic! Much, much better than the super-six (remember Ward especially and Froch weren't fancied/favourites when it started)

The cruiser comp is awesome. Someone is going to have to pick between Kudryashov, Huck and Perez as their "gimme!!!" fight. That's meant to be your "EASY" fight. Fascinating.

And now Smith and Eubank Jr have been added to SM that looks terrific too. Finally Jamie 'broadmoor' Cox gets a shot - either a told you so, or a told ya so, win or exposed. Is Rob Brant the new Ward?

Wow, the addition of Callum Smith to the SMW is brilliant. Even for non Brits the potential for matchups between him, Groves and Eubank is fantastic news. Did you have any bets early on for the Super Six (eventual winner etc) or did you wait until the later stages?

No outright bets on the SS, I thought Abraham would win, but he was one of the favourites.

I didn't like the super-six, I predicted it would never work and it would be a farce trying match losers and winners from different promotional outfits. As we saw it was even worse with - Ward-Dirrell refusing to fight, Ward refusing to leave California, then the whole fucking States. Dirrell refusing to ever leave the States again after Froch. Abraham and Kessler getting shafted by the Americans (so they claim). Pull outs, reserves, took forever.

This is MUCH, MUCH better. Not just the fields but the organisation. Eight weekends in a row to get the semi-finalists.

[Fenster]

As for bets, so far I've backed Rob Brant at 50/1 for the supermiddles - even though he's stepping up in weight he's young, unexposed, plenty of good amateur experience (Ward 2?) and gets Brahmer in the first round, who is not only past his best but boiling down to 168.

At cruiser i'm thinking of backing Dorticos (10/1)

[GAME]

Early predictions…… but given my inability to call a fight expect the opposite

Super middleweights

Groves vs Cox. George picked Cox because he thinks it will be easy. Id have to agree. Cox I don’t think hits hard enough and whilst I’m all for young guys getting an opportunity Im not sure how he got included in this tournament. In the last super 6 we had big names like Kessler in his prime, Taylor and an unbeaten Abraham. The inclusion of Cox suggests this is a level down from the last one but I hope Cox proves me wrong and does well. Groves could finally put those Froch losses behind him if he wins this tourney whilst Carl took two losses in his

Smith vs Skoglund I detailed my concerns on Smith in an earlier post. I don’t believe Joe Gallagher is the trainer to guide him through this tournament but he has a relatively straight forward first fight. Skoglund is unbeaten but doesn’t carry much power. The only names on his record are ancient warhorses like Glenn Johnson and Lolenga Mock, neither of which he could put away. Im going with Callum in this one.

Eubank Abraham winner vs Yildrim I expect Eubank to come out a wide winner over Abraham and that will be good experience to go in with Yildrim who is similarly a come forward strong European style brawler. Eubank has quick enough hands to win pretty much every round vs Yildrim without ever looking like getting a stoppage

Braehmer vs Brant I wouldn’t like to write off a guy like Braehmer who carries power in both hands and always had good skills however what goes against him here is age and weight. He is coming off a loss and then aged 38 he wants to boil down 7lbs to face a young dangerous fighter and Americas only entry in this tournament. I don’t see it ending well for Braehmer. I see Brant outboxing him and maybe stopping him late


Cruiserweights

Usyk vs Huck I’ve a lot of respect for Huck and his career but in this one I favour Usyk strongly. I think he dominates a 1 sided fight on points showcasing his great skills and making it look easy.

Gassiev vs Wlodarczyk Good fight!. Wloarczyk needs to use his vast experience to fiddle his way through the rounds and avoid trading with the younger man. Gassiev is the dark horse of the tournament and I pick him in this fight. Wlodarczyk has never been stopped so it will be a statement if Gassiev gets him out of there but Gassiev was so physically powerful and heavy handed vs Lebedev that he has to start favourite in this fight.
.

Breidis vs Perez Im a bit disappointed for Perez because I was really looking forward to seeing him and rated his chances but unfortunately hes got matched off against Maris Breidis whos arguably the best boxer in the tournament and second favourite to Usyk. Perez has fought at heavyweight with losses to Bryant Jennings and Povetkin so should be use to physically bigger men. However Breidis has a dramatic KO over heavyweight Manuel Charr and made easy work of long time champ Marco Hiuck so this is a really a big ask for Mike Perez. Breidis wins.

Dorticos vs Kudryashov What a great fight this one is. Both guys could KO the other but Id say Kudyrahov is the bigger puncher with the genuine KO power. The Cuban has the skills and will be favoured the longer it goes but his high KO record is abit misleading because there arent many names on it and in his sole points win he failed to stop Edison Miranda who was KOd by Abraham down at middleweight years ago. If it’s a shootout early I go with the Russian but I see Dorticos being elusive and using his boxing skills to get through the storm and take it late

[Beanz]

Early predictions…… but given my inability to call a fight expect the opposite

Super middleweights

Groves vs Cox. George picked Cox because he thinks it will be easy. Id have to agree. Cox I don’t think hits hard enough and whilst I’m all for young guys getting an opportunity Im not sure how he got included in this tournament. In the last super 6 we had big names like Kessler in his prime, Taylor and an unbeaten Abraham. The inclusion of Cox suggests this is a level down from the last one but I hope Cox proves me wrong and does well. Groves could finally put those Froch losses behind him if he wins this tourney whilst Carl took two losses in his

Smith vs Skoglund I detailed my concerns on Smith in an earlier post. I don’t believe Joe Gallagher is the trainer to guide him through this tournament but he has a relatively straight forward first fight. Skoglund is unbeaten but doesn’t carry much power. The only names on his record are ancient warhorses like Glenn Johnson and Lolenga Mock, neither of which he could put away. Im going with Callum in this one.

Eubank Abraham winner vs Yildrim I expect Eubank to come out a wide winner over Abraham and that will be good experience to go in with Yildrim who is similarly a come forward strong European style brawler. Eubank has quick enough hands to win pretty much every round vs Yildrim without ever looking like getting a stoppage

Braehmer vs Brant I wouldn’t like to write off a guy like Braehmer who carries power in both hands and always had good skills however what goes against him here is age and weight. He is coming off a loss and then aged 38 he wants to boil down 7lbs to face a young dangerous fighter and Americas only entry in this tournament. I don’t see it ending well for Braehmer. I see Brant outboxing him and maybe stopping him late


Cruiserweights

Usyk vs Huck I’ve a lot of respect for Huck and his career but in this one I favour Usyk strongly. I think he dominates a 1 sided fight on points showcasing his great skills and making it look easy.

Gassiev vs Wlodarczyk Good fight!. Wloarczyk needs to use his vast experience to fiddle his way through the rounds and avoid trading with the younger man. Gassiev is the dark horse of the tournament and I pick him in this fight. Wlodarczyk has never been stopped so it will be a statement if Gassiev gets him out of there but Gassiev was so physically powerful and heavy handed vs Lebedev that he has to start favourite in this fight.
.

Breidis vs Perez Im a bit disappointed for Perez because I was really looking forward to seeing him and rated his chances but unfortunately hes got matched off against Maris Breidis whos arguably the best boxer in the tournament and second favourite to Usyk. Perez has fought at heavyweight with losses to Bryant Jennings and Povetkin so should be use to physically bigger men. However Breidis has a dramatic KO over heavyweight Manuel Charr and made easy work of long time champ Marco Hiuck so this is a really a big ask for Mike Perez. Breidis wins.

Dorticos vs Kudryashov What a great fight this one is. Both guys could KO the other but Id say Kudyrahov is the bigger puncher with the genuine KO power. The Cuban has the skills and will be favoured the longer it goes but his high KO record is abit misleading because there arent many names on it and in his sole points win he failed to stop Edison Miranda who was KOd by Abraham down at middleweight years ago. If it’s a shootout early I go with the Russian but I see Dorticos being elusive and using his boxing skills to get through the storm and take it late

Great Summary

[Primo Carnera]

As for bets, so far I've backed Rob Brant at 50/1 for the supermiddles - even though he's stepping up in weight he's young, unexposed, plenty of good amateur experience (Ward 2?) and gets Brahmer in the first round, who is not only past his best but boiling down to 168.

At cruiser i'm thinking of backing Dorticos (10/1)

The theory of picking the young less experienced guys in a tournament like this is pretty solid thinking in my book. The final of the tournament could be over a year, maybe even 2 years away, you never know. in that time, one of the more experienced fancied guys could go over the hill, while the younger guys could pick up experience and just start to peak.
with that in mind , I still fancy Groves, although Callum Smith has to be considered. My fear for Smith is and always has been , how long can he keep fighting at SMW? he's massive for the weight and as you get older, that gets tougher.
I don't like Groves saying that he chose Cox as it was an easy fight, that's a bad mentality to have. To be honest, I was kinda hoping Cox would be fighting Eubank Jr. I really believe Cox would give Eubank a beating. I don't reckon he's anywhere near as bad as people are saying, and I don't think Eubank Jr. is anywhere near as good as people are saying.
Cox has had a lot of issues and problems in his career to date (Many self-inflicted), but I think he is a decent fighter.

[Ron Swanson]

As for bets, so far I've backed Rob Brant at 50/1 for the supermiddles - even though he's stepping up in weight he's young, unexposed, plenty of good amateur experience (Ward 2?) and gets Brahmer in the first round, who is not only past his best but boiling down to 168.

At cruiser i'm thinking of backing Dorticos (10/1)

The theory of picking the young less experienced guys in a tournament like this is pretty solid thinking in my book. The final of the tournament could be over a year, maybe even 2 years away, you never know. in that time, one of the more experienced fancied guys could go over the hill, while the younger guys could pick up experience and just start to peak.
with that in mind , I still fancy Groves, although Callum Smith has to be considered. My fear for Smith is and always has been , how long can he keep fighting at SMW? he's massive for the weight and as you get older, that gets tougher.
I don't like Groves saying that he chose Cox as it was an easy fight, that's a bad mentality to have. To be honest, I was kinda hoping Cox would be fighting Eubank Jr. I really believe Cox would give Eubank a beating. I don't reckon he's anywhere near as bad as people are saying, and I don't think Eubank Jr. is anywhere near as good as people are saying.
Cox has had a lot of issues and problems in his career to date (Many self-inflicted), but I think he is a decent fighter.

When Groves said he took it because it was easy it seemed playful, not like mind games or to put Cox down. Just my opinion from watching.