Boxing had an eventful year, with divisions unified, new world champions crowned, trilogies resolved, shocking results, terrible knockouts, and much more taking place within the squared circle.
But, as is customary in boxing, it was also a year in which a number of mega-fights were canceled. There are never any promises in the complicated and political world of professional boxing, but as we look forward to 2022 with optimism, here are a few of the fantasy matches we hope to witness.
Heavyweight Undisputed Champion
When WBC champion Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, the then-holder of the other three titles, agreed to a historic clash in Saudi Arabia, it came tantalizingly close to becoming a reality, only for a court to compel Fury to face former champion Deontay Wilder for the third time.
Fury (31-0-1) kept his end of the bargain by stopping the American again, while British rival Joshua had been decimated two weeks earlier by Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury is likely to face another challenger at a similar time, with Joshua immediately invoking the rematch clause and the meeting set for the spring. If the WBC has their way, it will very certainly be against No. 1 Dillian Whyte, though the council has yet to make a decision.
Boxing has been clamoring for a winner-takes-all heavyweight match for far too long, regardless of the outcome of their next fights. While fans – and, no doubt, the money men – wish for Fury v Joshua, an undisputed contest between Fury and Usyk remains a tantalizing prospect.
Even if Whyte, who has been waiting for a world title fight for half his life, gets his chance against Fury and pulls off a big upset, a rematch with Joshua or a clash with Usyk would be a thrilling spectacle.
It’s time to find out who the indisputable king of boxing’s blue riband division is, whatever the two boxers are in the ring.
Dream Boxing Matches for 2022-
Spence vs Crawford
There will simply be no other welterweight title match that will satisfy fans until these two champions put their belts on the line against one other. The problem is that Errol Spence vs. Terence Crawford doesn’t appear to be on the horizon.
Spence, the WBC and IBF champion, did not fight in 2021 after being injured in a high-speed vehicle accident in 2019. His most recent fight was a points victory against Danny Garcia in December 2020. In August, he was supposed to fight Filipino legend Manny Pacquiao, but he had to withdraw due to an eye injury.
Crawford, on the other hand, has only fought once, defeating Shawn Porter in the tenth round by TKO in November. That is simply not enough activity from two of boxing’s most well-known champions in one of the sport’s most high-profile divisions.
Spence (27-0-0) is expected to make up for lost time when he fights WBA champion Yordenis Ugas in early 2022, so a fight with Crawford would most likely be later in the year, if at all. While Crawford (38-0-0) has stated that he wants to fight Spence – “you all know who I want, I’ve been calling him out” – his fellow American looks to be uninterested.
Kambosos Jr vs Lomachenko
In November, George Kambosos Jr earned a split decision victory over three-belt lightweight champion Teofimo Lopez Jr in a fight that was a contender for fight of the year.
In a crowded lightweight division, the Australian is now in charge, and the WBA, IBF, and WBO champion is aiming for an undisputed bout with WBC champion Devon Haney in his hometown of Sydney.
After losing his titles to Lopez Jr in October 2020, Vasiliy Lomachenko, the obscenely gifted Ukrainian, returned to the title picture in 2021 with two statement victories against Masayoshi Nakatani and Richard Commey. The WBO and WBC have him ranked No. 1 now.
In terms of styles that make bouts, Kambosos’ furious pace and Lomachenko’s slick, technical brilliance would make for an exciting fight. Furthermore, boxing’s biggest names deserve to be involved in title fights, and Lomachenko is one of them.
Beterbiev vs Bivol
The light-heavyweight division is frequently neglected, but something exciting is building at 175 pounds.
There are a few British names near the top of the division, including Callum Smith, who is moving up from super-middleweight, Anthony Yarde, who is back in title contention after an impressive stoppage win in a rematch with Lyndon Arthur, Joshua Buatsi, and Callum Johnson, who is set to face WBO champion Joe Smith.
The attention, though, is on the light-heavyweights, thanks to the presence of two undefeated Russian champions. Dmitry Bivol (19-0-0) has held the WBA championship since 2017, and defended it for the sixth and seventh times in 2021, defeating Craig Richards and Umar Salamov on points.
Meanwhile, Artur Beterbiev (17-0-0) retained his WBC and IBF titles by stopping Adam Deines and Marcus Browne to continue his extraordinary streak of being the only world champion with a perfect knockout rate.
While there are many fascinating match-ups in the light-heavyweight class in 2022, a bout between the two Russian champions could be precisely what the division needs to get into the mainstream.
Alvarez vs Andrade
After the WBC approved his request to move up two divisions to face Ilunga Makabu in his quest to win world titles in five weight classes, Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has already set his sights on an audacious step up to cruiserweight.
In 2021, Alvarez (57-1-2) completed his destruction of the super-middleweight category with stoppage victories over Avni Yildirim, Billy Joe Saunders, and Caleb Plant, cementing his place as boxing’s pound-for-pound king.
But, when he glances up, Alvarez realizes that the best battle for him might be in the division below. WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade made an impression in 2021 with victories over Liam Williams and Jason Quigley, and he appears to be the greatest candidate to take on the Mexican.
Given the Kazakh’s inactivity in 2021, a trilogy bout with IBF champion Gennady Golovkin appears to have lost part of its appeal, while Alvarez is uninterested in a fight with WBC king Jermall Charlo.
Andrade (31-0-0) has been ordered to fight WBO mandatory Janibek Alimkhanuly, thus any fight with Alvarez would have to wait until later this year. But, given the state of boxing politics, who knows if that will even be possible.
Nonetheless, it would be a great match-up for Alvarez, who is quickly running out of viable opponents.
Inoue vs Donaire II
Naoya Inoue, the WBA and IBF bantamweight champion, continued to establish himself as one of boxing’s biggest names in 2021, with spectacular stoppage victories over Michael Dasmarinas and Aran Dipaen.
The Japanese fighter wants to conquer the division, which means overcoming WBO champion John Reil Casimero – or whoever holds the belt when a bout can be arranged – and a rematch with Filipino legend Nonito Donaire.
When Inoue (22-0-0) and Donaire (42-6-0) went to war in 2019, they produced an all-time classic, with Inoue winning by unanimous decision, and the chance to do it again – especially if it’s for the undisputed title – would be one of the biggest fights of 2022.
