With Christmas out of the way, as we emerge from our turkey-comas and blink into the light of 2023, talk turns to New Year’s resolutions. These mostly end up being facile platitudes that we’ve forgotten by Valentine’s Day. Cries of “New Year, New Me!” ring out as we bravely give up biscuits or vow to go on daily walks. But inevitably we relent when it’s p*ssing it down on the second day and console ourselves by jumping into a pile of chocolate digestives.
But some New Year’s resolutions can be worthwhile. In boxing, there are certainly a number of fighters who could benefit from some promises for 2023. The Sportsman has chosen six resolutions for the great and the good of the gloved game to abide by.
Here is how we think boxing’s big names should spend 2023.
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Tyson Fury: No more domestic fights, unless it’s ‘AJ’
Going into 2022, Fury had not fought a British opponent in eight years. He’s now fought two on the bounce, stopping Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora this year.
Whyte’s shot was merited, if straightforward on the night for Fury. Chisora’s was less necessary, considering ‘Del Boy’ had lost twice to ‘The Gypsy King’ before and had won one fight since 2019. But however you slice it, despite two wins in stadium fights, Fury’s year was slightly disappointing.
The WBC champion can only beat what’s in front of him. Thus we would propose that he gets some better opponents in front of him next year. If WBA/IBF/WBO boss Oleksandr Usyk doesn’t fancy it, then Anthony Joshua is the one domestic dust-up that makes commercial sense. Joe Joyce will get there one day, but an ‘AJ’ fight at this point would be on a different level to the interest ‘Juggernaut’ would bring.
Dmitry Bivol: Resist the pull of Canelo
The WBA light heavyweight champion told us back in November that he would prefer to face WBC/WBO/IBF king Artur Beterbiev before rematching Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez.
And why not? While money talks in boxing, and a ‘Canelo’ match would generate a lot more of it, Bivol’s whole team would be making a lot less had he not battered the Mexican in May. After mastering Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez in his mandatory defence, Bivol should be allowed to fight whoever he wants.
People will throw untold riches at him to face ‘Canelo’ again. That’s what happens when you beat the most bankable star in the sport. But Bivol should go for undisputed immortality against Beterbiev before chasing the dollar signs against Alvarez.
Katie Taylor: Get your stadium fight
What a year for Katie Taylor. The driving force behind women’s boxing taking over the world, ‘The Bray Bomber’ reached a new peak. Her Madison Square Garden headliner against Amanda Serrano was a crowning moment for Taylor and her sport.
Having done something many thought impossible, how do you top it? How about by becoming the first woman to headline an outdoor stadium show? Taylor and her team have long targeted a fight at Croke Park in Dublin. 2023 should be the year it happens.
Not only would it be a brilliant and deserved moment for ‘KT’, it would be another step in the evolution of women’s boxing. 2022 saw iconic arenas in the UK and USA taken over by the best women fighters. Now they deserve the spotlight of a stadium. Taylor is the fighter to make that happen.
Deontay Wilder: Fight early and often
Wilder is one of the most exciting fighters on the planet. His trilogy with Tyson Fury will live forever in the annals of history. His WBC title reign saw him rack up ten defences, the most of any heavyweight champion since Wladimir Klitschko.
But in recent times, sighting Wilder has been a rare treat. 2019 was the last year in which he fought more than once. At the age of 37, time is not on the side of ‘The Bronze Bomber’.
If there is to be one more tilt at the world crown, Wilder has to spend more time in the ring than the two minutes and 57 seconds he managed in 2022. Fighting long-rumoured opponent Andy Ruiz Jr would be an excellent start. But if he wins, there needs to be more fights before the year is out.
Terence Crawford and Errol Spence: Fight each other, no excuses
A two-for-one resolution. Enough talk. Enough social media-baiting. Enough blaming each other. The two reigning welterweight champions simply must fight each other.
Would anyone remember ‘Sugar’ Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns if they never fought each other? Would Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn be spoken of in the same terms if “contractual issues” had precluded their two classic fights from happening? Would Muhammad Ali even be Ali without Joe Frazier?
It’s a matter of legacy. This is the only fight that makes sense for either of them. Let it slip away and get forgotten.
Josh Taylor: Move to welterweight
Viewers of BBC’s Portrait of a Fighter documentary will have seen the brutal toll making the super lightweight limit has on Josh Taylor. For all the stick he has received after being awarded a controversial decision win over Jack Catterall last February, you cannot question his heart.
Taylor has compromised both his status and health to stage the rematch. Relinquishing three of his four world title belts and agreeing to go again at super lightweight. The first Catterall bout was intended to be his last at 140 lbs before moving up to welterweight.
Whatever the outcome against Catterall, Taylor owes it to himself to move up in weight. He is shortening his career by not listening to his body. After everything he has achieved, he deserves to make a decision that will suit him rather than the fans or other fighters.
*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change
