EDITOR’S LETTER
The history of heavyweight unification
WITH the Anthony Joshua versus Joseph Parker showdown almost upon us, you will probably hear or read about the importance of unification a gazillion times over the next few days, perhaps even more frequently than ‘undisputed’ was disputed recently. But a look back through history reveals that unification is merely the offspring of one of the biggest evils in the game.
So while unified bouts are welcome in 2018 because they unify titles, the heavyweight division, and in turn the sport, would be in a much better place if the industry had not encouraged such madness back in the sixties. After all, heavyweight unification now only exists because the world championship was allowed to be broken up in the first place.
That fine mess, which the banner division more often than not finds itself in, can be traced back to when the WBA decided to strip new champion Muhammad Ali because he opted to grant Sonny Liston a return in 1965. What followed was Ernie Terrell taking the vacant strap with a victory over Eddie Machen, defending it twice, before Ali dominated Terrell in a one-sided unification showdown that proved there was absolutely no need for anything to be unified because the man who beat the man (who beat the man, who beat the man) was already, quite clearly, the man. It’s true that the WBA were not the first to cause title splits, certain states (New York in particular), continents and countries – the UK spuriously championed Lee Savold in the fifties, for example – also stepped away from convention, but it’s indisputable that the formation of the WBA as we now know it in 1962, and the boxing industry’s subsequent acceptance of each body who followed, provided the trigger for the chaos that remains.
The new decade saw the growth of the WBC, spawned from disenchantment with the WBA, and in 1978 that Mexican crew needlessly awarded Ken Norton their title because freshly crowned Leon Spinks agreed to give Ali a rematch. From that point forth, the division – bar the odd few years here and there – has remained fractured, seemingly beyond repair.
In 1983, with accusations about the WBA’S bent policies swirling, the IBF was set up after a failed bid to take over the seemingly corrupt body, and Larry Holmes was given their inaugural strap. That clever placing, around the waist of the established leader, meant that the IBF were almost immediately embraced but, depressingly, two alphabet titles became three overnight. Fast forward to Mike Tyson entering the fray in 1986, and briefly curtailing the confusion the following year with unification victories over James “Bonecrusher” Smith and Tony Tucker. His 1988 slaying of Holmes’ conqueror, and ‘linear’ champion, Michael Spinks, cemented Tyson’s position as No.1, though along came the WBO who inexplicably sanctioned a bout between Francesco Damiani and Johnny Du Plooy for their ‘vacant’ title. Such mind-boggling logic hurt the organisation – particularly at heavyweight – as the likes of Michael Moorer and Riddick Bowe later relinquished the title because it affected their chances of contesting for more established belts. It’s true that by the time Holyfield and Lewis engaged in their unification series in 1999, the WBO was not considered worthy of their time.
In fact, one has to fast forward to 2008, when Wladimir Klitschko, the IBF boss, dethroned Sultan Ibragimov in a drabber than drab unification bout, for the WBO heavyweight title to become significant due to the Ukrainian’s standing. His loss to Tyson Fury seven years later was the catalyst for yet more disorder, and not all of it was of the Englishman’s making, as the IBF stole their title back within days of his victory.
Perhaps the most infuriating thing about unification, after all the hoops are jumped through, fees paid and egos nursed, is what inevitably follows: titles being mindlessly stripped, bogus kings crowned, and the whole process being exposed as an expensive a waste of time, but one that must start all over again.
So, yes, we must welcome the threeman rivalry between Joshua, Parker and Deontay Wilder as they jostle to become Fury’s successor, but once the new king is crowned, every effort must be made to prevent the sanctioning bodies insulting our intelligence yet again.