DEMOLITION DHABI FOR RAFA
WHEN I close my eyes and let the memories of 2018 wash over me one fighter stands tall – Oleksandr Usyk.
The knockout that ended the career of Tony Bellew was arguably the KO of the year. Before he got to Bellew he beat Mairis Briedis in January and Russian puncher Murat Gassiev in July to become the first unified cruiserweight champion.
He did this not in front of his home fans in Kiev but on the road in Riga and Moscow.
In fact he has yet to fight at home since winning the WBO title in Poland two years ago.
What a machine he is, and all achieved under the umbrella of RAFA NADAL has triggered fears that he will miss the Australian Open after pulling out of an exhibition match.
The Spaniard, who has not played a competitive match since withdrawing from the US Open semi-finals with a knee injury, was beaten in three sets by Kevin Anderson in Abu Dhabi yesterday and immediately opted out of a scheduled clash with Karen the World Boxing Super Series, a breath of fresh air that cuts through boxing politics to bring us great fights.
Fellow countryman Vasyl Lomachenko is not far behind. His victory over WBA champion Jorge Linares in his first match at lightweight was one of the fights of the year. To come out of that with an injured shoulder, undergo surgery, recover then drop Jose Pedraza twice to take the WBO title, too, underlined his superhuman qualities.
The other standout performer was Canelo Alvarez. I have had my say on his doping history and maintain my zero tolerance stance. The authorities say box on. And box on he did brilliantly to share the spoils in the first fight with Gennady Golovkin, and edge the second. You could argue about the draw and later the victory he was awarded but what is undeniable is Canelo’s star quality, expressed in the £280million deal he struck, which was a landmark for our sport.
Honourable mentions go to Josh Warrington (inset, top), who proved himself a genuine world star at featherweight with two magnificent victories to win and defend Khachanov today. “I spent more time on the court than I thought – now is the time to take a step back,” said Nadal, who underwent ankle surgery last month. “I have suffered a lot in terms of injuries, I do not want to suffer any more.”
The 32-year-old said he will head to Queensland for next week’s Brisbane International, which will see the return of Andy Murray. the IBF crown. Callum Smith (inset, centre) will not forget 2018 in a hurry, his stoppage of George Groves to take the WBA super middleweight belt in Jeddah was one of the moments of the year. Josh Taylor swept past Winston Campos in March, outpointed Viktor Postol in his most mature display to date in June and blasted Ryan Martin in seven rounds to set up a world-title shot next year.
As ever the health of the sport is measured best by the heavyweights. Tyson Fury gave us the comeback of the year, first shedding 10 stones then climbing off the deck in astonishing fashion in his draw with Deontay Wilder.
Dillian Whyte (inset, bottom) beat Joseph Parker before icing Dereck Chisora in the 11th to win a fight he was losing on all cards. But for me the performance that impressed most was Anthony Joshua in victory over Alexander Povetkin, a world-class fighter who gave his best but found AJ too big, too strong and in the end too good. Follow Barry on Twitter at @ClonesCyclone @McGuigans_Gym @CyclonePromo