THIS year could see the crowning of an undisputed heavyweight champion.
But the big boys’ division isn’t the only one where a king is waiting to be crowned.
And of course boxing fans will be praying tickets will be up for grabs to see some truly mouthwatering clashes live.
Here, SunSport lists seven fights that HAVE to happen in 2021…
Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua
It really is the ONLY fight boxing fans want to see made at heavyweight.
The two Brits hold all the belts and each have legions of passionate and knowledgeable fans.
Both parties have signed contracts for the fight to take place this summer, but we are still waiting for a date and venue, with a number of possible locations in play.
It will be the biggest ever all-British fight, and if a rematch is written in it could be a HALF-A-BILLION pound double.
Dillian Whyte v Deontay Wilder
Dillian Whyte has a huge career-defining task ahead of him this weekend when he rematches Alexander Povetkin.
The Brit was knocked out cold by the Russian in August of last year despite having dropped his opponent twice in the previous round.
Providing he can re-claim his WBC mandatory spot against Povetkin, he will then be looking for another fight before his title shot as AJ and Fury prepare for two contest in 2021.
And what better man to face than the former WBC champ who Whyte has been calling out for the best part of four years – Deontay Wilder.
Wilder has not fought since being destroyed by Tyson Fury in February 2020 and you just know a clash with Whyte would guarantee fireworks.
Terence Crawford vs Errol Spence Jr
The amount of belts flying around in boxing has recently been criticised by the legendary Floyd Mayweather no less.
If this fight is made at least one boxer will have three at welterweight – and they can always challenge Yordenis Ugas for the WBA version.
Both are unbeaten and have one thing in common – they have both battered Kell Brook in one-sided affairs.
However, this one looks like it almost certainly will not happen after Crawford announced ‘that fight is behind me’.
Vasiliy Lomachenko vs Naoya Inoue
Lomachenko is likely to drop back down to featherweight after he was outmuscled, outfought and outthought last time out by Teofimo Lopez.
And as luck would have it, one of boxing’s most exciting fighters and a fellow Top Rank pugilist is poised to step up from bantamweight – Inoue.
Loma seems to have lost some fans after his excuses and bitter acceptance that he lost to Lopez – which he clearly did.
If he really thinks he has to prove himself, a scrap against undefeated Japanese destroyer Inoue would be mouthwatering.
Devin Haney vs Ryan Garcia
In the mash-up of lightweight belts, Haney holds the WBC regular lightweight belt, while Garcia is the interim champ having got off the deck to stop Luke Campbell in January.
That sets up the chance for these two to continue their rivalry that started in the amateurs.
In headguards, the pair are tied at 3-3 – so what better way to find the real winner than in the pros.
If they do fight we can be guaranteed the build up would be intense – the two love their social media.
Teofimo Lopez vs Gervonta Davis
This is the bona fide lightweight unification scrap – Lopez holds the full WBO, IBF and WBA ‘super’ versions and Davis the WBA ‘regular’ belt.
Lopez, like he did against Lomachenko, will have a weight advantage against former super-featherweight champion Davis.
But you’d have to argue that it is Davis, coached by the legendary Floyd Mayweather, that has that one-punch power and bookies may find it hard to separate the pair.
Davis has been described as a ‘mini Mike Tyson’, and like his namesake he is as feisty out of the ring as he is in it. This fight would have people talking from the get go.
Lawrence Okolie v Mairis Briedis
Lawrence Okolie became Britain’s newest world champion on Saturday night when he produced a punch-perfect display to take the WBO cruiserweight title from Krzysztof Glowacki.
Now his objective is to clean out the 200-pound weight class before moving up to heavyweight and mixing it with the giants.
Immediately after his win, Okolie – who has only had 16 pro fights – called out Mairis Briedis, the widely recognised No1 in the division.
The Latvian has only been beaten once in 28 contests and that came against former undisputed cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.
So if Okolie is going to prove himself as a potential pound-for-pound star, a win over Briedis would go some way to doing that.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
