By Mauricio Sulaimán
President of the WBC – Son of José Sulaimán

The heavyweight division will always be the one that moves the world of boxing and sports fans in general.

The world heavyweight champion is considered the most fearsome and powerful man on the planet, ever since the beginning of the sport of fists.

John L. Sullivan was the last heavyweight champion when gloves were not used and fights were bare-knuckle, and he was also the first world heavyweight champion with gloves.

He was a legend, the first athlete in the history of the United States to become a celebrity, and the first to earn a million dollars.

Another legend defeated him and became champion, Jim Corbett, known as Gentleman Jim. Thus, the crown was passed between gladiators who shocked everyone in every place they stood. Then came Jack Johnson, the first black world heavyweight champion.

He was quite a character in a crude era of humanity and was hated by whites. The champion was imposing and feared nothing and no one. He married a white woman, which led to him being accused, imprisoned, and stripped of everything he owned.

Other giants who wore the award were Joe Louis, who defended his championship 25 times, Rocky Marciano, who retired as an undefeated champion with a record of 49-0, and Sonny Liston, a fearsome man considered invincible.

Then came Cassius Clay, who changed his name to Muhammad Ali, and was, is, and will be the most famous and influential athlete in history.

Ali changed boxing and the way sports are promoted forever. He was known by every human being who walked the earth and is still remembered today as the greatest.

In modern times, the impactful knockout artist Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, and the brothers Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko also stood out.

And who brought interest back to the top division was the knockout artist Deontay Wilder, who was champion for five years, followed by Tyson Fury, who knocked him out twice, and the current champion, the Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk.

The boxing scene has changed and, above all because of the great campaign of fights between the world’s top heavyweights.

His Excellency Turki Alalshikh appeared on the boxing map, and in less than a year he has achieved a revolution.

In October, 2023, he put together the inaugural Riyadh Season event called Battle of the Baddest with the WBC world heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury, against the former champion of the same weight, but from the UFC, Francis Ngannou.

That card was exclusive to heavyweights and served as an elimination tournament. The best have faced each other, and today we can say that there are at least six to eight fights of great interest that may take place in the near future.

The best in the world have fought each other, and the possible combinations between Usyk, Fury, Dubois, Joshua, Wilder, Kabayel, Zhang, Sanchez, Okole and Ruiz continue.

This past Saturday, Turki Alalshikh with Riyadh Season, and under the promotion of Queensberry and Matchroom, filled the legendary Wembley with 96,000 fans to witness the fight between two English giants: the champion Daniel Dubois, and the former champion, Anthony Joshua.

The spectacular nature of this premier division came to light from the first round to the surprise of most fans. Joshua fell to the canvas after receiving a powerful right hook, just at the end of the round.

The second and third rounds were highly anticipated, because while Anthony tried to get back into the fight, Daniel clobbered him with blows that staggered AJ.

Finally, in the fifth Joshua managed to connect a tremendous right hand that sent Dubois to the ropes, and when he tried to finish him off, they exchanged right hands and Joshua fell, poleaxed.

On December 21, the rematch will take place between Usyk and Fury in Saudi Arabia and depending on the result, the division’s plan will be defined in 2025.

Did you know…?

Based on the scientific information that the World Boxing Council managed to obtain after several years of medical studies, many changes were made to the rules, and several intermediate divisions were created, one of them being the cruiserweight.

Evander Holyfield was a great cruiserweight champion and legendary heavyweight.

The current monarch of the top division is Oleksandr Usyk, from Ukraine, who in turn, was undisputed champion in the cruiserweights.

What was once highly questioned and criticized, today is a reality of success.

Today’s Anecdote

The abuse of power has always been a shadow within boxing. In the 90s, the HBO television network intended to maintain absolute control of the heavyweight division and refused to broadcast the British Lennox Lewis, so they chose to put him aside and stay with Holyfield and Bowe.

History teaches us that Lewis is one of the greatest heavyweight champions, he beat Holyfield twice and Bowe, who had already disappeared from the map by the years of importance.

“My son: never accept pressure or deception, the only thing that counts is justice and the rules.

“In boxing, everyone seeks their personal benefit without caring about anything, life has many twists and turns.”

I appreciate your comments at [email protected].