Tonight in Montreal, either Oscar Rivas or Ryan Rozicki will be crowned as the first WBC bridgerweight champion. It has been 34 years since professional boxing has added a new weight division, the last being the strawweight division in 1987.
The 80s were a busy time with no less than four new divisions catching hold. The WBC started the championships in the cruiserweight and super flyweight divisions, while the IBF initiated the belts for the strawweight and super middleweight divisions. The remaining sanctioning bodies eventually accepted the new divisions within a few years. This all took place before the WBO was founded in 1988.
Just think, we’ll all be able to say that we were there at the beginning…
I have goosebumps in anticipation! This is all Oscar Rivas needed to become the P4P player that we all know he is. Lol!
Sadly, I’m such a boxing fan that I’ll tune in for the whole card. Maybe there will actually be an entertaining fight or two. There’s always a chance and if a bogus Division and belt bring out the best in these two tonight, then maybe it isn’t all bad.
Bridgerweight Farce.
Not needed and here’s the proof.
Question, what have Lewis, Klitschko, Joshua, Bowe, Valuev and others have in common?
Answer, these modern big heavies in most cases not only were beaten but also stopped or knocked out by so called smaller heavies.
Which proves in this division more than any other that even some so called modern greats lose and it’s no coincident or a rare happening.
What’s next? a super heavyweight title, if so then the world heavyweight championship as we,ve known and loved over history will just be a memory.
I urge everybody and all publications to make a stand and not recognize this farce .
Last thought, just think of four or more so called world champions muddling our great sport just so
it can make more money for the greedy alphabet organizations who only care for themselves, what chances will there be to strive to have one champion? more than ever before, slim and none.
This is moronic. Boxing needs less weight classes, not more. The talent pool is already too spread out as it is.
Weighing in at the lower 200s is not a major limiting factor at Heavyweight, as has been shown by countless champions, and most recently with Usyk vs Joshua.
The Lebanese Sulaiman family, who run this profiteering outfit, WBC, out of Mexico City, have made a fortune over the decades with their sanctioning fees, site fees, and ridiculous belts, never cease to amaze me with their greed. What next for these profiteers? A super light heavyweight division at 185?
@Nordic Annihilator: Imagine this. In a few years when the heavyweight boxers increase in size even more and weigh over 300 pounds and even Fury and AJ look small, the WBC will introduce a Super Bridgerweight division..
It won’t take that long-junior bridgerweight will be right there with it.
Would you take 164 in addition to 185?
Never needed more than eight weight divisions-the best had to fight the best instead of escaping to a weight division three pounds away.
It should be two Bridgerweights fighting each other for the title, not a Bridgerweight vs a Cruiserweight.
They are really heavyweights and shouldn’t be fighting for any title.
Unlike many of you, I am very excited about this. I expect to see great things from this wonderful division, named after a courageous little boy who saved his little sister’s life from a vicious dog.
Oscar Rivas should win his 1st world title tonight. Good for him.
I support The Bridgerweight Division and welcome it with open arms. Sadly, no one is showing this fight on US TV. That is horrible.
Speaketh … FJB.
Fredrick J. Brandon III.
Keep that up and pretty soon they will create a new division and name it after you.
“bridgerweight era”. Fightnews seems confident this will last a while. I hope it goes the way of the old WBU’s Super Cruiserweight belt.
At least make up for it with fury vs wilder 4. Wilder kos fury like marquis vs Pac-Man 4
SUPER ****ING CRUISERWEIGHT.
Dear God, if this actually becomes a thing, which I think it should – I pray to you that the other alphabet boys are smart enough to call the damned division what it should be called: SUPER CRUISERWEIGHT. “Bridgerweight” is contrived, and idiotic.
I’m not typically a fan of a boatload of weight divisions, but if you’re going to realign the upper classes? Do it in a way that makes sense:
Heavyweight – Unlimited
Junior Heavyweight – Under 225
Super Cruiserweight – Under 200
Cruiserweight – Under 185
Light Heavyweight – Under 175
Sorry mate, I was with you until you contradicted your first post
Sickening joke and most of the boxing media are in on this poorly named and conceived garbage.
It’s a money grab, nothing more.
I would only be fine with the bridgerweight being a thing if all gov bodies REMOVED about 3 other weight classes that are too close together on the lower end.
Won’t happen…
Why they did not name it Bruiserweight is beyond me
it will be after tonight. “The Brusier” is Ryan Rozicki’s nickname.
I wonder if that Bridger kid even likes boxing.
Anybody over 200 lbs is a heavyweight. This is a guise for more sanctioning fees. Fools nobody.
In one of the greatest heavyweight fights of all time, the first Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling bout in 1936, both men weighed around 200 lbs, I believe. Schmeling ended up schooling & knocking out Louis in a great, competitive fight. Something tells me this Bridgerweight “title” fight will not live up to those standards!
Imagine being the Bridgerweight champion and having the following conversation at a night club or coffee bar:
Girl: So what do you do for a living?
Champ: I’m a pro boxer. In fact, I’m a world champion!
Girl: Really? What weight class?
Champ: Bridgerweight.
Girl: *Rolls eyes*
I’m the Bridgerweigjt champion. No one gets through the bridge except through me.
Sooooo, will the cruiserweights have to pay an additional toll (sanctioning fee) to get to the heavyweights now?
A waste
did it though?