The professional heavyweight boxing scene is more exciting today than it has been for more than a generation. The various versions of the world championship belts are shared out between two fighters, Oleksandr Usyk of the Ukraine and England’s Tyson Fury. Behind them is a list of dangerous contenders, including two former champions in Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder who want their titles back.
2021 was a sensational year with Usyk, Fury, Joshua and Wilder all in action. There were many good memories for lovers of the noble art but 2022 promises to be even better. Boxing is in a great place and with the best finally in a rush to fight the best due to the COVID enforced break, some exciting bouts are on the horizon.
The Vegas bet online sportsbooks are offering odds on the winners of these bouts, despite no announcements being made for the early part of the year. Fight fans can jump the queue and get in early to make their predictions. Play the role of boxing matchmaker and predict who will fight who. Then put your judge’s hat on and make your call on the winner and how they will achieve the result.
You can watch as an interested spectator or put your opinions on the table and get involved. Fortune favours the brave, both in boxing and in making boxing predictions. Below are three heavyweight boxing matches that could happen before the end of 2022 in the order we’d like to see them in, the top being our favourite.
Tyson Fury v Oleksandr Usyk
This is the unification bout all sports fans want to see, from the diehard followers of boxing to those with a casual interest, showing up only for the big fights. It would give us something we’ve not had for many years, a unified heavyweight champion of the world. One man above all others in the top division with the other contenders left to scrap it out for a shot at the title. It’s the way boxing used to be, the way it should be, and how it could be again. Fury’s natural size and strength would surely be enough to see him win all belts.
Anthony Joshua v Deontay Wilder
This would be a battle for the number one contender, two former champions who want to get their title back and believe they are good enough to do just that. AJ was beaten on points by Usyk earlier this year, surrendering his four belts in the process. Wilder was knocked out not once but twice by Fury in America, losing the WBC strap.
This is a high risk fight and as there wouldn’t be a belt on the line, a low reward, so it doesn’t make sense from a business perspective but fans want to know which of the two most deserves another crack at the title. The winner would cement themselves as the number one contender for a shot at Fury or Usyk but the loser would be sent tumbling down the rankings, out of the title picture for at least two or three fights.
Would either man be willing to put their reputation and championship chances on the line, believing they are good enough to win but knowing the damage a defeat would do? It’s a big ask, and as there’s no belt up for grabs, it wouldn’t come with the huge payday it merited.
Dillian Whyte v Andy Ruiz
Dillian Whyte has been operating on the edges of the world heavyweight scene for quite some time now, without ever getting the shot he believes he deserves. To be fair to the Londoner, he has beaten many other major contenders and is ranked high enough to suggest he should have made a challenge by now. If he beat former champion Ruiz – a fight that would sell in the United Kingdom or the United States – promoters couldn’t ignore him any longer.
Ruiz famously knocked out Joshua and was briefly champion of the world, a reign that lasted just one fight. AJ beat him in the rematch on points. Ruiz is good enough to give any top-level opponent trouble if he’s in the right frame of mind and fit. The problem is, he’s not always in peak condition and is prone to getting terribly out of shape between fights and massively overweight.
