2020 sure was a shit show, but here’s the best and the worst of what went down in boxing in a year that will live in infamy.
Robbery of the Year: Andrew Moloney v Joshua Franco 2
Robberies and boxing are like pickles and peanut butter: they go hand in hand, there is no disputing their historic connection, and they are sickeningly disgusting when combined. The Franco-Moloney II robbery, wherein the fight was called a no contest due to a “headbutt” that closed Joshua Franco’s eye. The referee had made the initial call and after thirty minutes of video replay review, in which there was legitimately no evidence there was a headbutt, and gratuitous video evidence of punches to the face, the call stood. This is one of the most disgusting robberies for a multitude of reasons: 1) the most egregious being the fact that Andrew Moloney was robbed of a title (a secondary title, despite the announcers repeatedly announcing it as a “title fight”) 2) we, the fans, were also robbed of a half hour of our lives waiting for this inane decision and 3) Bob Arum was restrained in the post fight scrum, robbing him of his chance to take an achingly slow swing at Bob Bennett of the Nevada Commission for allowing the whole debacle. A triple robbery.
Prospect of the Year: Edgar Berlanga
I honestly have no idea how good this guy could possibly be. He is a professional tomato can smasher. He is a garbage compactor with arms. The man has seen just as many walking corpses as a care worker in a 2020 retirement home.
But he has still KO’ed sixteen straight in the first round, and in a year where there hasn’t been a huge amount of boxing action, he’s good enough to get prospect of the year. Let me know when he fights a live body.
Trainer of the Year: Derrick James
Trainer of the year is a difficult award to pick because we really don’t know what goes on behind the scenes. Maybe Freddie Roach has been working wonders at Wildcard? In this case, we operate on what we do know, and we do know Derrick James definitely worked wonders in 2020. He was integral in bringing Errol Spence back from the brink, training the intoxicated automotive barrel roller extraordinaire to a comeback of the year performance against Danny Garcia. He also helped Jermell Charlo unify titles at 154. Maybe Freddie Roach is working wonders, but Derrick James is working miracles.
Promoter of the Year: Eddie Hearn
Bob Arum was the front runner for Promoter of the Year until the final dog days of 2020. He had successfully established “The Bubble” at the MGM in Vegas, and had revived boxing before any other organisation. He also staged Lomachenko vs Lopez, one of the most successful fights of the year. Eddie Hearn was doing similar work in the UK, with his Matchroom Fight Camp, but hadn’t put together anything stunning. Then came December, when he presented Joshua v Pulev in front of a 1000 fans, and somehow managed to get Canelo back on DAZN to completely decimate Callum Smith. Combine those achievements, with Eddie Reynoso calling Hearn “the best promoter in the business”, and the future only looks brighter for the UK boxing magnate. Rumour has it he is close to a Canelo deal for two fights in the first half of 2021.
Fight of the Year: Baranchyk v Zepeda
While word on the street was that this fight was going to be a banger, it delivered above and beyond. Eight knockdowns in five rounds of completely wild action with both guys looking to be out of it at different times. If you haven’t seen it, watch it now. It’s not exactly Gatti — Ward, but it does showcase the kind of two-way, back and forth action that you just don’t get to see that often. Credit to both these fighters for the brutal determination to continue to get back up, until one of them couldn’t. Also a KO of year contender.
Knockout of the Year: Gervonta Davis v Leo Santa Cruz
The true KO of the Year belongs to Gervonta Davis. When the fight against Santa Cruz was first announced, there were skeptics. Would Davis be able to make 130? Would he drain himself too much? Would Santa Cruz apply the kind of pressure that Davis hadn’t seen before? Would Davis succumb to his previous demons and get arrested before the fight? Had he learned his lesson from his assault charge? All of these questions were answered with an emphatic uppercut in the sixth that knocked Santa Cruz unconscious, and propelled Davis onto a number of pound for pound lists.
Upset of the Year: Lomachenko v Lopez
Although the odds weren’t as long as Ruiz-Joshua, or Tyson-Douglas, there were very few people who expected Teofimo Lopez to defeat Lomachenko on that warm Vegas night in October. Even fewer predicted Lomachenko to play the role of timid housecat for the first six rounds. Despite the occasional pawing at Lopez’s gloves, Lomachenko seemed scared of the young phenom’s power, and only in the later rounds did he manage to mix it up a bit and have some success. Teofimo emphatically stamped the victory with a dominant twelfth round, erasing all memory of Lomachenko’s limited success. Loma has continued to hurt his image further as he embarks on his own version of the “Deontay Wilder Excuse and Shame Tour”, while Teofimo seems in no hurry to offer a rematch.
Fighter of the Year: Teofimo Lopez
In a tough year for all, where few fighters fought twice, many didn’t fight, and Clay Collard went 5–1, there was not a lot of room for a fighter to emerge as a Fighter of the Year candidate. That fighter would have to make a lot of noise in order to rise above the din of mediocrity. That fighter would have to have a statement win, something that couldn’t be denied as a hallmark victory. In the case of Teofimo Lopez Jr, his father made the noise, and he did the winning. Teo Sr had barked for years that his son would dismantle Lomachenko in the ring. In the build-up, he spoke endlessly of the arrogance and disrespect Lomachenko had towards fellow fighters. When it came to fight night, Teo Jr delivered on all of his father’s claims. He easily won the first six rounds, and then emphatically won the twelfth. Lomachenko couldn’t seem to solve the young superstar, who launched himself onto every pound for pound list in existence. In a year that will never be forgotten, Teofimo beat who many had seen as unbeatable. With a whole slew of juicy fighters at 135, 140 and 147 available to fight, the sky’s the limit for Teofimo.
