Boxing News — January 11, 2018

http://www.boxingnewsonline.net JANUARY 11, 2018 lBOXING NEWSl 9

NOT IMPRESSED:

Ball [pictured] is

not confident that

Fournier would

ever get in the

ring with him

Fournier’s. Take that fight – and this goes
for every light-heavyweight in the WBA
top 15 – and it not only sets a worrying
precedent but also puts an ill-equipped
novice, with only two years of pro
experience, in grave danger.
“It would be a very bad night for him
and that’s why I can’t see
it ever happening,” Ball,
11-1, said. “I can’t really
talk about someone
I don’t know, and
I definitely can’t
imagine fighting someone
I don’t know. He’s
apparently got a bit of
money and is a nightclub
owner. I’ve seen that he
hangs around David
Haye quite a lot. But
I haven’t seen him fight.
“Boxing seems like it’s a bit of a hobby
for him whereas I’ve boxed since I was
seven years of age. It has been my life
since I was a boy. It’s all I know. Fair play
to him, he has come into it late, done a
bit of white collar (boxing) and thinks he’s

in now. But you can’t be saying you are

the best when you haven’t proven it and

you aren’t willing to fight the best.

“I saw a post from Fournier saying he

wanted to fight Badou Jack in Vegas. It’s

mad. I’m ranked at 14 and you wouldn’t

see me calling out people like that. He

will call out Jack but

I guarantee he wouldn’t

fight me. It baffles me.”

The worst part about

Fournier’s ranking, aside

from the fact it is wrong,

irresponsible and, quite

frankly, dangerous, is

that it shines a light on

the comedy value of the

rest of the WBA’s latest

offering.

Naturally, there are

corkers from top to bottom, but let’s

focus on the downright oddity that is the

WBA heavyweight top 15, for in here you

will find Manuel Charr positioned as

the ‘regular’ champion – an oddity, this

title, all of its own – and beneath him

BJ Flores, the cruiserweight chewed up

and spat out by Tony Bellew, at nine,

unproven mystery men like Trevor

Bryan, at five, and Otto Wallin, at 11,

and Kyotaro Fujimoto, at 15, as well

as the likes of Alexander Povetkin,

at number one, Fres Oquendo, at two,

Dillian Whyte, at seven, Guillermo

Jones, at 10, and Lucas Browne, at

13, all of whom have been popped for

performance-enhancing drugs.

Maybe that’s a heavyweight problem –

or a boxing problem – rather than a WBA

problem, but the inclusion of boxers

who have failed drug tests becomes all

the more bizarre in light of the WBA’s

decision to drop Luis Ortiz from their

rankings and subsequently scupper a

November 4 fight with WBC (World

Boxing Council) heavyweight champion

Deontay Wilder. (Ortiz, by the way, still

finds himself ranked by the WBC and

is again on course to challenge Wilder.)

One rule for one cheat, another rule for

many others? That appears the case.

Note: Boxing News reached out to

the WBA for an explanation and some

common sense, but found neither.

‘HE’S

APPARENTLY

GOT A BIT OF

MONEY AND IS

A NIGHTCLUB

OWNER’

Photo: ACTION IMAGES/PETER CZIBORRA