[46 Wins]

Following his 6th round TKO victory over Charles Martin at the weekend, the IBF ordered Luis Ortiz to start negotiations for a final eliminator bout with their unbeaten no.3 ranked contender, Filip Hrgovic.

No sooner than they had, the Cuban reports that he is injured now and so won't be ready to fight by the April deadline (someone please tell me the last time Ortiz fought a non-PBC fighter).

And so here we go again, yet another ranked fighter unable or unwilling to face Hrgovic for the right to challenge the IBF heavyweight champion. In light of this, should Hrgovic not just simply be installed as the mandatory for Oleksandr Usyk's IBF world title? That's what I think should happen anyway (and immediately too) but in accordance with IBF rules they'll now pass it to the no.4 ranked person and former world heavyweight champion, Joseph Parker.

Manager: Due To Injury, Luis Ortiz Was Unable To Fight Hrgovic By April

As BoxingScene.com previously reported, a hand injury has prevented heavyweight contender Luis Ortiz from accepted a potential fight against Filip Hrgovic, which would have been an IBF final eliminator for a mandatory crack at Oleksandr Usyk.

www.boxingscene.com

Why doesn't anyone want to fight Hrgovic, what seems to be the problem?

 

[MrCapone]

Hrgovic should fight Joyce.

 

[Cableaddict]

Why doesn't anyone want to fight Hrgovic, what seems to be the problem?

Maybe because, besides being powerful and skilled, he's also the dirtiest SOB in the sport today.

Hygovic is a serial rabbit puncher, and for some reason the refs NEVER call him on it. (He must have very well-connected management.)
If I were a trainer, I'd never let my fighter get in the ring with that piece of human filth.

 

[DynamicMoves]

If Ortiz is injured and considering old men heal slower, makes sense he'd turn down a fight in April.

 

[Cableaddict]

I doubt he's really injured.

He's just pulling a "Dillian."

 

[DynamicMoves]

I doubt he's really injured.

He's just pulling a "Dillian."

The guy is 60 and got knocked down off a jab. More believable than Whyte to me.
Also his hand does look pretty swollen here.

 

[Cableaddict]

^ Yeah, you're right.

Good catch.

 

[ThatBoxingGuy2022]

Ortiz's is shot big time he needs to fight Ruiz (a fight he can win) and cash out theres no point to get destroyed by an undefeated guy for no money

Also looks like it will be Hrgovic vs Parker which will tell if Hrgovic is good because he looks like a poor mans Wlad and if he doesnt have a clinch he will get ktfo because he has 0 head movement, Parker is the perfect test for him

 

[Cableaddict]

Ortiz's is shot big time he needs to fight Ruiz (a fight he can win) and cash out theres no point to get destroyed by an undefeated guy for no money

That's why my gut reaction was that he was faking an injury. He needs to cash out with a major opponent like AJ or Usyk. Even Whyte would probably pay pretty well.

Also looks like it will be Hrgovic vs Parker which will tell if Hrgovic is good because he looks like a poor mans Wlad and if he doesnt have a clinch he will get ktfo because he has 0 head movement, Parker is the perfect test for him

I actually think Hrgovic is a damned good fighter. (Just dirty as the day is long.) His head movement is not good, (Yes, like Wlad) but his defensive footwork is excellent, which is something Wlad could only dream of. You can really see the influence of Pedro Diaz.
As long as Hrgovc keeps his head up / back, and uses that super-long reach of his, his head is not in danger from most HW's.

Plus, he uses that backwards footwork to open up angles, which makes him even more dangerous than the "meat & potatoes offense" Wlad ever was. (IMO.) And his jab is very similar to Wlad's, with the same ability to turn it into a hook on the fly.

His main negative, IMO, is that his hands aren't super-fast, but neither are most of the top HW. It would be interesting to see him fight Fat Andy, for this reason, but if Diaz is smart (and he is) he will avoid that fight forever.

I fricking HATE this guy, but sadly I think he's probably one of the H-to-H top 10 HW in the sport right now. (Granted, that's a pretty low bar.)
Parker doesn't stand a chance.

Having said that, I seriously think Hrgovic should be permanently banned & lose his license worldwide. I'm not kidding.

Oh, and Ian John Lewis, one of the most corrupt refs in the sport and the asshole that let Hrgovic land about 40 straight, deliberate rabbit punches on Eric Molina, should be in prison.

 

[ThatBoxingGuy2022]

That's why my gut reaction was that he was faking an injury. He needs to cash out with a major opponent like AJ or Usyk. Even Whyte would probably pay pretty well.



I actually think Hrgovic is a damned good fighter. (Just dirty as the day is long.) His head movement is not good, (Yes, like Wlad) but his defensive footwork is excellent, which is something Wlad could only dream of. You can really see the influence of Pedro Diaz.
As long as Hrgovc keeps his head up / back, and uses that super-long reach of his, his head is not in danger from most HW's.

Plus, he uses that backwards footwork to open up angles, which makes him even more dangerous than the "meat & potatoes offense" Wlad ever was. (IMO.) And his jab is very similar to Wlad's, with the same ability to turn it into a hook on the fly.

His main negative, IMO, is that his hands aren't super-fast, but neither are most of the top HW. It would be interesting to see him fight Fat Andy, for this reason, but if Diaz is smart (and he is) he will avoid that fight forever.

I fricking HATE this guy, but sadly I think he's probably one of the H-to-H top 5 HW in the sport right now.
Parker doesn't stand a chance.

I need to watch more of him I havem
n't seen much and just read that Parker has skipped the fight so next is Joshua (whose busy), Yoka (whose busy) then Joyce, I wonder if Joyce will take the fight if offered

 

[46 Wins]

I need to watch more of him I havemt seen much and just read that Parker has skipped the fight so next is Joshua (whose busy), Yoka (whose busy) then Joyce, I wonder if Joyce will take the fight if offered

No surprises there, nobody seems to want to get in there with him, I've never seen a fighter so avoided, what's his excuse then did it say? So that's at least 4 guys now who have said they don't want to fight him in an IBF eliminator, I hope the IBF remove them all from their rankings, to keep going through the list at this point is a liberty to Hrgovic who's been waiting excessively long now, it's time he was made mandatory it's the right thing to do.

 

[ThatBoxingGuy2022]

No surprises there, nobody seems to want to get in there with him, I've never seen a fighter so avoided, what's his excuse then did it say? So that's at least 4 guys now who have said they don't want to fight him in an IBF eliminator, I hope the IBF remove them all from their rankings, to keep going through the list at this point is a liberty to Hrgovic who's been waiting excessively long now, it's time he was made mandatory it's the right thing to do.

I dont blame them they all have better options and purses I just read Parker is mandatory to fight Joyce aswell and Ortiz will probably fight Ruiz, they would be fighting Hrgovic for peanuts compared to other fights its a shame Gassiev is injured he was also in the rankings, Hrgovic just has to fight whoever until its mandatory title shot

 

[46 Wins]

I dont blame them they all have better options and purses I just read Parker is mandatory to fight Joyce aswell and Ortiz will probably fight Ruiz, they would be fighting Hrgovic for peanuts compared to other fights its a shame Gassiev is injured he was also in the rankings, Hrgovic just has to fight whoever until its mandatory title shot

That doesn't apply to Hunter, since ducking Hrgovic he's fought on Triller vs Mike Lee and then Jerry Forrest and almost got upset in that one managing a draw instead and still he hasn't had a title shot, that's not better a better option than a world title eliminator, doesn't he want to be world heavyweight champion? He's not gonna get there fighting the likes of Mike Lee on a platform no one's got.

Hrgovic has just fought two nobodies, Kabayel has next refusal and SURELY he doesn't have anywhere else to go at this point, he'll surely take the fight but it's not the one we wanna see unfortunately.

 

[ThatBoxingGuy2022]

That doesn't apply to Hunter, since ducking Hrgovic he's fought on Triller vs Mike Lee and then Jerry Forrest and almost got upset in that one managing a draw instead and still he hasn't had a title shot, that's not better a better option than a world title eliminator, doesn't he want to be world heavyweight champion? He's not gonna get there fighting the likes of Mike Lee on a platform no one's got.

Hrgovic has just fought two nobodies, Kabayel has next refusal and SURELY he doesn't have anywhere else to go at this point, he'll surely take the fight but it's not the one we wanna see unfortunately.

Yeah forgot about Hunter he had no reason to turn it down he was the perfect oppoenent and hes nowhere near a title shot any other way, yeah Kayabel isnt the worst opponent but Hrgovic hasn't fought anyone he doesn't even deserve to be in a final eliminator yet so lets hope he gets a decent opponent sometime soon

 

[46 Wins]

Yeah forgot about Hunter he had no reason to turn it down he was the perfect oppoenent and hes nowhere near a title shot any other way, yeah Kayabel isnt the worst opponent but Hrgovic hasn't fought anyone he doesn't even deserve to be in a final eliminator yet so lets hope he gets a decent opponent sometime soon

He hasn't fought anyone because no one wants to fight, through no fault of his own he hasn't fought Hunter, Yoka, Ortiz or Parker, Hunter & Yoka were eliminators, Parker and Ortiz were final eliminators because time has moved on and Hrgovic has been fighting (albeit lower opposition) but now we'll see if Kabayel has the ambition and self-belief needed

 

[Cableaddict]

I need to watch more of him I havem
n't seen much ....

Start with his fight against Mansour, if you haven't seen it. Hrgovic's skill is on full display. Great footwork, lot's of patience, keeps his head safely back, uses feints (to some extent, at least) etc etc....

Still a fair share of deliberate rabbit punches, with paid-off refs letting it happen (see 6:15 for example) though not nearly as bad as in the Molina attempted murder event.

 

[Ar558a]

Beating Martin doesn't say much he is a loser and always has been. Hrgovic has a pretty bad rep as a dirty fighter and seems like no one decent wants to deal with that shit. I guess he will get installed at mandatory for the IBF at somepoint in 2022 if he keeps winning but as he will likely need to wait till at least early 23 as I'm guessing there is a good chance that there will be at least one undisputed fight in the autumn/ early 2023. Maybe the IBF force the undisputed guy to drop the belt or fight Hrgovic after the first undisputed fight.

 

[46 Wins]

Undefeated Chinese heavyweight Zhang Zhilei says he'll step in, according to Boxing Scene his exact words were "“Hrgovic is no boogeyman. I’ve made it known that if my name comes up, I'll step up and take it.”

At last! Problem is he's not in the IBF top ten so Kabayel will be asked first and then there's an undefeated Australian next in line if Kabayel doesn't take it, I therefore wouldn't expect Zhilei to get the opportunity but at least we know that eventually there's a fight for him, Zhilei is in the top 15 so he will eventually do but I expect Kabayel to take the fight.

 

[Cableaddict]

I doubt Zhang Zhilei's people can get Hrgovic to take a dive, so there's very little chance that fight ever happens.

Imagine Zhang in an actual legitimate fight?
No, neither can I.

 

[46 Wins]

Hrgovic's co-promoter confirms that Tony Yoka has accepted the IBF's invitation to fight him in a final eliminator bout.

Joseph Parker drops out of the top ten following his refusal to take the fight (well done IBF) but Luis Ortiz remains in the no.2 spot so I must assume he's provided medical records to show that injury has forced him to decline the fight. Anthony Joshua takes Parker's old spot, behind 3rd placed Hrgovic.

Bakole, who Yoka was meant to fight next, is in 15th and I imagine he won't be happy about this, I didn't expect Yoka to be offered the fight since he said no last time (although then it was for an eliminator but not a final one), the winner will eventually be named mandatory for the winner of Usyk/Joshua II and will be entitled to 35% in a purse bid situation according to Hrgovic's other co-promoter Eddie Hearn.

As Yoka has accepted this invitation, Bakole will need to look for a new opponent as Yoka will not be allowed any intervening bouts as per the rules.

At long last we have the fight for the right.