Boxing Needs A Super Heavyweight Division!

 Klitschko brothers

The heavyweight division was once a legenday division with the likes of Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, and George Foreman in the heavyweight's "Golden Era" to even Larry Holmes, Evander Holyfield, and  Mike Tyson in the 80's and 90's. What do all these heavyweights have in common? They were all under 225 lbs. in their prime. Since Lennox Lewis beat Holyfield in '99, there hasn't been a real legit heavyweight champ under  225 pounds. Since Lewis retired after his win over Vitali Klitschko, Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko have dominated the heavyweight division under the coaching of the late great Manny Steward.

Weightclasses	Weight Limit (Pounds)	Weight Difference From Weightclass Below
Heavyweight	200+	-
Cruiserweight	200	+25
Light Heavyweight	175	+7
Super Middleweight	168	+8
Middleweight	160	+6
Junior Middleweight (Super Welterweight)	154	+7
Welterweight	147	+7
Light Welterweight	140	+5
Lightweight	135	+5
Junior Lightweight	130	+4
Featherweight	126	+4
Junior Featherweight	122	+4
Bantamweight	118	+3
Junior Bantamweight	115	+3
Flyweight	112	+4
Junior Flyweight	108	+3
Strawweight	105	-

Another thing is that most of these heavyweights are no longer athletic, lack technique and clinch like its a muay thai fight. Instead of perfecting their craft, too many heavyweights are too busy in the weight room. The heavyweight division needs a weight limit to make the division more competitive and interesting.One of the great things about boxing is that champions can challenge themselves by moving up in weight class. Holyfield moved up from cruiserweight to heavyweight and found lots of success in the 90's.  In more recent history, Haye, and Adamek bulked up from cruiserweight to heavyweight. Both fighters proved to be the best cruiserweights, beat some respectable heavyweights but Wladimir proved to be too big. The Klitschkos are great heavyweights; good stiff jabs, use distance well and well schooled by Emanuel Stewart, but both of them standing above 6'5 and 240 +lbs, its a mismatch for most heavyweights. With most of the top ten heavyweights weighing above 240 lbs, and the cruiserweight limit at 200 lbs. this gap in weight is too wide. Even if a cruiserweight that is dominating his division and moves up in weight, he adds 20 lbs. of bulk, its unreasonable for him to fight someone 20 lbs. bigger than him, not to mention that him adding weight might make the weight difference less, it may not be his optimal fight weight.