Light Heavyweight Outlook: 1 Boxer Beating Father Time, Clocking Younger Foes

Light Heavyweight Picture

The light heavyweight division has lost some star power this past year, but has replaced it with fresh young faces. Roy Jones Jr., Antonio Tarver, and Glen Johnson have all moved on or are irrelevant. Jean Pascal, Tavoris Cloud, and Chad Dawson (all age 28) are replacing these 40-somethings and look to usher in a new generation for the division. The only old-timer standing in their way is the greatest geezer of them all, Bernard Hopkins. While 2010 has provided a changing of the guard at 175 pounds, look for 2011 to provide a round-robin of stellar fights.

Top Fights: Any combination of Pascal, Cloud, Dawson, and Hopkins

Any of these four men could beat the other on any given night. They all have different styles that could give each other fits. Pascal has an unpredictable in-and-out style, Cloud is an aggressive straight-forward fighter, Dawson is a conventional southpaw boxer-puncher, and Hopkins is a defense-first savvy fighter. A tournament would be huge for the division and intriguing to fans, but it's a long shot to happen. Pascal will rematch either Hopkins or Dawson, and no one seems anxious to fight Cloud.

On the Rise: Jean Pascal

Pascal went 1-0-1 in 2010 in tough bouts against two outstanding fighters. First, he survived an 11^th round technical decision against Chad Dawson, then went on to close out the year with a tougher than expected majority draw against Bernard Hopkins. Pascal is the only man in this division to guarantee a sellout crowd, so all roads lead through him. Rematches with Hopkins and Dawson await Pascal in 2011.

On the Decline: Chad Dawson

I hate to put him here because I don't feel his skills have eroded, but he has consistently underperformed (even in victory) over the last two years. It finally caught up with him against Pascal. If he finds that sense of urgency, he has the talent to beat anyone in the division. Look for Dawson to rebound in the coming year with a big win over Pascal.

One to Watch: Nathan Cleverly

Cleverly has good speed and boxing ability, but I'm skeptical he'll be able to keep bigger punchers at the elite level off of him (i.e. Cloud, Pascal, Dawson). However, his high work-rate will force fighters that normally take rounds off, like Pascal and Dawson, to fight for twelve rounds. I fully expect Cleverly to challenge for a world title in 2011. He's about as ready as he's going to be.