MARCHING ON TO GLORY: JOSHUA BUATSI

It has been an impressive start to what could be a long and illustrious career for Joshua Buatsi.

The future of the light-heavyweight division has disposed of opponents that should have given him hard-fought rounds but he seems to be winning fights with the minimal amount of fuss. He has displayed frightening power and an unforgiving nature when he has his man hurt, he will certainly take some stopping in the future.

Being a gold medalist Olympian comes with huge expectations and over the last eighteen months, the hype surrounding Joshua Buatsi is certainly living up to that with stoppage victories in his last seven contests picking up victories over Liam Conroy for the British title and then big wins over Ryan Ford Marco Antonio Periban in blistering fashion. Under the managerial guidance of heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, we could be in for an exciting 12-18 months for Buatsi.

Within his next three fights, I would not be surprised to see Buatsi fight for his first world title with the IBF being the most likely route. The fight most British boxing fans want to see is a domestic mega showdown against fellow Londoner, Anthony Yarde. The potential bout has got both Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren licking their lips at the sheer size this fight could become. Other names domestically we could see Buatsi in with are the likes of Callum Johnson and the eventual winner of MTK's Golden Contract tournament when it resumes.

I do think Joshua Buatsi could be the future of the light heavyweight division for many years to come, as a boxer, he seems to have everything, pace, timing, and power. He has the potential to be the biggest threat to Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol who are regarded as the two best of the division. I fully expect that Eddie Hearn will steer Buatsi to a world title shot sooner rather than later and it is arguably one of the most competitive divisions in boxing at present. 

I firmly believe Joshua Buatsi will prove himself to be the best light heavyweight within the next twelve to eighteen months and if Buatsi is able to step up and take on the big boys of the division in Bivol & Beterbiev and be successful in doing, then we may just have another Olympic star successfully making the transition to world champion.

We are obviously in times of uncertainty, not just regarding sport, but regarding the health and welfare of everybody that this virus has the potential to affect.

The reality is that lives have already been lost and the hope is that people will, at some point, be able to return to doing what they love once it is safe to do so.

Scheduled fights will no doubt be cancelled for the foreseeable future whilst the ramifications of what is happening continue. 

We hope to see these sportsmen and sportswomen on our screens again soon, providing the entertainment we as boxing fans regularly take for granted.