2021 Comebacks: Chapman Rises, Dubois Shines, Szpilka, Kirkland and LaManna Fall
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent
The year 2021 has been a difficult one for comebacks, particularly due to boxing inactivity caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Some comebacks have succeeded, while others have not. Here is a look at a few of them. The exhibition comebacks of Iron Mike Tyson, Roy Jones Jr., and Floyd Mayweather Jr. should be categorized for what they are, merely exhibitions. As such, exhibition shows during the pandemic are tolerated, as public sports entertainment attended by spectators has been restricted to a great extent during the pandemic. The exhibitions, which a comeback of sorts for the participants, are not to be taken seriously.
J.D. Chapman went to 30-0 in the heavyweight division, after a 13 year absence, by winning a four round unanimous decision over 47-year-old 1-1 MMA fighter Tony “Kryptonite” Lopez as a last minute substitute opponent. Chapman’s comeback victory, while somewhat significant for him, is unlikely to throw shockwaves in the heavyweight camps of Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder, Joe Joyce, or Oleksandr Usyk. Chapman was in training for a July 2021 comeback anyway when he took this bout “opportunity”, if one could call beating up on a 47-year-old man but being unable to knock him out for a 30-0 heavyweight an opportunity.
Daniel Dubois, who suffered a fractured eye socket last year in his lone loss to Joe Joyce, won the regular version of the World Boxing Association World Heavyweight title with a second round knockout of Bogdan Dinu. In any case, Joyce’s eye was not threatened in this comeback bout. Whether Dubois should fight his desired rematch with Joyce later in 2021, as Joyce is second in line for a WBO World Heavyweight title shot with Anthony Joshua after Oleksandr Usyk, remains to be seen.
Former WBA World Super Welterweight champion Austin Trout won a 10 round decision over Jose Armando Garcia Galvan in Mexico earlier this year, and will continue his comeback with a bout against Alejandro Davila at The Palm in Dubai this summer.
Former WBC Super Middleweight and WBA Light Heavyweight world champion Badou Jack made a successful comeback with a fourth round stoppage of Derwin Colina, who he dropped three times. Way to go.
The 2021 victories by Saul “Canelo” Alvarez over Avni Yidilrim, and Billy Jo Saunders, can hardly be called comeback wins in purpose, but in a way they are in part, in the sense Canelo has remained active during the pandemic, and will continue to call out all champions and top flight challengers at 168 pounds.
WBC Champion of Hope, and Former WBC World Light Heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson continued his mental and physical recovery from a coma, and remains in ongoing rehabilitation. His memory abilities are a focus of the current rehabilitation. Stevenson is an education for all athletes in how to handle yourself with class after suffering as debilitating injury. The World Boxing Council is to be praised by standing by ex-champ Stevenson all the way and truly caring. That is something in professional boxing.
Former Welterweight, Super Welterweight and Middleweight World champion Oscar De La Hoya has talked comeback. Former World Heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield, and former heavyweight contender Kevin McBride, both of whom beat Mike Tyson, plan an exhibition later in 2021, which to this point has been postponed once.
Former world heavyweight contender Artur Szpilka, age 32, washed up on May 30, 2021, getting knocked out in the first round in Poland by 13-0 unknown Polish Heavyweight Lucasz Rozanski, age 35, at 2:25 of the first round. Rozanski has never fought outside of Poland, but he might get a higher opportunity now with this “big” win. Maybe Chapman?
James Kirkland, whose comeback as a ballooned super middleweight against Juan Macias Montiel ended with three knockdowns in the first round in Los Angeles this year, basically repeated his three k knockdown loss in 2011 in Las Vegas to Nobihiro Ishida. Without Anne Wolfe, Kirkland exhibited the same characteristic mistakes, walking forward into power punches, not holding or moving his head, a flat-footed approach of doom.
Onetime middleweight contender Osumanu Adama, also known by his name in reverse as Adama Osumanu, was unsuccessful in his comeback attempt at age 40 after 18 months of inactivity, losing a six rounder to faded Columbian journeyman Alex Theran. Even with the win, Theran was stopped in three of his last five fights in an average of less than three rounds, leaving Adama with no excuses.
Kevin “Kingpin” Johnson, a 54 bout heavyweight veteran and onetime contender, has lost ten of his last 13 bouts. A recent 12 round loss at age 41 to 20-0 Agit Kabayel for the WBA Continental title was no better, as Kabayel won either 10 or 11 out of the 12 rounds on the three judges’ scorecards.
Former WBC Featherweight, and former WBC and WBA Lightweight champion Jorge Linares has won only three of his last six bouts. Linares has been stopped five times, twice in the first round. Against Devin Haney, Linares lost a decision for the first time, over 12 rounds, in an unsuccessful attempt to regain his World Boxing Council Lightweight crown. If Linares had won two more rounds on two of the three scorecards, the bout would have been a draw, making the overcautious and inexperienced Haney look bad as well.
Former World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council World Heavyweight champion Alexander Povetkin lost a 2021 rematch to Dillian Whyte after reportedly being hospitalized for the coronavirus. Whyte did not believe Povetkin had it. A third match could be in the works, or Povetkin could continue his career against another opponent.
Former World Super Welterweight champion, and now World Boxing Association World Middleweight champion Erislandy Lara, age 38, needed only 120 seconds to knockout Thomas ‘Cornflake’ LaManna, a welterweight fighting wrongly in the middleweight division, and a laser of three of his last five. LaManna’s odd habit of continuously fixing his boxing trunks in center ring while fighting made him the perfect candidate to get timed with his questionable guard down, and down and out he went.
Onetime super middleweight contender Brian Vera, at age 39, a 45 bout veteran, has lost six of his last nine bouts, having lost five in a row before that. Vera was unable to win an eight round decision or the WBC USNBC Silver title against Kendrick Ball Jr., whose 18 pro bouts include only three wins over fighters with winning records, whose wins were in turn also over stiffs with losing records. Vera should hang his gloves up at this point.
Despite having opponent Luis Arias down in round nine, former World Super Welterweight champion Jarrett Hurd lost a 10 round split decision to Arias, who had not won a bout in four years, and was unable to beat his last three main event opponents in succession. Arias has-been Heard. A rematch with Arias for Hurd is a must, but Arias would be foolish to grant it as the win over Hurd is all the career of the rejuvenated Arias has right now.
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