We’ve had an exhilarating 12 months of Australian pugilism which has delivered world title
belts, unforgettable fights, brilliant shows, bewildering knockouts and at least one
superhuman performance.
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FIGHTER OF THE YEAR
If you suffer the sort of disfiguring facial injury more common in the Industrial Revolution than the boxing ring and still dethrone the star world champion of your division then you get Fighter of the Year. 27 year old southpaw Jai Opetaia was a significant underdog against IBF Cruiserweight World Champion and former Latvian police officer Mairis Briedis in July on the Gold Coast but anyone who lent the Australian an ear in the weeks before the fight was acutely aware of the lengths he was willing to go to in search of his maiden world title. Opetaia made a believer of me a fortnight out from the fight when sparring with world-ranked Kiwi David Light was followed by his most passionate ever interview, where the most repeated phrase was “it’s my f…king time!”
Nobody could have known the underdog would need to overcome such gruesome injuries on his way to glory but coming five years to the day after Jeff Horn’s heroics against Manny Pacquiao there was a sense of destiny about the fight. The Australian boxed brilliantly through the first half, and busted Briedis’ nose, before the champion evolved the contest into a bloody brawl. With his jaw inconveniently dangling from his face, and his trainer trying to hide his repulsion, Opetaia climbed from his stool for the final round, reached into a masochistic chamber of his soul, and produced some of the most memorable imagery in the proud history of the sport in this country, plus perhaps the least coherent ring interview.
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A notable mention in the Fighter of the Year category must go to Australia’s English-based bantamweight Ebanie Bridges who used 2022 to prove to the boxing world that she is far more than a social media sensation. The ever-improving former maths teacher and ring girl relieved the division’s longest reigning belt-holder Maria Cecilia Roman of her IBF title in a relentless effort in March, before blasting bitter rival Shannon O’Connell out of her way in December, in the biggest female bout in Australian history.
Big years also for new IBF Super Bantamweight World Champion Cherneka Johnson, Stevie Spark who went 4-0 across a frantic 12 months, Irish-Aussie Dennis Hogan who got himself an IBO belt, the destructive Liam Wilson who beat two world-ranked opponents, twins Jason and Andrew Moloney who each won three fights to set up a big 2023 and imminent world title challenger Tim Tszyu who was the A-side headliner in his entertaining US debut.
Internationally Dmitry Bivol was the standout boxer of 2022 with comprehensive victories over Canelo Alvarez and Gilberto Ramirez, while we Australians were twice blessed to behold the brilliance of notable mention Devin Haney against former unified champion George Kambosos and Naoya Inoue was simply scary on his way to accruing all the belts at bantamweight.
FIGHT OF THE YEAR
Mairis Briedis v Jai Opetaia will be talked about as long as humans walk the earth so it is the Fight of the Year but 2022 produced a high quality field of memorable bouts.
The rematch between Conor Wallace and Leti Leti, in Brisbane in November, was even
better than last year’s original with Wallace climbing off the canvas to stop his former
conqueror in six crazy rounds.
Professional debutants Shanell Dargan and Ashleigh Sims collided spectacularly during eight
minutes of pure madness on a No Limit show in one of the most entertaining female fights
ever seen on Australian shores, while Dargan was at it again against the classy Ayisha Abied
on ‘Super Saturday’.
Opetaia v Briedis: Full fight highlights | 08:47
Meantime Paul Fleming and Jackson England produced a thing of beauty when they went 10
rounds in March, Justis Huni and Kiki Leutele contested a memorable heavyweight war in
November, super featherweight Liam Wilson overcame the heavy-handed Matias Rueda on
his way to a world title shot, Tim Tszyu alerted America to his ominous presence by climbing
off the canvas to batter the classy Terrell Gausha in Minneapolis, Nikita Tszyu was half of a
six round classic against Ben Horn who was also involved in a relentless four rounder with
Campbell Somerville, Jasmine Parr and Nicila Costello left everything in the ring in their
rematch, heavyweights George Peterson and Gary Phillips combined for a memorable draw,
plus there was Joel Taylor v Ty Telford, Hass Hamdan v Trent Girdham and probably another
dozen barnburners that should be on this list!
Across the globe the best fight I saw in 2022 was the inconceivable Leigh Wood v Michael
Conlan bout, where Wood was down on the cards in round 12 and knocked Conlan out of
the ring to win. What?!
ROUND OF THE YEAR
There are too many great rounds to choose from but the sixth and final round of Nikita
Tszyu v Ben Horn got the entire Hordern Pavilion audience on its feet and the whole
country talking.
Internationally the insane seventh round of Sebastian Fundora v Erickson Lubin was the
standout, with ‘The Towering Inferno’ breaking Lubin’s face before hitting the canvas
himself on the way to his brutal stoppage win.
KNOCKOUT OF THE YEAR
This one’s easy. ‘The Headsplitter’ Issac Hardman and fellow good bloke Beau Hartas were
jarringly friendly towards each other before their fight on the Briedis v Opetaia card but in
the opening round Hardman dug into the most despicable corners of hell to locate a right
hand that rattled Hartas’ ancestors. Thankfully the Canberran and his epic facial hair soon
fully recovered from what is from memory the biggest knockout I’ve ever seen in Australia.
Renold Quinlan (v Jack Bowen), Lucas Browne (v Junior Fa) and Liam Paro (v Brock Jarvis)
also deserve mentions in the category.
Overseas Caleb Plant’s one punch demolition of Anthony Dirrell wins Knockout of the Year
in a photo finish from Leigh Wood’s last round eviction of Michael Conlan.
UPSET OF THE YEAR
This was a hotly contested category in 2022 but the Upset of the Year came from veteran
warhorse Renold Quinlan and the unbelievable right hand that stopped the unbeaten run of
talented prospect Jack Bowen, and came on a surreal night in Brisbane also featuring Lachie
Higgins’ stoppage of raging favourite Benjamin Hussain.
Having lost nine of his past 11 bouts Quinlan was a despised betting outsider and despite a
fiery attitude to the contest he was taking plenty of shots from the big-punching Bowen
through the opening four rounds before producing a miraculous fifth round assault about
which he is still grinning.
‘UPSET of the year’ Quinlan shocks Bowen | 01:23
43 year old former champ Lucas Browne was given precious little chance of beating Kiwi
heavyweight Junior Fa but you cannot write off anyone with a right hand that could knock
an elephant cold and Big Daddy showed that on his day he remains well placed to render
anyone or anything unconscious.
Elsewhere ‘Django’ Opelu stunned the previously undefeated Hemi Ahio in Melbourne.
And globally the most significant Upset of the Year by quite some margin came in Dmitry
Bivol v Canelo Alvarez.
PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
See above regarding Jai Opetaia winning a world title with his face hanging off in the global
Performance of the Year but there were several other magnificent displays over the past 12
months.
A rejuvenated Liam Wilson produced “the left hook from hell” in his rematch with the
world-ranked Joe Noynay, who had knocked him out in 2021, and weighed-in comically
heavy in Brisbane in March.
In an all-Aussie showdown during a stacked October southpaw sensation Liam Paroshowed
he is a legitimate world title contender with his stunning first round stoppage of the brave
Brock Jarvis.
Also Stevie Sparktravelled to Montana Love’s backyard in Cleveland and boxed so well that
Love’s brain exploded, Ebanie Bridges went to yet another level in Leeds against Aussie
veteran Shannon O’Connell, Michael Zerafa ended a nasty war of words with a nastier left
hook against Issac Hardman, Tim Tszyu overcame a troubled preparation to impress the US
audience and break down Terrell Gausha, Joel Taylor arrived in a big way against Michael
Hall, Sam Goodman was at his very best when he faced Juan Miguel Elorde, Jason Moloney
destroyed Aston Palicte and again this list could go on and on so apologies to those that
haven’t been mentioned.
DEBUTANT OF THE YEAR
We’re living in the golden era of Australian boxing and it is no shock that a bumper crop of
emerging talent was harvested in 2022, so for the purposes of this piece I’ve put in place a
Debutant of the Year category rather than the standard Prospect of the Year.
Paulo Aokuso is on top of an exciting list of debutants from 2022, largely due to the calibre
of his three opponents, who met him with a combined record of 76-23-2.
Tokyo Olympian Aokuso is progressing with the velocity of a man who has somewhere he
needs to be, not unlike No Limit stablemate Nikita Tszyu who went 4-0 in 2022 and saved his
best for last as he went full ‘Butcher’ on the tough Darkon Dryden in Newcastle.
And few fighters globally had a busier 2022 than Skye Nicolson who went 5-0 in fights in San Diego, Leeds, New York, Cardiff and Brisbane and made a fan of everyone who saw her in action.
The UK’s Olympic gold medallist Galal Yafai passed a trio of 10 round tests in his first year as a professional and is a blue chip prospect, while heavyweight Frazer Clarke and ‘Sweet’
Carline Dubois also had impressive debut years.
SEE YOU AT THE FIGHTS
2022 has been an exceptional year for boxing and from a commentary perspective Briedis v
Opetaia was an honour and Tszyu v Gausha a privilege, but 2023 already looks set to eclipse
its predecessor with the Jermell Charlo v Tim Tszyu ‘undisputed’ fight frustratingly delayed
but still in the planning and the Emanuel Navarrete v Liam Wilson world title bout locked in
for what could prove to be the greatest year in the history of the sport in this country.
Enjoy your break if you have one! I’m Ben Damon, and I’ll see you at the fights.
