Is Shannon Briggs Today’s Top Heavyweight?

23.03.07 - By Joseph Mathew: On the evening of August 12th, 2006, Russian heavyweight Oleg Maskaev completed the puzzle of Eastern European domination over the heavyweight division of professional boxing. He defeated Hasim Rahman by a 12th-round technical knockout to win the WBC title. At the time, the other three world champions were Wladimir Klitschko (IBF) from Ukraine, Nikolai Valuev (WBA) from Russia, and Sergei Liakhovich (WBO) from Belarus. Would this be a long-lasting era for the heavyweights? Were there any worthy heavyweights capable of bringing a belt back to the United States?

Just three months later, on August 4th, Shannon “The Cannon” Briggs brought the WBO title back to the United States, defeating Liakhovich by a 12-round stoppage. In what could have been the most boring eleven rounds ever, both men were reluctant to throw a combination or go in for the kill. continue