Bellew is ready for Cleverly now!! Go get him Son...

Been impressed with our Liverpudlian friend in his last few fights...he's matured greatly and I think the Cleverly fight did him good.....

Probably came to soon......A little too stand up at times....but he does seem to have matured into a quality contender...good combinations...good pacing and even his defence seems better...

Cleverly has had nothing in the way of opposition since Bellew who I thought deserved a draw.........

Obviously Bellew has weight-making difficulties at 175...but I believe he's a better fighter now and believe the time is right for him to entice Cleverly who isn't the finished article by any means....

Time is now..........forget the other titlists.......Cleverly 2 is winnable and a big fight to propel you into the main market....

Go get him Son......

I actually agree with this. Immediately after the first fight, I thought that Bellew had fought to the limit of his powers, had come up short and would be likely to lose whenever he and Cleverly fought. Now, I'm less sure.

As Truss says, the Scouser seems to have upgraded his defence a bit and gained real belief in his own abilities. Despite his pre-fight bombast first time round, I'm not convinced that Bellew really backed himself at the top level until he was properly tested in the crucible of that loss to the Welshman. It was a fair decision, to my eye, but it was also a classic example of a defeat teaching a fighter more than any number of so-so victories over nonentities.

Has Cleverly improved in the interim? He may have done, but I don't think that the quality of his opposition has allowed us to make a reasoned judgement. I believe that he will need to find an extra 10% or drop a decision in a rematch.

Captain makes a great point about belief the first time around!!..

I always thought and wroteat the time... that all the bravado before the fight was a way of him trying to convince himself that he wasn't a "sacrificial lamb"...

He seemed content afterwards also as If he legitimised himself rather than being disappointed at losing a winnable fight!!!

Now he knows he belongs I think he fancies the job.....

A different fighter for me now...

i agree there should be a rematch and he could win it as Cleverly hasnt really sky rocketed in development or opponents since there first fight however on the subject of Bellew i feel he has the perfect style for any pure boxer to exploit, anyone with good footwork should be able to beat him

Bellew's stock has risen greatly over the last year where as Cleverly's seems to have dropped it seems..

I'm not as convinced by Bellew as others, I have to admit. Not quite sure he's got a world title in him, even if he does go down the Cleverly / WBO route again.

He's a very, very good six or seven round fighter but always seems to struggle after that point. For someone who won multiple ABA titles, I always find myself a bit surprised at how easily he tends to run out of ideas as the fight goes on - there just seems to be that little something missing. He's not quite the huge hitter many say he is at 175 lb and, while it's not the first time I've said it, I think he'd be better off as a Cruiserweight in the long run.

I think Cleverly outworks him again to another narrow points win.

Fairplay.............

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:Bellew has no chin and average fighters have a habit of finding it!!!!

Clev is above average.....

Clev ko 6..or sooner.

You have changed your tune! What difference a year makes.

Clev would beat Bellew again. Probably on points but maybe a late stoppage this time in my opinion

Can't see clev stopping bellew although I think he would win a rematch (the 1st was a draw imo) as Bellew wasn't troubled once in there first fight and clev hasn't proved he got any power. You may point to the hawk stoppage but hawk sat on the ropes and allowed clev to beat him up and untill the penultimate round hawk didn't look in any trouble when clev landed head shots and it was the non stop body shots that ended him. Bellew won't stand there and take that many shots

Since the first fight over a year ago Bellew has probably been in with the better opposition so I don't see any reason to think clev has surpassed bellew that it won't be as close as the first fight or that Bellew can't get the W. Nathan has fought karpency and Hawk, whereas bellew has fought McIntosh, Miranda and Bolonti, you wouldn't think clev is a world champ on the back of those names

WHU_Champo_League_in_7Yrs wrote:Since the first fight over a year ago Bellew has probably been in with the better opposition so I don't see any reason to think clev has surpassed bellew that it won't be as close as the first fight or that Bellew can't get the W. Nathan has fought karpency and Hawk, whereas bellew has fought McIntosh, Miranda and Bolonti, you wouldn't think clev is a world champ on the back of those names

Clev needs to step up his opposition there is no doubt about that

Steffan wrote:

WHU_Champo_League_in_7Yrs wrote:Since the first fight over a year ago Bellew has probably been in with the better opposition so I don't see any reason to think clev has surpassed bellew that it won't be as close as the first fight or that Bellew can't get the W. Nathan has fought karpency and Hawk, whereas bellew has fought McIntosh, Miranda and Bolonti, you wouldn't think clev is a world champ on the back of those names

Clev needs to step up his opposition there is no doubt about that

He needs to leave Warren and hire a real trainer, only then will he be able to reach his potential

Steffan wrote:

WHU_Champo_League_in_7Yrs wrote:Since the first fight over a year ago Bellew has probably been in with the better opposition so I don't see any reason to think clev has surpassed bellew that it won't be as close as the first fight or that Bellew can't get the W. Nathan has fought karpency and Hawk, whereas bellew has fought McIntosh, Miranda and Bolonti, you wouldn't think clev is a world champ on the back of those names

Clev needs to step up his opposition there is no doubt about that

i would suggest drop Warren and move to golden boy, better chance of getting that Hopkins match hes always wanted, plus i would look forward to Frank Warrens U-turn on Cleverly in his weekly column

no-mas wrote:i would suggest drop Warren and move to golden boy, better chance of getting that Hopkins match hes always wanted, plus i would look forward to Frank Warrens U-turn on Cleverly in his weekly column

I dont think Hopkins would be a good fight for Clev. If he loses people will say 'haha you lost' and if he wins people will say 'B Hops was like 102 years old anyway'

He should give Bellew a rematch and shut him up once and for all then go for someone like Shumenov

Steffan wrote:

no-mas wrote:i would suggest drop Warren and move to golden boy, better chance of getting that Hopkins match hes always wanted, plus i would look forward to Frank Warrens U-turn on Cleverly in his weekly column

I dont think Hopkins would be a good fight for Clev. If he loses people will say 'haha you lost' and if he wins people will say 'B Hops was like 102 years old anyway'

He should give Bellew a rematch and shut him up once and for all then go for someone like Shumenov

Very true but it seems to be the fight he wants. I wouldnt mind seeing a rematch but i dont see a different result. Maybe he should look towards Pascal, quick with power but can be outworked, will be perfect to determine where Nathan is up to progression wise, plus gives him more exposure

Shumenov, Uzelkhov, Stakhovsky, Braehmer, Erdei, Cloud, Campillo, Jean Claude Pascal are the names Clevery should be targetting. The likes of BHop and Dawson, (despite his horror show to Ward at a weight he was silly to fight at) are a level above the other LHWs.

As for Bellew then I also think he can sneak a world title as I really don't think any of the LHWs apart from a 57 year old BHop and Chad Dawson are anything special at all.

Would be daft to let the two Brits fight yet though. I predict Bellew can get the IBF or WBA titles so long as he's not robbed and there can be a unification at LHW between the two. That may be pie in the sky stuff but whatever, a rematch between Clev and Bellew is too soon at the moment!

Think cleverly could learn a hell of a lot more win or lose against Hopkins and might stand him in good stead in the long run.

ShahenshahG wrote:Think cleverly could learn a hell of a lot more win or lose against Hopkins and might stand him in good stead in the long run.

But he will lose that precious '0' once thats gone he has nothing! Seriously i agree with you Shah however whilst he is still with Warren and whilst Warren has a hole in his arse Cleverly will milk the WBO belt for all its worth

I actually think that Cleverly will narrowly beat Hopkins if they fought which is not to say that he wouldn't lose against some of the other dross of the division. Hops hates a guy with high volume and a big engine. Add to that Clev's chin is good so he's unlikely to be disuaded by BHop who lacks power at LHW.

Super D Boon wrote:I actually think that Cleverly will narrowly beat Hopkins if they fought which is not to say that he wouldn't lose against some of the other dross of the division. Hops hates a guy with high volume and a big engine. Add to that Clev's chin is good so he's unlikely to be disuaded by BHop who lacks power at LHW.

He struggled with Bellew and let himself be pressured by Bellew, imagine what an 80% Hopkins would do, i dont think Cleverly has enough output to push Hopkins back

Yea but Hopkins is always getting that much older and the chance that he really fades increases with every fight. The 2nd pascal fight will be 2 years ago by the next time he steps in the ring (confirmed for March 23rd in Brooklyn) and will be 48.

Pascal was made for Hopkins with his ambush style and low workrate and Dawson, while highly skilled and better than clev, he isn't someone who fights a young mans fight and can give you layoffs in fights to get a breather. Even in that fight Bhop had shown signs of ageing from the pascal fight

Clev is a high output fighter who is big at the weight and looks like he has a good chin. The calzaghe fight was 4/5 years ago now and Bhop was ultimately out worked in the end

Cleverly has really stagnated since the Bellew fight. Bellew himself was a very rough diamond when they fought, and the difficulties Clev had are probably indicative of his lack of quality opposition - any supposed world champion shouldn't have let that version of Bellew run him so close. Bellew has improved since then, but he himself isn't and probably never will be championship class. If the WBO title trades hands from Clev to Bellew it would show how devalued it has become. Clev needs to up his opposition to improve as a fighter, but you get the impression warren is just waiting for Hopkins to get as old as possible to try and trade off his name rather than concentrate on Clev fighting increasingly superior opposition until he is acclimatised to world level. As for Bellew, if he's ever gonna win a world title then challenging Clev now will probably be his best chance as he has caught him up a bit.