Lucas Browne Becomes Australia's First Heavyweight Champ
Lucas Browne Becomes Australia's First Heavyweight Champ
Lucas Browne overcame adversity on Saturday night to become Australia's first heavyweight champion in spectacular style.
By Roy Billington
There is no greater honor in combat sports than to become a world champion. Last night, Lucas Browne became the first ever Australian to win a title and he did so in extraordinary fashion.
Many felt like Lucas Browne was being lead like a lamb to slaughter when he was booked to face Ruslan Chagaev in Grozny, Russia. Chagaev, a seasoned top-tier heavyweight, has long been seen as a talented, if not limited fighter, but few expected him to struggle with Browne.
Browne entered the fight with an unbeaten professional record, but it must be said the level of his prior competition was more than questionable in comparison to Chagaev who has faced some of boxing’s biggest names.
From the opening bell onwards, Chagaev displayed superior technical ability. The stocky Chagaev coasted through the opening stanzas and at times looked like a genius. When the fight entered the 6th round, Chagaev was deep into his rhythm and landed a magnificent right to the body, which he followed up with a left that caught Browne clean on the chin. Browne crumbled to the canvas like a sack potatoes. For a split-second it seemed unimaginable that Browne would make it to his feet, many lesser fighters would have cut their losses, but Browne showed no quit.
Chagaev chased Browne and began pursuing the knockout with reckless abandon. As is so often the case in prize fighting, Chagaev showed the perils of overly exerting in the pursuit of a finish.
As the fight wore on Chagaev seemed to tire. In round 10 Chagaev seemed content to coast, but his coasting cost him big when Browne landed an ungodly left hook, which sent Chagaev violently to the canvas. Chagaev recovered momentarily. The hulking Russian tried to steady himself on his feet, but his legs quivered like Bambi and Browne smelled blood. Browne put the pressure on and annihilated Chagaev with a series of right hands that forced the referee to call a halt to the proceedings.
The fact that Browne made it out of that 6th round is remarkable and the fact that he managed to pull off the KO while being so far behind on the judges scorecards is unbelievable. We have entered a golden age of heavyweight boxing. Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder are leading the way in revolutionising as division that has long been stagnant, but what is next for the newly crowned Browne?
The obvious match-up for Lucas Browne would be against David Haye. Haye is looking for an opponent for his May 21st event and Browne fits the bill perfectly. Though very durable, Browne’s style is an easy match-up for the ever elusive David Haye, who would be more than capable of picking apart the rather flat-footed Australian.
David Haye is on the comeback road and most recently appeared in a stunning first round knockout victory of Mark De Mori. Could Lucas Browne avenge his compatriots loss and spoil Haye’s comeback? Only time will tell, but one thing is for certain: all signs point toward Haye vs. Browne on May 21st.
There is no greater honor in combat sports than to become a world champion. Last night, Lucas Browne became the first ever Australian to win a title and he did so in extraordinary fashion.
Many felt like Lucas Browne was being lead like a lamb to slaughter when he was booked to face Ruslan Chagaev in Grozny, Russia. Chagaev, a seasoned top-tier heavyweight, has long been seen as a talented, if not limited fighter, but few expected him to struggle with Browne.
Browne entered the fight with an unbeaten professional record, but it must be said the level of his prior competition was more than questionable in comparison to Chagaev who has faced some of boxing’s biggest names.
From the opening bell onwards, Chagaev displayed superior technical ability. The stocky Chagaev coasted through the opening stanzas and at times looked like a genius. When the fight entered the 6th round, Chagaev was deep into his rhythm and landed a magnificent right to the body, which he followed up with a left that caught Browne clean on the chin. Browne crumbled to the canvas like a sack potatoes. For a split-second it seemed unimaginable that Browne would make it to his feet, many lesser fighters would have cut their losses, but Browne showed no quit.
Chagaev chased Browne and began pursuing the knockout with reckless abandon. As is so often the case in prize fighting, Chagaev showed the perils of overly exerting in the pursuit of a finish.
As the fight wore on Chagaev seemed to tire. In round 10 Chagaev seemed content to coast, but his coasting cost him big when Browne landed an ungodly left hook, which sent Chagaev violently to the canvas. Chagaev recovered momentarily. The hulking Russian tried to steady himself on his feet, but his legs quivered like Bambi and Browne smelled blood. Browne put the pressure on and annihilated Chagaev with a series of right hands that forced the referee to call a halt to the proceedings.
The fact that Browne made it out of that 6th round is remarkable and the fact that he managed to pull off the KO while being so far behind on the judges scorecards is unbelievable. We have entered a golden age of heavyweight boxing. Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder are leading the way in revolutionising as division that has long been stagnant, but what is next for the newly crowned Browne?
The obvious match-up for Lucas Browne would be against David Haye. Haye is looking for an opponent for his May 21st event and Browne fits the bill perfectly. Though very durable, Browne’s style is an easy match-up for the ever elusive David Haye, who would be more than capable of picking apart the rather flat-footed Australian.
David Haye is on the comeback road and most recently appeared in a stunning first round knockout victory of Mark De Mori. Could Lucas Browne avenge his compatriots loss and spoil Haye’s comeback? Only time will tell, but one thing is for certain: all signs point toward Haye vs. Browne on May 21st.