Jermall Charlo Compliments Maciecj Sulecki as a Stepping Stone?
When WBC middleweight champion Jermall “Hit Man” Charlo (32-0, 22 KO’s) next steps in the ring, it will be for a fight that no one wants. This is because on June 18, Charlo will lock horns with Maciej “Striczu” Sulecki (30-2, 11 KO’s) in the belly of the Toyota Center located in Houston, Texas. To make matters worse, the boxing public has just about gone hoarse hollering for the Hit Man to step up his level of competition. Now, to make it even more damaging, when asked directly about the situation in a recent media round table, Charlo himself essentially described Sulecki as second tier opposition.
“Sulecki is a good challenger, you know. A lot of people might not know him because he is a foreigner but he’s a good challenger. He’s been in there with top competition like [Daniel] Jacobs, he lost, Demetrius Andrade, he lost. Those people used him as a stepping stone. At this time, Canelo has another fight scheduled with Golovkin. [David] Benavidez just fought so he’s still on suspension. I mean its perfect timing right now to get in there with a good challenger like Sulecki.”
There are quite a few troubling items about Charlo’s comments. First and foremost, one might wonder why he is content to face a “stepping stone” challenger as a champion when bigger names have consistently called him out; elite fighters such as WBO 160-pound champ Demetrius Andrade who has been calling him out for years. There is also the two-time WBC 168-pound champion David “Red Flag” Benavidez (26-0, 23 KO’s) who remained very vocal about this assignment.
WAVING THE WHITE FLAG AT RED FLAG?
When the Hit Man faces Sulecki he will be breaking a year’s worth of inactivity. Said to say, he’s had more than enough time to make something happen with Benavidez if that is what his heart truly desired. Not only has Red Flag been calling him out for years, Charlo cannot avoid being bombarded with questions about the high-volume fighter. So much so that during an appearance on HotBoxin with Mike Tyson, the living legend Tyson all but pleaded with Charlo throughout the sit-down to call out Benavidez. He never did.
This is why the upcoming duel has left a sour taste in many of the fan’s mouths. While it’s no knock against Sulecki, the public wants to see him fry bigger fish. And to use his own words, as a champion already, what does he plan on using Sulecki to step-up to? Fights that he could make already without Sulecki? Barring a major upset, the Hit Man is going to beat Sulecki. Again, to use his own statement, the Polish fighter has already lost his two biggest fights.
It really is baffling and frustrating to see how Jermall Charlo is moving his career. This agitating process is only compounded by the fact that his brother, undisputed super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo, is etching his name in the halls of boxing history with his accomplishments. So, of course it will stand out glaringly when Hit Man won’t even make unification matches while his brother has fought two matches back-to-back to become undisputed. Hopefully, this will change in the very near future, but first let’s see how the match with Sulecki plays out. If the Polish bruiser does get the upset win, then perhaps this chatter could become null and void very quickly.
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By: Bakari Simpson
