Is Super Bad Tony Harrison Super Done?
For former super welterweight champion Tony “Super Bad” Harrison (28-3-1, 21 KO’s), the past three years have been rather trying. It was on December 22, 2018, in his unanimous decision win over Jermell Charlo, when he notched his last truly positive accomplishment. The two men battled one another in an entertaining contest that Charlo has always vigorously insisted that he won. When the two men fought again, almost one year to the day later, Charlo would validate those claims by stopping Harrison in the eleventh round.
Since that time, Charlo’s career has continued to soar. In fact the 154-pound champion has an upcoming dance date with WBO super welterweight champion Brian Castano to determine the undisputed champion of the division. Meanwhile, Harrison’s career has badly stagnated and begun to rust over. Following the Charlo loss in 2019, Harrison would go on to sit out for the entirety of 2020. This was largely due to problems surrounding the COVID virus.
Then when Super Bad did grace the ring again, he left a whole lot to be desired. Ahead of the bout, on paper, it appeared to be your standard issue tune-up match. Clearly though, his opponent did not get the memo! In fact, many fans, including 3kingsboxing, believe that the Detroit native was unreasonably lucky to receive a draw that he did versus Bryant Perrella.
NOT SO FAST
Now, the question has become: ‘was this merely an off night or the first indication that Harrison has begun to slip?’ Honestly speaking, both are just as plausible. On the one hand, you can’t blame Super Bad for taking an “L” to Charlo. As mentioned before, Charlo is about to compete for undisputed status, so obviously he represents the crème of the 154-pound crop. Then there was the long layoff which could have thrown a bunch of his timing, among other things, off in the ring. There is no doubt a large bit of potential truth here.
On the other hand however, these could all just be convenient excuses. For example, if Harrison beat Charlo the first time, perhaps his loss in the rematch could have truly been the first indicator of regression. Sure, Super Bad might have acquired some ring rust during his time off when in with Perrella, but then one thinks of fighters like Errol Spence Jr.
Shortly after his sensational rumble with Shawn Porter, the unified champion was involved in a near-fatal car accident. Despite the calamitous event, Spence Jr returned to the ring and defeated top tier boxer Danny Garcia in splendid fashion. His near fatal incident, rehab and recovery did not prevent the Truth from returning to top competition straight away and shining when doing so. This is all said to say, while we can be somewhat understanding, we can’t provide Harrison any fraudulent alibi’s.
SINK OR SWIM?
As it always is though, in the end, time will tell the final tale of Tony Harrison and we will all bear witness. Yet, without question, there will be harsh criticism and sharp rebukes if Super Bad looks anything less than stellar in his next outing. Luckily, it’s not all bad as Harrison still enjoys favorable #5 (WBC) and #8 (WBO) rankings. There is little doubt that he could rematch Perrella to clean up that matter. Perrella has remained out of the ring since their fight and likely would be all too happy to do it again.
Or, perhaps Harrison would try to throw more caution into the wind. When looking at the WBO track, Super Bad may chase a dustup with #6 (WBO) Erickson Lubin. Lubin has been on the steady incline since suffering his sole professional loss to WBA super, IBF and WBC super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo. The collected scalp of either fighter would be beneficial to the other. Lubin would be proving it’s truly his time, while Harrison would prove his dominion is not over. Lubin is also ranked #1 (WBC) and presumably would not want to endanger that for Harrison.
Following roughly the same narrative, Super Bad may ponder over a fight with #1 (WBO) Tim Tszyu. That would certainly make an impressive American debut for the Australian. Provided that he came to the states and defeated Super Bad in convincing fashion, Tszyu would garner a new level of respect in the division. The young pugilist’s name on his ledger, especially immediately after Perrella, would be a good look for Harrison as well. Yet, who knows what’ll actually happen? So, let’s just see how it plays out!
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By: Bakari Simpson
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