Michael Hunter: Mr Avoided

Michael Hunter: Mr Avoided

By Henry Walter

American heavyweight contender Michael Hunter has made something of a habit of calling out the biggest names in the heavyweight division. So far only former WBA Champion Alexander Povetkin has taken the bait, being thoroughly outboxed by the slick Hunter over twelve rounds, yet being awarded a dubious draw.

A world title challenger at cruiserweight, Hunter took several rounds off the now reigning heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in a 2017 cruiserweight title fight, he has become a serious player in the heavyweight division since moving up in 2018.

Whilst the very top men still refuse to face him, Hunter has fought several highly rated fringe contenders at heavyweight and has beaten them all convincingly. Previously undefeated prospects such as Martin Bakole and Sergey Kuzmin both failed to see the final bell in their respective fights with the American.

While his only loss is to the aforementioned Usyk, Hunter’s most recent outing, almost a year ago now, blotted his copybook a little. A disputed draw with Jerry Forrest, a man he’d previously already beaten, saw the critics on his back for the first time. It was undoubtedly a poor display, going by the Californian’s usual standards, yet it is perhaps easy to see why Hunter may have struggled with motivation against a little-known name.

His year out has seen him stay in shape and sparring often, all the while continuing to call out the biggest names. A high-profile fight with former title challenger Hughie Fury (cousin of Tyson) frustratingly fell apart when Fury admitted issues with long Covid. The latest man on Hunter’s radar is Britain’s WBA champion Daniel Dubois but he has also expressed interest in fighting Dillian Whyte and Anthony Joshua.

At 34, Hunter both deserves and needs a big fight soon. Judging by his previous form against the likes of Povetkin, Kuzmin and Alexander Ustinov, he is clearly a very real threat to the likes of Fury, Usyk, Wilder and Joshua. However, his chances of landing a dream fight with a name on that scale currently look further away than ever. There are few men in the heavyweight division who deserve a shot more.