On a weekend that featured little in the way of world class boxing in the United States, the stage was set for Jared Anderson 17-0 (15) to shine.
The highly-touted heavyweight prospect was matched with ex-cruiserweight Ryan Merhy 32-3 (26) in a 10-round bout at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas on Saturday night.
The 26-year-old Anderson is being sold as the great American heavyweight hope, and he may well be that. A combination of age and inactivity has cruelled the careers of Deontay Wilder, Jarrell Miller, Andy Ruiz Jr and Michael Hunter, leaving Anderson as the most likely to succeed at the top level in many peoples’ minds.
But his latest performance clearly shows he is still a work in progress.
That’s not to say Anderson did anything wrong. He pitched a virtual shutout against the reluctant Belgium’s Merhy, 31, to win by scores of 99-91 and 100-90 twice.
The expectation of genuine contenders with world championship aspirations is that they put away opponents who don’t want to be there, no matter how defensively minded they are. Anderson was not only unable to do that, he failed to hurt Merhy at any point in the fight despite his opponent standing directly in front of him, covering up.
The boos came early and often from the crowd in attendance. They expected more.
It was water off a duck’s back to Anderson.
“Another day, another night in the office,” Anderson shrugged after the fight. “I wanted to give the fans a better show, but what can you do when they show up to fight like him. It’s just another day in the office. We’re going to continue working.
“I stayed sharp for 10 rounds. That’s the biggest takeaway. I got to make some changes. I made some mistakes. I got hit with a few punches. I shouldn’t have gotten hit at all because he didn’t even come here to fight.
“I want all of the names. If I’m ranked with you and your name is near mine, then we can get it crackin’. We’re coming to knock everybody off.”
Anderson’s promoter Bob Arum said before the bout that he wanted his boxer to compete for a world title within the next two years.
“He’ll have three fights this year, the second fight we’re planning for Toledo, Ohio, which is Jared’s hometown,” the Top Rank chief told Sky Sports.
“Then next year, 2025, I hope to have him fight with all the top contenders. So by the end of 2025, the beginning of 2026, he is the inevitable challenger for the heavyweight title and I hope that at that point he’s ready to become the heavyweight champion.
“We don’t want him to get in and fight a title fight, and win the title fight, and then not have the maturity to defend that title.
“Because of his relatively young age, it will be a long title reign. That’s our hope.”