GRADES: TYSON FURY, FRANCIS NGANNOU, AMANDA SERRANO, O'SHAQUIE FOSTER & MORE

By: Jay Calderon

Well, a couple of surprises over the weekend to say the very least.

Starting off, we had Heavyweight titlist Tyson Fury nearly becoming the victim of boxing's greatest upset loss at the hands of MMA champion Francis Ngannou (robbery?). 

Not to be historically up staged, Amanda Serrano delivered on a first when she beat Danila Ramos in a women's title bout that went 12 full rounds.

We also saw a war break out between 130 pound titlist O'Shaquie Foster and Eduardo Hernandez, in a fight many expected the champ to win fairly comfortably. Not a bad weekend, all things considered.

So, without much more ado, let's hand out these Grades:
 

TYSON FURY
GRADE: D-
RESULT: DEF. FRANCIS NGANNOU, 10SD (HEAVYWEIGHT)
And so ends any argument a fanatical Tyson Fury supporter had about their man being the greatest Heavyweight of all time.

Sorry, the Heavyweight GOAT beats a boxing novice in Francis Ngannou -- ill-prepared or otherwise. While that seems like a harsh judgment, you just can't struggle with someone that's making their pro debut and be the best ever.

FRANCIS NGANNOU
GRADE: A
RESULT: LOSS TO TYSON FURY, 10SD (HEAVYWEIGHT)
I expected Francis Ngannou to lose to Tyson Fury. My biggest hopes for Francis were that he didn't embarrass himself or hurt his marketabIlity or pull in MMA.

Well, turns out my worries were unfounded. Boy, did the stock of Ngannoue rise after that performance. All the credit in the world should be given to the Cameroonian.

AMANDA SERRANO
GRADE: B+
RESULT: DEF. DANILA RAMOS, 12UD (FEATHERWEIGHT)
Prior to her bout with Danila Ramos, I believed Amanda Serrano needed a resounding victory. Not just because Ramos is a game contender, but because Serrano had shown some signs of slippage (in my non-expert opinion), and needed to fight Father Time back.

While it wasn't a stoppage win for the future Hall of Famer, Serrano did show some life in her 35-year-old legs, and likely has a few more big fights left in her.

O'SHAQUIE FOSTER
GRADE: A-
RESULT: DEF. EDUARDO HERNANDEZ, 12TKO (JR. LIGHTWEIGHT)
For me, O'Shaquie Foster proved a few things in his stoppage win over Eduardo Hernandez. Yes, Foster can move and can box; he has the ability to skillfully glide towards a win.

However, based on WBC's open scoring, we now know that Foster is willing to sell out in the championship rounds to win if he's down (whether he should have been down, or not).

Foster continues to impress.

EDUARDO RODRIGUEZ
GRADE: C
RESULT: LOSS TO O'SHAQUIE FOSTER, 12TKO (JR. LIGHTWEIGHT)
While he learned O'Shaquie Foster can dig deep when needed, we also learned Eduardo Hernandez needs to learn how to fight situationally.

Up on the cards, with one round to go, against a fighter you badly hurt the round prior, your job is simple: Coast. Hold. Hell, take a knee if you have to do so. Just don't get caught up in a war.

While we can appreciate the courage, one feels Hernandez had to have woken up the following morning with a couple of regrets.

LINKS:

- SCHEDULE & ODDS

- RESULTS

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