After his back-to-back knockout losses to Andre Ward and Adonis Stevenson, “Bad” Chad Dawson has gone from sitting at the top of the light heavyweight heap to entering a career crossroads. At 31 years old, Dawson isn’t used up and he isn’t getting old early, although perhaps he was over-hyped earlier in his career, and perhaps he grew complacent after spending much of that time fighting significantly older and slower (albeit still formidable) fighters.
Some speculate that Dawson might hire a new trainer, and others wonder if he can overcome the psychological trauma of the crushing knockout handed to him by Stevenson. At least as pertinent is who Dawson might want to start off his comeback with. Even if “Bad” Chad takes the tried path of beginning with a tune-up or two, to reestablish his name Dawson needs a win over a credible opponent.
Here are Dawson’s top 5 options:
1. Tavoris Cloud: A Dawson vs. Cloud match has a compelling logic to it. Both fighters are former champions with long title stints, and both are coming off of losses. Since Cloud was out-boxed by Bernard Hopkins, Dawson can realistically expect to be able to jab his way to a victory. What might lure Cloud into a crossroads match with Dawson is the merely average chin exposed by Adonis Stevenson, and the prospect of denting it. Both fighters are in the same position, both have name recognition, and both have a realistic road map to beating the other guy.
2. Beibut Shumenov: Dawson’s quickest route back to wearing a belt around his waist is the Kazakh Shumenov. For his part, Shumenov hasn’t fought in more than a year, and if he doesn’t do something big soon, he might find himself stripped or declared “champion in recess.” Certainly stranger things have happened in boxing than a fight like Shumenov vs. Dawson, and I like Dawson’s chances of coming out on top.
3. Krzysztof Wlodarczyk: Another option for Dawson is the usual path for stymied ex-light heavyweight champions, namely moving up to cruiserweight. In that event, as a former WBC champion, Dawson could probably count on instantly becoming a highly ranked WBC cruiserweight contender, perhaps even the new mandatory challenger, and Wlodarczyk is the WBC 200 lbs champion.
You might never have heard of him, but Wlodarczyk is no slouch. He just beat 2008 Olympic gold medalist Rakhim Chakhkiev, stopped Danny Green, and has two wins over previously undefeated Francisco Palacios. We have him down as the #5 cruiser in the world. I could see Dawson beating him, but only if “Bad” Chad could grow into a proper cruiser.
4. Tony Bellew: If Dawson were looking for someone credible, but not truly formidable, he couldn’t due much better than #10-ranked Tony Bellew. Bellew is in the middle of his own comeback march after coming up on the short end against Nathan Cleverly. With a 1-1-0 record against Isaac Chilemba, Bellew is ready for a step up, and has the right mix of being real enough, but not dangerous enough, for Dawson to make a solid statement.
5. Jean Pascal: Let’s say that Pascal loses his upcoming fight with Lucian Bute. Then Pascal winds up in the same situation as Dawson and Cloud: an ex-champion coming off a loss and in need of a major win to get his steam back. Dawson vs. Pascal II would be an easy sell, but for Dawson, Pascal represents the least palatable of his major potential opponents. The reason is simple: Pascal’s 2010 victory over Dawson no longer looks like the bad night for Chad that we all thought it was at the time. Without serious changes in his game plan, it is probable that Pascal would out-work and out-hustle Dawson a second time, and that makes Pascal the most dangerous of Dawson’s plausible comeback opponents.
