2007 was an exciting year for Boxing. Many of the fights that we Boxing fans wanted came to fruition. I have come to realize over the years that you will never get every that you want to see. So all you can do is hope to get as many as possible and in 2007 we were lucky to get a lot of the premier fights that we had hoped for. Let's hope 2008 is the same, because there are still plenty of exciting, potential fights out there. Here's a look by weight class at my wish list for 2008...

• Heavyweight  Division

Wish: Unification

This seems to be my wish for the division every year. At least it's getting closer to happening with the scheduled Wladimir Klitschko-Sultan Ibragimov fight. This will at least unify part of the division. But, you still have Ruslan Chagaev and Oleg Maskaev left. This may never happen, but at least it's getting closer.

• Light Heavyweight-Super middleweight Divisions

I put these divisions together because this is probably the best way for guys in this division to get good fights. With that said, here's a couple of wishes for these divisions.

Wish: Chad Dawson vs Joe Calzaghe

Chances: Lukewarm. Hopefully Calzaghe will give up on trying to draw Bernard Hopkins into a fight and look at Dawson as his best option. Dawson has gone from prospect to world champion and poses the best fight for the longtime champ Calzaghe.

Wish: Calzaghe or Dawson vs Antonio Tarver

Chances: Better for Dawson vs Tarver. If Tarver wants his light heavyweight champ status back he needs to take on Dawson. Either fight would be at least intriguing, but I would lean towards Dawson-Tarver being more likely to happen.

Wish: Paul Briggs vs Julio Gonzalez

Chances: Who knows?!? This fight would have no meaning for the division or any belt. But, it would be a great fight between two hard nosed fighters. Being that both have struggled of late, maybe they would be down with making the fight. Probably not, but that's why it's a wish list.

• Middleweight Division

Wish: Kelly Pavlik vs Jermain Taylor 2

Chances: 100%. This rematch is already set up for early this year, and is probably one of the more anticipated fights of 2008. The first fight was an exciting old school middleweight bout with Pavlik coming off the mat to knock out the unbeaten champ, Jermain Taylor.

Wish: Pavlik vs anybody

Chances: If he beats Taylor again, then obviously this will happen. Why do I say against anybody? Well, think back to any of Pavlik's last three fights. They were fun to watch, so to see this guy fighting, period, is on my wish list for '08.

• Junior Middleweight

Wish: Vernon Forrest vs Joachim Alcine.

This division was one of the hottest division a year ago, but it has dried up with fighters either moving up or down in weight.

Chances: Decent. As badly as this division has dried up, this wouldn't be a bad fight. The division still has potential for guys to come up from 147, but for now this appears to be one of the better match ups. Forrest has looked good recently, and seems to be getting closer to his late 90s form. Alcine is a relatively unknown tough Canadian. Each fighter holds a belt; Forrest is the WBC champion, Alcine owns the WBA belt.

• Welterweight

Wish: Many wishes here as this may be the hottest division today. First on the wish list would be Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs Miguel Cotto.

Chances: Floyd has said again that he's retiring for at least a year.  I truly believe he's just waiting for someone to get hot, so he can get another big payday. Well, Cotto is hot right now, and Floyd would really be cementing his already legendary legacy if he could stop this seemingly unstoppable kid in Miguel Cotto.

Wish: A four man tournament with Paul Williams, Kermit Cintron, Andre Berto, and Antonio Margarito.

Chances: None, I'm dreaming. But this division is loaded with some of the best young talent. So, a more sane wish would any fight between any of these four. Or any fight between Cotto and one of these four.             

• Junior Welterweight

Wish: Ricky Hatton vs Junior Witter

Chances: 10-20%. This fight would be huge overseas. Hatton will be looking to bounce back after his first loss to Mayweather. Witter is one of the more underrated fighters in the United States, but not in England. This fight would make sense, but might not be a good style match up for Hatton.

Wish: Paulie Malignaggi vs Kendall Holt or Ricardo Torres

Chances: 20%. First off it would depend on Malignaggi making a successful first title defense this weekend against Herman Ngoudjo. Even though he has little pop, Malignaggi is still a fun fighter to watch, and I believe his style against either Holt or Torres would make for a good fight. Then again, Holt vs Torres wouldn't be bad either.

Wish: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs someone decent

Chances: Sadly probably slim. How many fights does Chavez need to build is already bloated record for he fights anyone of note. There is talk of him fighting Alfonso Gomez, so there's hope, I guess. But, most of the talk seems to be coming from the Gomez camp. I know one thing, Gomez may not be championship material, but he certainly is a big step up from the men Junior has been fighting.

• Lightweight division

Wish: Juan Diaz vs David Diaz. Juan Diaz has nearly cleaned out the thin lightweight division. His most intriguing fight would be if someone moved up from 130 to fight him, someone like Manny Pacquiao. But, if he could only fight someone at 135 then David Diaz is no slouch and the styles would make for a terrific fight.

Chances: Decent. If Juan can't get Pacquiao right away, which will probably be likely, then this would be a good fight for him. David Diaz has wanted the fight for awhile, and remember, Juan fought Julio Diaz in Chicago, which is David Diaz's hometown in hopes that it would showcase a future fight between the two. So, this could very well happen.

• Junior Lightweight

Wish: Juan Diaz vs Manny Pacquiao. A lot of potential here with a great division, although most of the scenarios would involve Manny Pacquiao.

Chances: Slim for right now. This would be a tremendous fight and the best fight for Diaz. But, Pacquiao has a lot of potential big fights including his next fight against Juan Manuel Marquez.

Wish: Pacquiao vs Juan Manuel Marquez

Chances: 100%. They're signed to fight next and this along with Pavlik-Taylor is one of the more anticipated fights of the new year. They fought to a draw over 5 years ago, but Marquez seems to be a bit of a different fighter now. He seems to be more aggressive than countering, which could change the tone of this fight.

Wish: Pacquiao vs Edwin Valero

Chances: 25%. There's been a lot of talk about this fight, it just wouldn't happen in the U.S. There's been talk of having it in Japan or the Philippines. This would be a dream fight with bomber vs bomber. Somesay that Valero reminds them of a young Pacquiao.

Wish: Amir Khan vs Jose Armando Santa Cruz

Chances: very slim. These are two of the better prospects in the division. But, Santa Cruz is a little further along right now and the fight would be seen as too risky for the Khan camp.

Wish: J.A. Santa Cruz vs Joan Guzman

Chances: 15%. Guzman will look to bigger money fights first, but he seems to be the forgotten man in the division. If he gets forgotten again, this would make for a good fight if Santa Cruz doesn't get a much deserved rematch with Joel Casamayor. Were this fight to happen it would probably happen at 135.

• Featherweight division

Wish: Jorge Linares vs Chris John

Chances: Slim. This is another division laden with talent right below and ahead of it. John seems to only fight in Indonesia which makes the fight hard to make. Meanwhile, Linares, who is one of the more underrated good fighters, will probably look to 130 or 122 for a good fight.

• Bantamweight division

Wish: Israel Vazquez vs Rafael Marquez

Chances: Good. This is one of my biggest wishes for the new year, and the fight will probably get made since both seem to want it and realize it's the best for them financially. After two great split fights a third fight should be inevitable.

Wish: Daniel Ponce de Leon vs Celestino Caballero

Chances: decent. Ponce would love to avenge his only loss, and if Caballero can't get a fight with Marquez or Vazquez this could happen.

Wish: Either Vazquez or Marquez vs either Ponce de Leon or Caballero.

Chance: I think you might even get two fights this year between these four fighters. They're all exciting fighters to watch who can punch, and any bouts between these four would be great.


Well there's a another wish list for 2008, and here's hoping it's another great year for Boxing and for you.