What’s Next for Shannon Briggs?
By: Iftisaam Khan
Having suffered a number of setbacks in his career of late, Shannon ‘The Cannon’ Briggs will be certainly looking to put that all behind him as he aims to return to the ring next year. Reflecting on a year of bad luck, the American will be rather disappointed at his inactivity in the ring as he was overlooked on numerous occasions due to a number of reasons.
Looking for an opponent initially saw the 45-year-old focus his efforts on securing a bout with Heavyweight rival, David Haye which eventually came to no avail. Chasing the fight saw ‘The Cannon’ go around the country gate-crashing press conferences and media events to call out the Londoner but his efforts eventually turned futile. At times the prospect of thefight being made actually looked promising with Briggs featuring on the undercard of Haye’s fight, but it turned out that was the closest the American was going to get to Haye as he overlooked the American and weeks later announced his next fight against Tony Bellew in 2017.
If his luck couldn’t get any worse, his hopes of attaining a heavyweight title this year weredashed after his opposed fight with Australian, Lucas Browne was cancelled after his opponent was found to have had taken banned substance, Ostarine leaving the former world champion looking at the coming year for a change of luck.With the Heavyweight scene currently thriving there won’t be a shortage of options.
Dilian Whyte
One potential opponent in the new year could be the ‘Body Snatcher’ who will be looking to take as much time off from the ring as possible given his superb performance against Derick Chisora in a fight being touted as fight of the year. The possibilities of seeing Briggs and Whyte share the ring next year are unlikely with Eddie Hearn hoping for a rematch instead between Whyte and Chisorainstead.
Luis Ortiz
A more realistic possibility could see the ‘Cannon’ take on fellow compatriot and friend, Luis Ortiz who recently overcame a brave Dave Allen in Manchester; stopping him in the 7th round. A fight between the pair would make sense for both parties but time will tell.
Dave Allen
A fighter who’s known for his willingness to share the ring with anybody, the ‘White Rhino’would be a great option as a step up of opposition for Briggs who will be looking to ease his way back in the heavyweight scene.
David Price
Looking to resurrect his career is Liverpudlian, David Price. The fighter will be looking to make everyone forget about his 3 defeats to Tony Thompson and ErkanTepen which came as a big shock to the boxing world as at the time Price was touted for special things in the division. Time is on his side to establish his career again but another slip up cannot be afforded.
A logical fight for both parties, Briggs would provide a stern test for the scouser who is aiming for a shot at World Champion, Anthony Joshuain the near future.