The Klitschko’s Rule Heavyweight, What’s The Bad News?
By Jake Donovan
It’s understandable for historians to throw a hissy fit over the present state of the heavyweight division. Ever since Lennox Lewis’ official retirement nearly five years ago, boxing’s once most storied division has been without a linear champion.
Those hoping that a battle for undisputed heavyweight supremacy were not so subtle in their pining for a possible upset prior to last weekend’s match between Samuel Peter and Vitali Klitschko. The reasoning was simple in their minds: a Peter win potentially set the table for a rematch with Wladimir Klitschko, who at the time was the only fighter in the world to claim a win over the Nigeria.
Such a fight, it would be argued, would produce the successor to THE heavyweight crown.
Such a fight now has little chance of occurring, and now the masses are upset.
They’re not at the thought of Vitali winning – returning from a near four-year hiatus to absolutely beat the breaks off of Peter gives any writer plenty of fresh material with which to fill column space. But more so of what it prevents, as the chances of the brothers Klitschko squaring off in a prize fight are slim to none, with slim well out of town.
Leave it to the masses to miss the forest for the trees.
Yes, the thought of a two-headed champion in any sport is anyone to make anyone shudder. But unlike other sports, and even other divisions within our beloved game, having two Klitschko’s atop the heavyweight division is a good thing.
For starters, people are already talking. Even if the description of two brothers simultaneously reigning as heavyweight champion is an artificial headline is a deceptive headline, it has people talking about boxing. More important, people are talking about – and actually give a damn about – the heavyweight division in a positive light.
So what’s the bad news?
Even before Saturday’s one-sided massacre, how interested was the boxing public in a Wlad-Peter rematch? Even with baby brother hitting the deck three times in their September 2005 encounter, he still won the fight with room to spare.
Two wins over a faded and bloated James Toney somehow painted the picture that Peter was a new and improved heavyweight force, even further exaggerated with his knockout over Oleg Maskaev earlier this year.
Vitali Klitschko punched Peter and the boxing world back into reality this past weekend, delivering a new message in the process: clearing out dead wood.
What’s hurt the heavyweight division in the post-Lewis era isn’t the lack of a singular entity to point to as its true leader; it’s the number of mediocre candidates vying for the crown.
It would’ve been an inspirational tale for Wladimir Klitschko to clean house and with an iron fist, rule the heavyweight roost. It was clearly the headline everyone awaited.
But the question is – or at least should’ve been – how long were we willing to wait?
Younger Klitschko’s snoozer of a decision win over Sultan Ibragimov earlier this year was the first heavyweight unification match in nine years, when Lewis and Evander Holyfield twice got together in efforts to prove a true champion. Klitschko-Ibragimov was merely the first piece to the puzzle we’re presented with today, with the other pieces still in the wind.
By December 13, Wladimir will have most likely satisfied the latter of two mandatory obligations that came with unifying two belts. The first came earlier this summer, when he successfully dispatched reluctant challenger Tony Thompson in Germany. The boxing year at the top level will end with his defense against undefeated prospect-cum-contender Alexander Povetkin in a battle of former Olympic Gold medalists.
But there was no guarantee that Wlad moves on to face a Ruslan Chagaev or a Nikolai Valuev sometime next year. Nor was there any guarantee that he immediately pursued a Peter rematch, even if older brother didn’t return to the ring.
Think about it: the most often discussed potential heavyweight fight of 2009 had Wlad squaring off against former linear cruiserweight king David Haye.
Few if any will dispute that such a fight is clearly the most exciting heavyweight fight that can be made. It wouldn’t produce an undisputed heavyweight champion, but is one of the few makeable heavyweight fights that could capture the imagination of the boxing public.
A Wlad-Peter rematch wasn’t doing the trick; not only was the first fight fairly one-sided, but also painfully dull to watch for much of the evening.
Vitali-Peter wasn’t much better to watch, but on paper was a more plausible alternative. The main speculation going in wasn’t what Peter brought the table, but how much Vitali would potentially leave behind after going 46 months between prize fights.
The answer was very little. Vitali controlled from the outset, winning every minute of every round before Peter quit on his stool after eight rounds.
Some will blame open scoring, that upon hearing he was hopelessly behind, that there was no point in continuing. Others will buy into the notion that it wasn’t Peter who quit, but his handlers who insisted that fighter remain on his stool for his own benefit.
Whatever your poison, the moral of the story for the evening was clear; even with a four-year layoff, Vitali Klitschko is the better fighter. It was the same lesson we learned three years ago when Peter faced baby brother Wladimir.
Come Monday morning, it is a lesson that will most likely be lost on many in the media, who will speak of the heavyweight division as if it’s in a state of disarray.
No amount of money will get Vitali and Wlad in the ring against one another, which means that any fight short of Wlad-Chagaev will leave us without a true heavyweight champion. Things could potentially go from bad to worse if Chagaev winds up instead facing – and losing to – Vitali.
At that point, those in need of a singular champ would have to openly root for either brother to lose their next fight, and for the other to step in and either play brother’s keeper in a fight that would produce the successor to Lennox Lewis’ old crown.
But while many continue to wild out hypotheticals, greater emphasis should instead be placed what came out of last weekend. Vitali’s triumphant return, coupled with Wladimir’s continued success, gives the heavyweight division something it’s craved for far too long.
A headline.
By Jake Donovan
It’s understandable for historians to throw a hissy fit over the present state of the heavyweight division. Ever since Lennox Lewis’ official retirement nearly five years ago, boxing’s once most storied division has been without a linear champion.
Those hoping that a battle for undisputed heavyweight supremacy were not so subtle in their pining for a possible upset prior to last weekend’s match between Samuel Peter and Vitali Klitschko. The reasoning was simple in their minds: a Peter win potentially set the table for a rematch with Wladimir Klitschko, who at the time was the only fighter in the world to claim a win over the Nigeria.
Such a fight, it would be argued, would produce the successor to THE heavyweight crown.
Such a fight now has little chance of occurring, and now the masses are upset.
They’re not at the thought of Vitali winning – returning from a near four-year hiatus to absolutely beat the breaks off of Peter gives any writer plenty of fresh material with which to fill column space. But more so of what it prevents, as the chances of the brothers Klitschko squaring off in a prize fight are slim to none, with slim well out of town.
Leave it to the masses to miss the forest for the trees.
Yes, the thought of a two-headed champion in any sport is anyone to make anyone shudder. But unlike other sports, and even other divisions within our beloved game, having two Klitschko’s atop the heavyweight division is a good thing.
For starters, people are already talking. Even if the description of two brothers simultaneously reigning as heavyweight champion is an artificial headline is a deceptive headline, it has people talking about boxing. More important, people are talking about – and actually give a damn about – the heavyweight division in a positive light.
So what’s the bad news?
Even before Saturday’s one-sided massacre, how interested was the boxing public in a Wlad-Peter rematch? Even with baby brother hitting the deck three times in their September 2005 encounter, he still won the fight with room to spare.
Two wins over a faded and bloated James Toney somehow painted the picture that Peter was a new and improved heavyweight force, even further exaggerated with his knockout over Oleg Maskaev earlier this year.
Vitali Klitschko punched Peter and the boxing world back into reality this past weekend, delivering a new message in the process: clearing out dead wood.
What’s hurt the heavyweight division in the post-Lewis era isn’t the lack of a singular entity to point to as its true leader; it’s the number of mediocre candidates vying for the crown.
It would’ve been an inspirational tale for Wladimir Klitschko to clean house and with an iron fist, rule the heavyweight roost. It was clearly the headline everyone awaited.
But the question is – or at least should’ve been – how long were we willing to wait?
Younger Klitschko’s snoozer of a decision win over Sultan Ibragimov earlier this year was the first heavyweight unification match in nine years, when Lewis and Evander Holyfield twice got together in efforts to prove a true champion. Klitschko-Ibragimov was merely the first piece to the puzzle we’re presented with today, with the other pieces still in the wind.
By December 13, Wladimir will have most likely satisfied the latter of two mandatory obligations that came with unifying two belts. The first came earlier this summer, when he successfully dispatched reluctant challenger Tony Thompson in Germany. The boxing year at the top level will end with his defense against undefeated prospect-cum-contender Alexander Povetkin in a battle of former Olympic Gold medalists.
But there was no guarantee that Wlad moves on to face a Ruslan Chagaev or a Nikolai Valuev sometime next year. Nor was there any guarantee that he immediately pursued a Peter rematch, even if older brother didn’t return to the ring.
Think about it: the most often discussed potential heavyweight fight of 2009 had Wlad squaring off against former linear cruiserweight king David Haye.
Few if any will dispute that such a fight is clearly the most exciting heavyweight fight that can be made. It wouldn’t produce an undisputed heavyweight champion, but is one of the few makeable heavyweight fights that could capture the imagination of the boxing public.
A Wlad-Peter rematch wasn’t doing the trick; not only was the first fight fairly one-sided, but also painfully dull to watch for much of the evening.
Vitali-Peter wasn’t much better to watch, but on paper was a more plausible alternative. The main speculation going in wasn’t what Peter brought the table, but how much Vitali would potentially leave behind after going 46 months between prize fights.
The answer was very little. Vitali controlled from the outset, winning every minute of every round before Peter quit on his stool after eight rounds.
Some will blame open scoring, that upon hearing he was hopelessly behind, that there was no point in continuing. Others will buy into the notion that it wasn’t Peter who quit, but his handlers who insisted that fighter remain on his stool for his own benefit.
Whatever your poison, the moral of the story for the evening was clear; even with a four-year layoff, Vitali Klitschko is the better fighter. It was the same lesson we learned three years ago when Peter faced baby brother Wladimir.
Come Monday morning, it is a lesson that will most likely be lost on many in the media, who will speak of the heavyweight division as if it’s in a state of disarray.
No amount of money will get Vitali and Wlad in the ring against one another, which means that any fight short of Wlad-Chagaev will leave us without a true heavyweight champion. Things could potentially go from bad to worse if Chagaev winds up instead facing – and losing to – Vitali.
At that point, those in need of a singular champ would have to openly root for either brother to lose their next fight, and for the other to step in and either play brother’s keeper in a fight that would produce the successor to Lennox Lewis’ old crown.
But while many continue to wild out hypotheticals, greater emphasis should instead be placed what came out of last weekend. Vitali’s triumphant return, coupled with Wladimir’s continued success, gives the heavyweight division something it’s craved for far too long.
A headline.
