10.11.06 – New York’s landmark sports and entertainment arena plays host to a heavyweight championship matchup when WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO VS. CALVIN BROCK is seen live from Madison Square Garden on SATURDAY, NOV. 11 (10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT & 9:00 p.m. CT). The HBO Sports team of Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant and Lennox Lewis will be ringside for the event. For the past two years, heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko (46-3, 41 KOs) has been on a mission to rebuild his career and capture a heavyweight title. With his dominating victory over the resourceful Chris Byrd last April on HBO, the 30-year-old Klitschko secured a heavyweight title and served noticed that he is a force in the division..
Born in Kazakhstan, Wladimir and older brother Vitali developed into accomplished professional boxers while pursuing a host of other interests – Wladimir speaks four languages and holds a PhD in sports science and philosophy from the University of Kiev.
Having fought the bulk of his career in Germany, the Ukranian is now headlining the world’s most famous boxing arena for the first time in his career. He will train in the familiar boxing environment of the Poconos in eastern Pennsylvania for this showdown.
Underdog Calvin Brock (29-0, 22 KOs) has made headway in the division this year with two victories in Las Vegas and must now prepare for the biggest fight of his career. Like his opponent, the 31-year-old Charlotte native is a poised, confident and well-spoken athlete with a host of non-boxing interests. Brock is a graduate of the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, where he earned a degree in business administration.
The telecast begins with the exclusive replay of the Nov. 4 welterweight title fight from Las Vegas in which Floyd Mayweather dominated Carlos Baldomir for a unanimous decision victory. The fight was originally seen on HBO Pay-Per-View.