By Martin ‘The Brain’ Potter of the Boxing Clever Podcast: Vitali Klitschko stands nearly six feet eight inches tall and weighs around eighteen stone – all of it muscle. He has knocked out the vast majority of his opponents and has only lost twice, both times due to injury, and has enjoyed two reigns as a ‘world champion’. Since his comeback following an injury enforced ‘retirement’, the elder of the Ukrainian boxing brothers has yet to taste defeat, or even come remotely close to it, dispatching challenger after challenger with ruthless, methodical efficiency. His most recent fight (is that a breach of the trade descriptions act?) lasted just 180 seconds. And his opponent was an unbeaten former three time amateur world champion and Olympic gold medallist! Vitali is the true definition of a modern ‘super’ heavyweight and is almost unstoppable, right?
Wrong. As Odlanier Solis’s considerable backside cushioned his fall to the canvas (the boy may not be dedicated to training, but he is definitely dedicated to donuts), I couldn’t help thinking how patently beatable ‘Dr. Ironfist’ is looking and wondered if he is just an above average fighter in a very average heavyweight era.
Vitali was never the fastest heavyweight but now is starting to look real slow. So slow in fact that I would describe him as sloooow. In the three minutes against Solis, who is not exactly Usain Bolt himself, big Vitali plodded around the ring after the Cuban cake fan and was caught a few times by fast, yet predictable combinations, before Odlanier mistook Vitali’s right hand for a cream bun and swallowed it whole. Additionally Klitschko, who is now used to not being challenged, continues to carry the left hand dangerously low – surely something a good, quick powerful heavyweight could capitalise on. Solis was, for 179 seconds, nearly that man but a lack of commitment and a china chin let him down. Could a well-rounded heavyweight (and I don’t mean well rounded Solis style) have more success?
Vitali is not a great technical boxer. He has a good jab, but he is no Larry Holmes. He has good power but is not explosive like Mike Tyson was. He has a great chin but can’t avoid shots like Ali in his prime. Vitali is big and athletic, but lacks the fluidity of Lennox Lewis or even his own brother Wlad. Vitali is good at everything but not really great at anything. Add in the fact that he is somewhat lacking in charisma and in my view you have a good, but not great, world champion who at age 40 is ripe to be picked off.
To beat Vitali you need speed, decent power and ideally a good chin. The problem is that few top heavyweights at present have all those qualities. Solis had decent hand speed, reasonable power and excellent technique, but his shortcomings were obvious to anyone with scales. Thomas Adamek, perhaps the next man to face the ironfist, has speed and is both game and conditioned, but he is not concussive enough a puncher and is simply too small. He may be able to outbox and out speed Vitali for a few rounds, but he won’t have the power to keep Klitschko off him and would get KO’d.
Shannon Briggs and Samuel Peter, both opponents of Vitali mark 2, had power but lacked conviction, conditioning and slick skills. Both were perfect punch bags who soaked up the jab and fired little of note back.
So what of David Haye, the British braggart with the big right hand? Aside from Wladimir, he is perhaps the most credible challenger to Vitali and in my view would now have a good chance. The version of Vitali that fought Lennox Lewis would have had too much for Haye. Yet Vitali’s injuries, age and inactivity means that Haye could employ similar tactics as he did against Valuev and dance around the leaden footed giant, picking him off with quick combos and right hands over Vitali’s low left. Of course Haye doesn’t quite fit into my description of the ideal fighter to beat Vitali as if he gets clipped then he would go to sleep – Haye is no Holyfield in the chin department.
It could be that Vitali retires from boxing without losing again (and some would say having never lost legitimately), but in my opinion he is a very beatable fighter. It’s just that maybe there is no one around at the moment who can beat him!
For more boxing opinion, inane babble and poor attempts at humour from ‘The Brain’ listen to the 5 star rated Boxing Clever Podcast, available on iTunes or at www.boxingcleverpodcast.libsyn.com or you can email me at boxingcleverpodcast@gmail.com.