[Previous entry: "Antonio Escalante Headlines, Abner Mares in Co-Main of 'War by the Shore' May 12th!"] [Main Index] [Next entry: "Aaron Williams Added to Spina/Brinkley ESPN2 Fight Card on May 10th!"]
04/24/2006 Archived Entry: "Wladimir Klitschko: Adversity and Respect"
Wladimir Klitschko: Adversity and Respect
By Brian Correa
Before even going into detail, let me say this, direct and to the point: Wladimir Klitschko completely and utterly destroyed Chris Byrd in Saturday evening's (afternoon's?) bout. In every way, every aspect, Klitschko dominated the hapless Byrd into submission. This wasn't even a competitive match -- this was simply a beating.
Besides the first round, where both fighters were content to feel each other out with pitter-patters, the fight quickly became a blowout, with each round becoming more one-sided than the previous for Klitschko. Using a probing left hand as part-jab, part-obstruction to all of Chris Byrd's efforts -- and endless straight rights that only seemed to come to an end when stopped by Byrd's face -- Klitschko has gained a certain amount of respect with this victory. Long hyped as the heavyweight division's next great hope, his Achilles-like fall from grace after two brutal knockouts from journeyman Corrie Sanders and lightly regarded (at the time) Lamon Brewster relegated him to laughingstock status amongst many of boxing's in-the-know types, and many from all walks questioned his heart, his chin, his gumption, and especially his future, which seemingly laid in ruins.
Ahhh, but sweet redemption can only come after one picks himself up after falling from grace, and after his last two fights, Klitschko finds himself not only redeemed from his two embarrassing knockout losses, but on top of the heavyweight division. Could in be that this once laughingstock has finally garnered some hard earned respect? I for one say yes. To appreciate his victory and his newly claimed title, you have to appreciate his last two fights as a whole.
First, he beat the hottest prospect in the heavyweight division, a young bull named Sam Peter, who has the hardest punch in the business. And with Klitschko 's seemingly glass chin and lack of heart, he seemed headed right for another KO loss, the sort that could end a career. Just taking the fight was risky, as the Klitschko camp knew that Klitschko was laying it all on the line against a dangerous opponent with awesome power. Did they know something that the public at large didn't? Perhaps.
For one, camp Klitschko now had arguably the greatest trainer in boxing history in Emanuel Steward, who had made a great champion out of Lennox Lewis by playing to the strengths of his fighter to compensate for his weaknesses, which ironically are the same strengths and weaknesses Klitschko has. Both Lewis and Klitschko suffer from weak chins but have gargantuan size and reach advantages. Both have also had to overcome mental obstacles to better themselves in the ring, and now Klitschko has the same tool that propelled Lewis to greatness: Emanuel Steward.
Steward's influence was apparent in the Peter bout, as Klitschko fought with a concise game plan to keep Peter at bay by using his powerful jab and mobility to keep the big puncher on the outside, and keeping his looping blows in check. When they did land, Klitschko did indeed go down, but showed the kind of fortitude you can only admire by getting up and continuing to fight intelligently, not losing his cool and panicking, and eventually winning a unanimous decision by actually using skillful boxing techniques, a rarity in the heavyweight division these days. In besting the powerful Peter, Klitschko exposed him for his lack of an amateur career, as a pro boxer with serious flaws; he also took the best shots from the heavyweight division's biggest puncher, got back up and learned how to win. The bout not only pushed his career forward again, it increased his confidence level by exorcising demons of knockdowns and knockouts of fights past.
It is with this renewed sense of confidence that Klitschko exuded in his destruction of Byrd. Granted, Byrd doesn't bring much to the table in the way of power, but to many, he was the number-one guy in the division until beaten; on this night, he wasn't only beaten, he took a severe beating. In the span of two fights, Klitschko had bested both the biggest puncher and the number-one man at heavyweight. Klitschko is showing obvious changes in his style and substance that are the direct influence of Steward; his pawing jab in the Byrd fight had a new gleam to it, his hold-and-clinch techniques a la Lennox Lewis have Steward's fingerprints all over it, and it seems Steward is not going anywhere either.
So the question is to a certain degree, what next? Klitschko says he would like to unify the division, and the new and improved fighter may just have the tools to do it. But for now he should be content to have earned some respect in the boxing world. It has been said that he had gained too much, too soon, and on his first taste of adversity he was exposed as an overhyped underachiever. I believe that adversity doesn't build character, it reveals it, and it is this revealed character of Wladimir Klitschko that has earned my respect, and I should think has earned the boxing world's as well.
