Wladimir Klitschko Would’ve Been A Title Threat In Any Era

Published

9 years ago

November 17, 2014

He really was a poor man’s Klitschko, and he stood right in front of Wladimir with his head straight up and offered little or no movement. Yes, that’s basically the strategy the slower-handed Kubrat Pulev 20-1 (11) attempted to beat the best heavyweight in the world, Wladimir Klitschko 63-3 (53), with this past weekend.

Pulev was every bit as crude stylistically as most perceived him to be. He was a sitting duck for Klitschko’s right hands and left hooks. Pulev was dropped in the first round by a lead left-hook that Wladimir sneaked in around Kubrat’s right hand. Pulev was visibly hurt, was dropped again and barely made it out of the first round. By the fifth round he was being battered and was stopped via a single lead left hook to the chin. But give Pulev credit for trying and not fighting just to survive. He was just out-gunned by a markedly better and more complete fighter.

Pulev is a very big man and attempted to manhandle and rough up Klitschko, however Wladimir answered back. In this fight we saw for one of the few times how athletic Wladimir is for such a big man. Starting in the second round, Klitschko sensed his superior advantage in hand-speed and laid back some and pot-shotted Pulev and usually beat him to the punch. It was painfully obvious early on that Klitschko did everything better in the ring than Pulev that one fighter can do over another. He had a better and more imaginative offense, he was quicker in getting off, and once he sensed Pulev had no defense for his lead left hook to the chin, he disguised it beautifully and nailed Pulev almost anytime he cut loose with it.

It was easy to glean that Klitschko was clearly a grade above not just Pulev, but any other heavyweight in the world. You can try all you want to make a case for Tyson Fury, Bermane Stiverne and Deontay Wilder but forget about it. Fury would get pummeled like Pulev, maybe even more so. Stiverne is just too short and would look like Eddie Chambers trying to out-box Klitschko a few years back, and if Wladimir fought Wilder, I wouldn’t be the least bit shocked if he put him to sleep with the first big right hand or left-hook he landed.

It’s been a decade since Klitschko last lost. You can rip his opposition all you want, but nobody dominates any era if they’re not a pretty special or unique fighter. I see Wladimir as being more unique. It’s suicide bringing the fight to him and if you try and beat him by waiting and reacting, he’ll jab you silly and eventually put you away with a right hand. Wladimir is a lot like Lennox Lewis, the difference being Lewis fought with more confidence and had a much better uppercut. Lennox was also more willing to exchange anywhere in the ring and he could in-fight better. The problem fans and the boxing media have with Wladimir Klitschko is, he so often looks vulnerable and no more than one punch away from being stopped. And you know what, that’s the same thing his opponents see when they watch him. Then they get in the ring with him and find out that getting to him and rattling him to where he’s not fighting his fight is much tougher than it looks. All he’s done is compile a record of 24-2 (19) in title bouts facing every fighter who was qualified to fight him.

To those who haven’t seen enough to at least give him his due, face it, the only opponent he has to worry about is father time calling on him. There isn’t one heavyweight walking the planet that is big enough, fast enough or good enough to out-box him. Sure, he could be stopped on any given night by a legitimate puncher. All you have to do is point out the fighter who has the power and the means to deliver it against him, and then I’ll entertain him losing in 2015.

What’s left to be said about the dominance of Wladimir Klitschko that hasn’t been said? He just made the 17th consecutive defense of his heavyweight title and only trails Larry Holmes (20) and Joe Louis (25). I have both Louis (2) and Holmes (4) in my all-time top five heavyweight champs. No, I don’t think Wladimir is amongst the top-10 all-time great heavyweight champs. But for argument sake, I ask – during Louis’ and Holmes’ title defenses, who did they defend their titles against who Klitschko wouldn’t have beaten?

I’ve gone over the title record of Joe Louis and you know who I come up with? Max Schmeling. I’m not saying Schmeling would beat Klitschko, but he did beat Joe Louis in his prime. Yes, an unprepared Louis, but Joe scored his most impressive career victory over Max Baer a year before fighting Schmeling the first time. All that I’m saying is, the only fighter Louis defended the title against that wouldn’t be considered a “no hope” against Klitschko is Max Schmeling. Conversely, you could say the same about Louis regarding the challengers Wladimir defended against in title bouts, and that is Louis would’ve beat every opponent Klitschko faced in a title bout, at least theoretically.

What about Holmes?

I’ve seen practically every fight of Larry’s career and all of his title defenses, and the only fighters Holmes defended his title against that wouldn’t be a “no hope” opponent against Wladimir are Earnie Shavers, Gerry Cooney and Tim Witherspoon. Yes, Klitschko would probably be favored over all three. But Shavers had the mindset and power to knock Wladimir out if he catches him first, and the undefeated Cooney who Holmes fought was every bit the killer that Wladimir is. Gerry had the style, size and power to blow Klitschko out, or get knocked out in the process. Either way, if you bet on Klitschko to beat Shavers or Cooney, I doubt if you’re sitting ringside right before the first round that you’re saying to yourself, “I wish I bet more.” And the Witherspoon who fought Holmes had the boxing skill, size and punch to beat Klitschko. Remember, I’m taking the challengers the night they fought Holmes and Klitschko. And like Louis, Holmes would’ve theoretically defeated every challenger Wladimir defended against.

The argument against Klitschko is everybody he fought is terrible so he gets no props for winning in the eyes of many fans and media. I remember thinking during the 1990s that the Lewis, Holyfield, Tyson and Bowe era paled in comparison to the Ali, Foreman, Frazier and Holmes era, and I wasn’t alone in holding that point of view. But you know what, how good do the 1990s heavyweights look to the lot Klitschko has defended his title against circa 2006-2014? In fact looking at today’s heavyweight division, the Dokes, Page, Witherspoon, Tubbs, Cooney, Thomas and Berbick era doesn’t look as bad as it did when we were living it.

Every era looks better looking back. In 15 years the opponents that Wladimir fought will probably look less pedestrian than they do now. I’m not saying Wladimir is among the top five all-time heavyweight greats, I’m only saying he would’ve been a handful for any past all-time great.

I’ll wait five years after he’s retired before I attempt to rate Wladimir Klitschko. But I can tell you this, if we’re taking him and bringing him back to the 1950s, 1960s or 1970s, or bringing those past greats up to 2014, he’ll make my top 12 easily on a one-off head to head basis. His size, strength and ability to force his physicality on his opponent is just too much of a factor to discount or dismiss.

Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com

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Frank Lotierzo

The Follies of Gervonta Davis: They Gave Him the Key to the City and Now He’s in the Slammer

Published

2 days ago

June 4, 2023

Arne K. Lang

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One surmises that Baltimore City Circuit Court judge Althea Handy has a lot of guts. When the 65-year-old jurist rescinded her decision to allow Gervonta “Tank” Davis to serve his 90-day sentence at the home of his trainer Calvin Ford and remanded him to the jailhouse, that undoubtedly didn’t sit well with some of the poobahs in Maryland’s largest city. After all, it wasn’t that long ago that Davis was presented with a key to the city and a parade was held in his honor.

Davis appeared before Judge Handy on May 5. He had already pleaded guilty to each of four counts stemming from a hit-and-run accident that happened shortly before 2 a.m. on the morning of Nov. 5, 2020. After running a red light, Davis crashed his Lamborghini into another vehicle before crashing into the fence of a 7-eleven. The four occupants of the other vehicle, including a pregnant woman, required medical attention. Gervonta and his two passengers fled the scene in another car.

The four charges to which he pled guilty, eschewing a jury trial, included driving on a revoked license. Had Judge Handy thrown the book at him, she could have packed him off to prison for a term of four years and two months. Instead, she sentenced him to 90 days home detention, three years’ probation, and 200 hours of community service.

Davis owns a home in tony Broward County in South Florida. If it had been his decision, that’s where he would have served his 90 days. But Handy had visions of the boxer lounging by the pool and wouldn’t allow it. She insisted that he serve out his sentence in his native Baltimore.

Althea Handy (2002 photo)

It was agreed that Davis would be confined to the home of his longtime coach Calvin Ford for the duration of his sentence. The head trainer at the Upton Boxing Center in impoverished West Baltimore and the inspiration for the Dennis “Cutty” Wise character in the HBO series “The Wire,” Coach Calvin, as he is called, has been a father figure to Gervonta Davis and countless other boys. Gervonta was living with his grandmother after bouncing around between foster homes when he wandered into Upton at the age of seven. The boxer credits his coach with instilling within him the discipline needed to stay off the streets.

There was one small problem. Calvin Ford’s home had only one bedroom. It was far too small for the boxer and his entourage.

Davis needed to find a new crash pad. Being the resourceful type, he moved his tack to Baltimore’s luxurious Four Seasons Hotel before plunking down a reported $3.4 million on a 5,000-square-foot high-rise penthouse. When informed that the boxer had taken it upon himself to recalibrate his “punishment,” Judge Handy said, “not on my watch” or words to this effect, and had the boxer hauled off to the slammer.

—

Gervonta Davis was boxing’s youngest American-born world champion when he won his first title in 2017. On July 24, 2019, three days before his homecoming fight with Ricardo Nunez – his fifth 130-pound world title defense – he was presented the keys to the city by then mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young in a ceremony at City Hall. “Welcome Home….We’re so proud of you!”, read the proclamation. Later that year, on Oct. 26, the boxer was feted with a parade in his old neighborhood.

In his most recent bout, a non-title affair contested at the catch-weight of 136 pounds, Davis stopped Ryan Garcia in the seventh round to advance his record to 29-0. The fight played out before an SRO crowd of 20,000-plus at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In his four fights prior to that, Davis drew capacity or near-capacity crowds to NBA arenas in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Brooklyn, and Washington, DC. When it comes to putting asses in seats, no other American boxer can match him.

—-

Davis turned pro under Floyd Mayweather Jr’s “Money Team” banner. As recounted in a previous story, Mayweather’s influence was pervasive. Gervonta came to mimicking Floyd’s lifestyle, reflected in what normal people would see as reckless spending, manifested in bling and in his growing collection of rare and expensive automobiles. The parallels are striking and to that list we can now add one more. When Gervonta emerges from his current abode he will have spent almost exactly as many days behind bars as his former promoter. Mayweather was sentenced to 90 days for domestic battery in 2012 and with time off for good behavior was out of jail in two months.

When Davis gets out, will his boxing tools be as sharp as ever? Based on Mayweather’s experience, his fans have nothing to worry about.

During Mayweather’s incarceration, his lawyer and personal physician submitted a document to the court in hopes of securing an early release. “Jail food and water,” it said, “didn’t meet Mayweather’s dietary needs and lack of exercise space in a cramped cell of fewer than 98 square feet threatened his health and fitness.”

Not to worry. Floyd had some of his best moments after he was set free, although it may be worth noting that he stopped knocking people out.

Floyd was 35 years old when he regained his freedom. Gervonta Davis will be 28. There’s no reason to think that he won’t be as good as ever, but that’s assuming that he keeps his nose clean. He doesn’t need any more of these kinds of distractions.

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Claressa Shields Defeats Maricela Cornejo in Detroit

Published

2 days ago

June 3, 2023

David A. Avila

Claressa-Shields-Defeats-Maricela-Cornejo-in-Detroit

In front of a Detroit crowd familiar with boxing legends, Claressa Shields demonstrated her place among the legends with a start-to-finish win over number one contender Maricela Cornejo to retain her middleweight world championship on Saturday.

“Maricela is just super tough. She was just in shape and knew how to get away from shots,” said Shields

More than 10,000 fans entered Little Caesars Arena and witnessed the fight.

Despite last-minute changes in opposition, Shields (14-0, 2 KOs) accepted always strong Cornejo (16-6, 6 KOs) and proved that former Detroit boxing legends such as Sugar Ray Robinson, Joe Louis and Tommy Hearns need to move over.

The champion wasted little time in opening-up with looping overhand rights that barely missed the mark. Cornejo was careful to avoid the bombs. Though few punches landed it was clear that Shields was on the attack.

Cornejo was scheduled to fight another foe and had been preparing in Las Vegas with famed trainer Ismael Salas. She was fully prepared to face anyone, but Shields is not anyone. Her defense was on point but the speed ratio of Shields punches is almost impossible to practice.

Still, Cornejo did enough by connecting with a strong right cross that kept Shields from overwhelming her.

“Just stay smart and not get hit with her big right hand,” said Shields about her battle plan against Cornejo who replaced Hanna Gabriels who failed a PED test.

Though Cornejo had two inches height advantage, Shields had faced others that were taller before such as Christina Hammer and Savannah Marshall. Shields adjusted well.

“Height don’t matter, power don’t matter,” Shields said. “It’s all about skills and wills and I always have more.”

Over the years Shields has carefully added more ammunition to her offensive arsenal and fighting a taller opponent with power has become second nature. Shields kept a perfect distance at all times and made it difficult for Cornejo to time her attacks with a big right cross.

Cornejo jabbed her way trying to close the distance, but Shields agility and reflexes kept the taller fighter from her goal. Shields snapped Cornejo’s head back numerous times during the fight, but the Mexican-American fighter from the state of Washington has always shown to have one of the best chins in women’s boxing. No one has ever knocked her down.

Shields came close, especially in the seventh round. Cornejo opened the frame with a strong right lead that seemed to awaken the gates. Shields unleashed the blinding combinations that have bewildered every foe she’s ever faced since childhood. The speed and fury of the blows forced Cornejo to hold and maneuver out of range. She survived the onslaught but if it had been a three-minute round the fight might have been over. Instead, after the two-minute round expired, Cornejo had survived.

Shields had expended a lot of energy attempting the knockout. It takes a lot of to fire off dozens of blows with blinding speed and accuracy. Most of the eighth round was fought by both at a much slower tempo, until the last 20 seconds when Shields and Cornejo opened up the guns.

After saving energy in the prior round, Shields stunned Cornejo with a strong one-two that snapped the head of the challenger. Shields kept on the attack but in measured tones. Though she won every round it was evident that Cornejo was looking for one big counter shot that could turn the momentum.

It did not happen. Shields kept control of the fight until the very end. After 10 rounds both hugged each other in respect and the judges gave their verdict 100-89, 100-90 twice for Shields who keeps the middleweight world championship.

“I felt great. I won every round like I knew I could,” said Shields. “I tried for the KO, but Maricela was tough, had a strong right hand.”

For Shields it was her sixth defense of the middleweight championship.

“I thought I looked really, really good,” said a very content Shields. “Thank you for coming out.”

Other Bouts

Local fighter Ardreal Holmes (14-0) defeated Haiti’s Wendy Toussaint (14-2) by technical split decision after the fight was stopped early due to a bad cut following a clash of heads in the super welterweight match.

Toussaint was the aggressor through most of the fight but when a savage cut opened up above his forehead the referee stopped the fight though the ringside physician had given approval to continue.

The fight was stopped at 1:54 of the eighth round and Holmes won 76-75, 77-74, 74-77. The Detroit crowd booed the decision loudly.

A middleweight contest saw Michigan’s Joseph Hicks (7-0, 5 KOs) use his height and reach to dominate Atlanta’s Antonio Todd (14-8) from the outside. All three judges scored it 80-72 for Hicks.

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Adelaida Ruiz and Fernando Vargas Jr Score KO Wins at Pechanga

Published

3 days ago

June 3, 2023

David A. Avila

Adelaida-Ruiz-and-Fernando-Vargas-Jr-Score-KOs-at-Pechanga

Adelaida Ruiz and Fernando Vargas Jr Score KO Wins at Pechanga

TEMECULA, Ca.-After a long period of fighting out of the country, Adelaida Ruiz returned to Southern California and with her came hundreds of her ardent followers as she won by knockout over Mexico’s Maria Cecilia Roman on Friday.

Ruiz (14-0-1, 8 KOs) looked sharp and stepped in with a disciplined attack against Roman (17-8) who fought behind a peek-a-boo style throughout the fight. Ruiz fired away at openings with a measured attack in front of several thousand fans at Pechanga Arena on the MarvNation Promotions card.

Midway through the eight-round match Ruiz increased the tempo of the attack with blistering combinations to the body and head. During one of the combinations Ruiz connected with a left hook to Roman’s temple and down she went.

Roman beat the count, but Ruiz never slowed her attack and each round her blows seemed to increase with power, the impact of the punches resonating in the arena. The interim WBC super flyweight titlist, whose title was not at stake, seemed determined to win by knockout.

In the eighth and final round Ruiz staggered Roman with another left hook to the temple and that only sparked more punches from the Southern California fighter. She unloaded her bullet chambers and the referee decided to stop the action at 1:19 of the eighth round.

Other Bouts

Fernando Vargas Jr. (9-0) won the super middleweight contest by knockout when Heber Rondon (20-5) was unable to continue due to a shoulder injury at the end of the second round. Fans were displeased but it was not up to the fans.

Vargas showed patience against the veteran southpaw Rondon who showed some tricks in his bag. But after some exchanges in the second round it was a surprise to everyone in the arena when the referee signaled the fight was over at the end of the second round.

Undefeated Jonathan Lopez (11-0, 7 KOs) of Florida remained unblemished with a unanimous decision win over Mexico’s Eduardo Baez (21-5-2, 7 KOs) in a 10-round featherweight fight.

San Bernardino’s Lawrence King (13-1,11 KOs) faced veteran Mexican fighter Marco Reyes (37-10) and was able to use his speed and southpaw stance to win almost every round. But he had to work for it.

Reyes was able to avoid most of King’s attacks but in the sixth round after absorbing some heavy blows the Mexican fighter was unable to continue and the fight was stopped at the end of the sixth round for a knockout win by King.

In a super welterweight fight, Mario Ramos (11-0, 9 KOs) wore down Jesus Cruz (6-3) for three rounds with his left-handed assault and then lowered the boom with a non-stop barrage of lefts and rights. After nearly two-dozen nearly unanswered blows the referee stopped the battering at 2:09 of the fourth round.

Orlando Salgado (3-2) slugged it out with Squire Redfern (0-1) to win a super welterweight fight by decision after four back and forth rounds. Salgado connected with the bigger blows but never could stop Redfern from rallying round after round. All three judges scored in favor of Salgado.

A heavyweight battle saw Mike Diorio (1-5-1) win his first pro fight in out-punching debuting heavyweight Ian Morgan (0-1) after four rounds. Both fighters tired a bit but Diorio had a better idea of how to score and won by decision.

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