Klitchko vs. Ibragimov

Unification! Bring together three of the four boxing World Heavyweight Champions?

Wait what?

That’s right, there was, until recently four heavyweight champs! Whys that? Well, obviously because people like to watch title fights, even if it doesn’t mean all that much. It’s the same sort of bravado that lets us call the winner of the super bowl the “world champions” which is confusing, because as far as I know my beloved Patriots never competed on any other continent.

So

Before last Saturday there were three worth heavyweight champs:

Klitchko, holding two titles: IBF and IBO.

Sultan Ibragimov: holding the WBO title.

Ruslan Chagaev: WBA champ.

HBO broadcast the fight, marketing it as a big draw, when in fact the poor heavyweight division is far less popular than the middleweights (with such names as Mayweather, Hatton, even De La Hoya) or even the light welterweight (Cotto alone is more charismatic and marketable than any of the current heavyweight champs).

So there I was, sitting down to hopefully watch a good fight, I had the popcorn, I was psyched, they tapped gloves and off it went....

...

What the hell?

After about 30 seconds if fighting I was confused.

Ok, so there’s Klitchko, looks like hes in great shape, I head the announcers mention he lost weight for the fight and he looks fit.

Ibragimov…look like a beer barrel with legs. Shorter and stockier than Klitchko he looks a little like an angry drunk than an athlete, but ok, lets give him a shot.

But, what doesn’t make sense is why Ibragimov thinks he can:

1) Outside box, when hes clearly slower than Klitchko

2) Keep his forward hand down a la Roy Jones Jr and Ali, when again, he’s slower and shorter.

They say that despite the 4 inch height difference, Klitchko only had a 1 inch reach advantage; it sure as hell didn’t look that way.

To interrupt:

A boxer keeping his front hand by his hip is a risky but sometimes effective technique. If the boxer is fast enough to be able to throw jabs with the same speed as if he were keeping the front hand at shoulder or above, and if he can block his opponent as effectively as if he had his hand up, it gives him a tremendous advantage in being able to:

1) Throw orthodox jabs

2) Throw looping hooks with his forward hand, moving it around and over his opponent’s jabs.

Ali could do it, he was fast and agile, and Roy Jones could do it for the same reason.

Ibragimov? Not even close.

If you watch the fight you will see him trying again and again to throw a jab out of this position, and Klitchko, obviously prepared, utilized his greater reach and quicker hands to slap Ibragimov’s jabs down away, and stepping in for a hard jab…over and over again.

12 Rounds, with only about four right hands by Klitchko.

Everyone talks about Klitchko’s soft jaw; the man acts like he’s afraid to get hit. Throwing single jabs occasionally, without the follow up hard right that could have ended the “contest” at round 4, at round 12, disgusted with Klitchko for not making an end of it a half hour ago and with myself for watching this trash, the obvious conclusion (decision for Klitchko) left me feeling drained and disappointed with the poor showing.

We need an explosive heavyweight champ like Tyson to get people interested in this division again; otherwise they might as well close up shop right now.