Nikolai Valuev Makes Impressive American Television Boxing Debut
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Nikolai “The Russian Giant†Valuev made an impressive American television debut this past weekend at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL improving his undefeated record to 45-0 (33) after an 11th round TKO win against Monte “Two Gunz†Barrett 31-5 (17).
I am sure that many boxing critics may disagree with my assessment that Valuev made an impressive American television debut. Although everyone would agree his seven foot height and 328 pound weight was impressive, some media commented that he lacked boxing skills, was slow in the ring and that he put his weight on Barrett leaning on him during the clinches.
How much boxing skill does a man of Valuev’s size need to be effective? Realistically he doesn’t need that much. A little skill for a man of his size will be a lot for any heavyweight to handle. Although he may not have the quickest hands he seemed to have no trouble in landing his punches. His CompuBox totals were impressive for a heavyweight of any size: landing 186 of 459 total punches (41%), 60 of 176 jabs (34%) and most impressive were 126 out of 283 power punches connected (45%).
I do agree with the fact that he leaned on Barrett during the clinches but I don’t fault him for it. Why not use your natural size as an advantage? It is the same technique Lennox Lewis used against many of his smaller opponents most notably Mike Tyson. If Valuev didn’t use his size to his advantage he wouldn’t be where he is today.
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The most impressive fact of the fight was Valuev’s incredible stamina. Maybe I am being a bit aggressive with my opinion but think about it; most men of his size would get winded walking up a flight of stairs. Watching from ringside by the eleventh round I did not see him even breathing heavy. He maintained his output throughout the fight and even increased it in the later rounds. This is a huge man who has commented in earlier interviews that he does not do any roadwork to build his stamina because he has bad knees.
It’s not my intention to be one-sided in praising Valuev because Barrett showed incredible heart and came into the fight in great shape. I even commented during the fight to other media that if this was the Barrett that faced Hasim Rahman last year, he would have won that fight. But I watched as Barrett slowly began to wear down from the clinches and having to push the 328 pound body off of him.
During the post fight interview Valuev commented, “The victory wasn’t easy tonight and Monte Barrett really tried hard. I haven’t fought in the U.S. for a long time so this was a whole new thing for me. To be honest, I was a little nervous. I need to settle down more.
“I knew after the fourth or fifth round I was going to win. I’m never fully satisfied with my performance. My coach said I made a lot of mistakes. I hope to perform even better next time I fight.â€
If Valuev’s hopes come true and he performs better with each fight there will be no limits in what he can accomplish within the division. He is an average boxer in a giant-size package who has never been defeated. If he is able to become a better boxer he may even surpass the record of the great legend Rocky Marciano of 49-0.
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