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The flagship division.....
www.doghouseboxing.com
By Ian Keogh (Sep 6, 2006)
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As the heavyweight division goes, so does boxing – at least that's what they say. After Lennox Lewis bowed out in February 2004 the heavyweight division has been in shambles, looking for a leader. Some thought we had that in the last man to face Lewis, Vitali Klitschko. Klitschko looked the part in his valiant loss to Lewis and then looked impressive in dispatching of younger brother Wladimir's conqueror Corrie Sanders, but his ailing body eventually brought about his sudden retirement. This decision from the elder Klitschko brought back the question of ‘Who's the man?’ Well,
who is the man? Let's have a look at the flagship division of boxing and all it's titleholders, contenders and pretenders:
Wladimir Klitschko
The IBF world heavyweight champion. Has rebounded from disaster twice and has put together the most impressive back to back wins in recent times at heavyweight with his 12 round decision over Sam Peter last September and his title winning effort, a 7th round destruction of Chris Byrd in April of this year. At 30 years old Klitschko is entering his prime years as a heavyweight. Up next could be undefeated Calvin Brock who at 29-0 will bring nothing if not a glossy record to the table in his first world title fight.
Sergei Liakhovich
The WBO world heavyweight champion. The tough Belarusian seemed to be onto something in late December 2004 with a decision win over highly regarded Dominick Guinn but after sitting out all of 2005 Liakhovich seemed to be forgotten in the mix. That was until he showed up on April 1st of this year and gave the fans one of the better heavyweight scraps seen in recent times against then champion Lamon Brewster. Brewster showed up to the fight a little heavy and with a new trainer in the highly regarded Buddy McGirt, but was expected to defeat Liakhovich and move onto bigger and better things. That didn't happen. Liakhovich showed heart, skills and flat out a will to fight in decisioning Brewster over 12 hard and rather brutal rounds. A new champion was crowned and like Klitschko, at 30 years of age is just entering his prime as a heavyweight. Up next might be a fall/early winter fight with former heavyweight champion Shannon Briggs. How Briggs got in this position is odd to say the least.
Oleg Maskaev
The WBC heavyweight champion. Inconsistent is a word I'd use to describe the career of Maskaev, yet still, after years in the game Oleg recently achieved the sport’s highest prize in winning a heavyweight title belt. Written off years ago, Maskaev fought a string of C-level opponents before showing up in Germany last December to take a 12 round decision from fringe contender Sinan Samil Sam, which somehow earned him the WBC #1 ranking. Oleg kept on rolling and a few weeks ago reached the top – or at least near enough to it – with a 12 round TKO of Hasim Rahman to earn his title. At 37 years old Maskaev has seen his best days and is probably looking to cash out in a big money fight with the idea of ‘selling’ his title to the biggest bidder. Maskaev has nothing scheduled just yet, but Sam Peter is expected to be his next opponent. Whatever the case, don't put money on Maskaev keeping his title past his next fight.
Nikolay Valuev
The WBA heavyweight champion. After getting a questionable decision against Larry Donald in 2005, Valuev would follow that up with another questionable decision in out-pointing John Ruiz for the WBA strap. Outside of Europe little is known about Valuev, although American fans will get a close look October 7th when he makes his third appearance on American shores, first as a champion, when he takes on Monte Barrett on HBO. I don't see how Barrett qualifies for a title shot being that he hasn't fought in over a year but hey, what do I know. Now that I think about it how the hell did Owen Beck get his title shot against the 7-footer? Ugh.
The Contenders
James Toney – The former middleweight, super middleweight and cruiserweight champion came up a little short on the judges scorecards this past Saturday night in Los Angeles against Sam Peter. Many felt Toney clearly won the fight but the record books disagree and Toney will now be looking for another chance. At 38, with poor training habits and nearly 80 fights, one might begin to wonder when this rollercoaster ride will come to a stop. My feeling is Toney still has some good fights left in him. He might be 38 years old but he really is old school. Think Archie Moore and it’s easy to conceive Toney fighting well into his 40s despite his weight issues and poor training habits. But Toney would really do himself and his career a favour by dropping another 15 pounds.
Sam Peter – At 26 years old the once-beaten Sam Peter took a huge step up in class this past Saturday night against James Toney and squeaked out a split decision win. While most felt Toney deserved the decision Peter should be applauded for fighting well against such a tough fighter and making it a close enough fight that he got the win. Up next for Sam is a WBC heavyweight title shot against Oleg Maskaev, although Dan Goossen and Don King will try their hardest to get a rematch with Toney. Peter isn't making any of us forget about Muhammed Ali but at 26 years of age and a very winnable title fight against the aging Maskaev looming, things are really looking up for the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’.
Calvin Brock – ‘The Boxing Banker’ might get his first shot at a world title come November 11th against IBF titleholder and consensus heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko. Tough, decent skills and has proven he can fight when the going gets tough, Brock should give Klitschko a good fight.
Lamon Brewster – First and foremost, here's wishing Lamon well on his recovery from eye surgery. Should Brewster make a return to the ring look for him to gun for a world title shot sooner rather then later. At 33 years old and a willingness to take two in order to land one of his own, one has to wonder what Brewster has left.
John Ruiz – Ugh. Well he's been around for a long time and has comeback before. Word is a fight for a #1 rating is looming. Like I said, ugh.
Hasim Rahman – After losing any momentum gained with his win over Barrett and draw with Toney, Rahman pissed it all away losing a fight to Oleg Maskaev a few weeks ago. It's hard to see Rahman making it back to the top again but one can never be too sure.
Other heavyweights to consider:
David Tua, Tony Thompson, Chris Byrd (though word is a move down to 200 lbs) Sultan Ibragimov and Mike Tyson (just kidding).
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Originally Posted by Lords Gym
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