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Monday, September 26, 2005
Sayson: Klitschko’s heart shows at last
By Homer sayson
Second Overtime
CHICAGO – When Wladimir Klitschko turned pro as a 20-year-old heavyweight in Nov. 17, 1996, he was destined to take the heavyweight division by storm. He was long at 6-foot-6, dense and strong at 220 pounds, and he had a mean right hand dubbed as a “Steel Hammer.”
Sure enough, Klitschko raced to a 24-0 slate, knocking out fellow heavyweights like defenseless orange traffic cones. But something funny happened on the way to his coronation.
On Dec. 5, 1998, Klitschko fought unknown Ross Purrity. And before a partisan crowd at the Sportpalast in his hometown of Kiev, Ukraine, he was beating Purrity like a drum for 10 bloody and very one-sided rounds.
Inexplicably, though, Klitschko quit on his stool in the 11th round. A dislocated shoulder was later blamed vigorously for the surrender, but rumors quickly flew around the grapevine that Klitschko got tired and had simply ran out of gas.
With his heart and will questioned, Klitschko strung together another streak. By knocking out 15 of his next 16 foes, all in violent fashion, he restored some of the luster that had peeled off of his name.
And then the losses began to creep, this time under more disturbing circumstances.
On March 8, 2003, while towering over a man he outweighed by 17.5 pounds, Klitschko lost by second-round TKO to Corrie Sanders at the Preussag Arena in Hanover, Germany. Fourteen months later in April 10, 2004, he lasted just five rounds against Lamon Brewster, an Americian whom Klitschko also outweighed by 17 pounds.
Both setbacks presented irrefutable evidence that while Klitschko can throw a punch, he cannot take one. His chin is tender as porcelain and his heart needed a bypass.
After two confidence-building wins against nondescript heavyweights, Klitschko was thrown back to the fire last night at the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It was a huge gamble, but one that may, once and for all, define the future of his boxing career.
Now 29, and carrying more meat at 244 pounds, Klitschko was pitted against an up-and-coming knockout artist from Nigeria. Just 25, the 243-pound Sam Peters logged an immaculate 24-0 record with 21 knockouts coming into the fight.
Although shorter at 5-foot-1/2 inches than his stratospheric opponent, intimidation wasn’t in Peters’ dictionary. He climbed the ring carrying the look of a man who was ready to break every bone in Klitschko’s body.
The fight evolved as expected, with Klitschko zipping jabs from a distance while Peters stubbornly kept moving forward, like a car with no reverse gear. Quickly, Klitschko piled up the points, hitting his lumbering target with everything he had.
OVERHAND RIGHT. Then the test came. Midway through the fifth round, Peters landed an overhand right that was so strong it shook the state of New Jersey. Dazed, Klitschko clung to Peters like a drowning man. Another solid right would later hit Klitschko, but the Ukrainian somehow survived.
The sixth was supposed to be the round when Peters would dust off Klitschko for good. But to everyone’s shock, Klitschko handled himself with uncharacteristic poise, and by employing the brilliance of his technical skills, he held Peters at bay by landing 21-of-47 blows.
Peters, meanwhile, started to wear down. His feet moved like clay and his production dipped, landing just a total of eight punches in rounds six and seven.
The eighth round was all Klitschko as he peppered Peters with 15-of-43 punches, moving deftly from side-to-side and flicking jabs to the swelling eyes of the Nigerian. The ninth was as easy as shooting free throws and Klitschko wasn’t just fighting, he was conducting a clinic at the same time.
Peters came to life in the 10th round, and with one majestic right overhand, he put Klitschko on the floor and in trouble again. Klitschko was saved by the bell, but as he walked back to his corner, his eyes seemed to dart around the arena looking for the nearest exit.
There was a clamor for blood when 11th round opened. The expectation was that Klitschko’s heart would betray him, just like in the past, and that his chin was going to fold. Both those scenarios did not come to pass.
CONFIDENT. Instead, a smart and confident Klitschko closed the deal with a flurry. He tagged Peters with 25-of-48 punches in the 11th and nearly scored a KO in the 12th, when a beautifully-timed left hook found Peters’ mug with 2:08 to go.
Deservedly so, all three judges – Lynn Carter, George Hill and Steve Wesifeld – gave Klitschko the win, each handing out identical marks of 114-111.
After straying from the promise of his potential, Wladimir Klitschko appears to have won the battle against his inner demons. He’s back. Only this time, he’s got a sturdier chin and is mentally tougher.
With his strengths and physical gifts, Klitschko should have already been undisputed heavyweight king by now. But some roses bloom late. And at 29, and with the division suffering from a dearth in serious talent, Wladimir couldn’t have bloomed at a better time.
(homsay@hotmail.com)
(September 26, 2005 issue)
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