Where to now for the heavyweight division?

Where to now for the heavyweight division?

Such has been the activity in all other divisions of boxing at the close of last year that the retirement of future Hall of Famer and then-WBC world heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko, passed us by as quietly as the softly spoken Ukrainian giant often speaks in his interviews. The first professional boxer to hold a PhD, he was affectionately called “Dr. Ironfist” with his brother Wladimir Klitschko given the title of “Dr. Steelhammer”, also due to his obtaining a PhD.

The dynasty of the Klitschkos is now etched into the annals of boxing history as along with younger brother Wladimir, the Klitschkos held every belt in the heavyweight division. Much like Andre Ward in the super middleweight division though, they had becomes victims of their own success. Such was the dominance of the two that often their fights were deemed foregone conclusions.

42-year old Vitali’s record stands at an impressive 45 wins out of 47 and only two losses. 41 of his 45 wins were KOs giving him an impressive 87% KO ratio second only to the legend Rocky Marciano. His only two losses came, controversially, to Britain’s Lennox Lewis in 2003, a fight where the judges had Klitschko up 58-56 at the time the doctors deemed his cut to grave to continue. The other loss came to Chris Byrd in 2001 when Vitali had to retire the fight with a shoulder injury.

Many argue that whilst younger brother Wladimir held three of the four belts and Vitali only one (the WBC) that Vitali was however the better “boxer” – something we’ll never know the answer to as both brothers have stated many times they’d never fight each other.

Vitali’s retirement doesn’t just bring an end to an era but also, with Wladimir’s opponents running thin, opens up the spot for a new dominant heavyweight to take the thrown as Wladimir too is likely to retire soon. A boxing division that boasts some of the best boxers in the history of the game, from Muhammad Ali to “Iron” Mike Tyson, this is a make or break period for this division. Fights with big potential, such as Haye vs. Fury, have fallen through, twice! Deontay Wilder seems intent on building his KO tally before he steps in for a big fight but his talent is undoubted. There has been talk of either Fury taking on Wilder or indeed a rematch with Dereck Chisora who has been rebuilding his career after back-to-back losses to Vitali Klitschko and David Haye. There has even been talk of Haye coming out of retirement to lay claim to the vacant WBC title, however, the World Boxing Council (WBC) has made him a “champion emeritus”, which therefore allows Vitali to directly challenge a new champion if he wants to resume boxing at any point.

However, with no immediate and obvious fight already agreed for the coming months it leaves the heavyweight division in danger of losing its pay-per-view pulling power to other divisions. Some have suggested that the talent on display in the combined welterweight divisions is second to none, and to be honest who could argue with divisions that boast the likes of Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao, Canelo Alvarez, Amir Khan, Danny Garcia and Timothy Bradley to name a few.

This is an important time for the heavyweight division and more importantly an excellent time for one of the current crop to step up, take his place at the top and build his own dynasty and legacy in much the same way that the Klitschkos have. Others may come and take the newly vacated place at the top of the heavyweight elite but what remains certain is that Vitali’s name, along with the Klitschkos in general, will be remembered for a long time in discussions over who were the best in the heavyweight division.

- Ali Khan / Aries_80

Contributor to www.BehindTheGloves.com