It's been a long time coming, but finally a positive step has been taken towards unification in what was once boxing's most glorified division. This positive move will occur on February 23 when Wladimir Klitschko puts his IBF title on the line against the WBO title held by Sultan Ibragimov.

     The heavyweight division is not the choice of preference for most diehard boxing fans; but, it seems to be for the casual boxing fan. Without it, or with it in disarray, the sport is losing a major segment of its fans, especially now that the MMA is blowing up. Once upon a time people would call the heavyweight champ the "baddest man on the planet;"  now a large segment of fans give that title to the likes of Chuck Liddell or Quinton Jackson. This is why the heavyweight division needs to make a fairly strong comeback. Because as much as us diehard fans may not want to admit it, the heavyweight division is the most recognizable division in boxing.

     There are a number of reasons why the heavyweight division finds itself in this low state of popularity. First, there are four different title holders. No one undisputed; no one that could definitively be called the heavyweight champion of the world. This is confusing and unattractive to the casual fan. Another big reason why the division lacks in popularity is the fact that there are no American champions. All four champions are Eastern European, and rarely fight in the States.

     How did things get this way? I'd say there are a number of reasons. The fighter who most casual fans probably remember as the last "baddest man on the planet" -Mike Tyson- turned the division into a joke. Many began associating the division with Tyson's silly antics, hence making it a joke. But the thicker reasons have to do with the lack of talent as well as the maneuvers of promoters in the division.

    Let's take a look at the promoters and managers who helped perpetuate the polarization of the division.  For several years we've had promoters refusing to fight other fighters; there have been disputes over money, even disputes over networks. The bottom line is that there have always been roadblocks keeping the better fights from being made.

    Five years ago this problem really began to escalate. Vitali Klitschko, Chris Byrd, and John Ruiz were the alphabet soup title holders. The Klitschkos had their own promotion company which constantly fussed with Don King's fighters (i.e., Ruiz, Byrd); thus an unification bout was never made. Byrd eventually fought Wladimir Klitschko, but not until years after he had dumped promoter King, had lost his belt and was well past his prime for the fight to be of any significance.

    Instead of fighting each other until a true heavyweight champ emerged, we had guys like Ruiz fighting everyone who wasn't a real heavyweight, like Roy Jones Jr. and James Toney. Vitali was fighting gems like Cory Sanders and Danny Williams. Poor Chris Byrd couldn't even get a fight and when he did it was usually after a long layoff or against the likes of  Andrew Golota and/or Fres Oquendo, fighters who had been or simply never were.

    Another reason for the decline and disinterest in the division is the Teddy Atlas explanation, indeed a good one. According to the former boxer/trainer turned commentator, American athletes with the type of natural strength, talent, and skill potential to be heavyweight champions are turning to "safer" sports such as basketball or football, where there's more money to be made and less chance of bodily harm. Furthermore, athletes get guaranteed money in these sports, they do not have to earn it on an event by event basis.

     All of the above does not mean in any way that the heavyweight division is dead and gone forever. The division which was once a part of American folklore, with names such as Dempsey, Johnson, Louis, Marciano, and Clay, is not dead, but it is on life support. People need to know who the heavyweight champion is, instead of having to memorize the foreign names of four different fighters.

     The February 23 Klitschko-Ibragimov match-up is not the solution, but it certainly seems to be a step in the right direction towards returning what was once a legendary, revered division to its proper place within the sport of boxing.

     Questions? Comments? Write Mr. Tom Dickey