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"A REAL HEAVYWEIGHT FIGHT"
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Lennox Lewis faces Vitali Klitschko on the 21st of June at the Staples Center in Los Angeles California. This will be a real heavyweight clash. With two thirds of the Heavyweight division now being ruled by former Middleweights, the division is in a very sad state.
Being Heavyweight Champion once carried the distinction of being the baddest man on the planet. Roy Jones, Jr., a former Middleweight, Super Middleweight, and Light Heavyweight Champion holds the WBA version of the Heavyweight Title. Chris Byrd, a former Middleweight Silver Medalist in the 1992 Olympic Games, holds the IBF version.
The two guys that are fighting on the 21st are Heavyweights in the truest sense of the word. I think either one of these guys is too big for Chris Byrd and Roy Jones, although Chris has a win over Klitschko, via a shoulder injury, most people still question Vitali's heart because of his quitting in the corner even though he was well ahead on all scorecards. Which to me only means that this injury was very painful and serious, all he had to do was stay upright and he would have emerged victorious... So I don't question his heart at all.
When it comes to Lennox Lewis I question Vitali's skills, as I also questioned his brother's when it came to facing Lennox Lewis. Lewis is by far the best Heavyweight out there today, no disrespect to Byrd or Jones, but Lewis is way too big and way too powerful for these guys. Byrd has already shown that he has serious trouble with the really big heavyweights as one of his losses came to the other Klitschko (Wladimir) who thoroughly dominated him.
Roy Jones' frame is just too small and he would have to fight the perfect fight to even just have a chance; the size would be too much to overcome. Byrd and Jones would both have to be very selective in their choices of opponents when it comes down to putting their titles on the line. Both need guys close to them in height so they don't have to stray too far from their style of fighting.
Tyson and Holyfield and a few who can bring in the big purses. Roy Jones Jr., who defeated John Ruiz to capture the WBA version is already in the process of making the Holyfield fight a reality. Then I think Mike Tyson would be ideal for either Roy or Byrd. No matter what, Tyson is still the "cash cow' of the division and if the current champions could fight the perfect fight and not get caught by one of Tyson's devastating punches throughout the bout, they could emerge victorious, but one shot placed on either man's chin by Tyson will certainly spell defeat via KO. Well, enough about Roy and Chris. Time to talk about the one true Heavyweight Champion who has proven that he is without a doubt the Heavyweight of the 90's, who has destroyed all comers and erased his temporary setbacks.
Lennox Lewis is in a class by himself as Heavyweight Champion; he will easily defeat Klitschko in his upcoming defense of the WBC Title. I see the fight starting out very slowly and both guys feeling each other out, but once Lewis lands his right-hand or uppercut the fight could be over. Klitschko's Achilles heel is just as his brother's; they both can easily be found with a jab, while Lewis seems to get better with age, it's scary.
It took a long time for Lennox to get my full respect as the Heavyweight Champion partly because he wasn't American and he didn't seem to use all the tools for a guy his size. In the fight with David Tua, although it was practically one-sided, I saw Lewis use that long jab and keep Tua at bay; he also threw that vicious uppercut which landed enough times to make Tua forget about his aggressive attack.
The fights with Holyfield I wasn't impressed with because Lewis appeared to struggle with a little man. Holyfield is probably one of the purest warriors to ever be in the game; still a big man should fight a certain style against a guy with that much size disparity. On that night I was a Lewis fan and since that time he hasn't let me down with the exception of his loss to Rahman whom he later dispatched quickly in the rematch.
The fight with Klitschko I think will last between 5 and 7 rounds. Lewis should win, but Klitschko is a big man with a big punch as well and certainly has a puncher's chance, but skill versus skill he has very little chance. With two Middleweights sitting upon the Heavyweight thrones it's been awhile since we have had a real Heavyweight fight.
06-16-03
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