Other Than The Klitschkos
By UK Boxing Writer Jon Campbell
Other than the Klitschkos
By UK Boxing Writer Jon Campbell
It is safe to say that both Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko have held dominion over the Heavyweight division for nearly a decade. They have for the first (and probably last) time unified all the titles awarded by the four main sanctioning bodies under a single pair of brothers. Unfortunately one of the greatest heavyweight match-ups in history will not happen simply because they share the same mother. Regardless of the fact that their rank in history is up for discussion they have given us two successful careers and their legacies will be practically impossible to follow.
However, presuming their retirements will happen within a year or two of each other, an interesting situation may occur in which all four titles will become vacant at some point, possibly to be contested for by 8 different fighters, none of which guaranteed to become champion. Here is a short, inexhaustible list of which these characters may be, and a brief assessment of their chances.
1. Seth Mitchell- 24-0-1, 29 years old:
Mitchell is certainly one of the most impressive upcoming Heavyweight fighters. From Maryland, U.S.A, Mitchell played college football until he decided to pursue a career in boxing. He is undefeated and is beginning to fight reasonable opposition, most notably in the form of Uzbek Timor Ibragimov. Although not seasoned by any means he demonstrates abilities which outweigh his level of experience. He displays good power, attacks in a relaxed and controlled manner, alongside a good quick jab which he uses to set up offense. I am quite certain that by the time the Klitschkos retire Mitchell will be ready to take a title shot, and many (including me) tip him to hold a title in the foreseeable future.
Chances of future world title: 9/10.
2. Deontay Wilder- 21-0, 26 years olds:
Following a bronze medal in Beijing after a relatively short amateur career. What the boxing community has saw of Wilder in his professional career has been very little, this is because all his fights have been by stoppage, the longest lasting 4 rounds, a whopping 13 have ended in the first. This record on paper is clearly the sign of an exceptional future prospect. However, his future hall of fame status must not yet be presumed. It is clear that his opposition has been questionable at best, and he has far from been tested. In pointing this out, his unorthodox physicality and raw ability can potentially be problematic for anybody in a few years’ time. He is 6 foot 7 and a skinny 215 pounds, this tall frame appears tremendously awkward to get inside and fighters struggle to hit him never mind pose a challenge. It is difficult to gauge his chances of a future title due to his lack of professional opposition but he certainly possesses bags of potential and is most defiantly going in the right direction.
Chances of future world title: 8/10.
3. Alexander Povetkin- 24-0, 32 years old: gold medalist Povetkin is the fighter I would chose as most likely of all heavyweights to gain a title sometime in the future. The current WBA (regular) champion has an unblemished record, which includes the likes of Byrd, Chambers, Sykes, Chagaev, and Boswell. The only fighter who has come reasonably close is his last bout against Marco Huck. Huck actually troubled Povetkin somewhat, despite this I believe Povetkin was always going to be victorious and should have won on all three scorecards. He will most probably either gain the WBA title when Klitschko retires, or simply have the formality of fighting the contender they chose, which he will probably win. If not he will have three other titles to choose from and a reputation which cannot be denied a title shot.
Chances of a future world title: 9.5/10.
4. Tyson Fury- 17-0, 23 years old:
Tyson is a 6″9 Brit who has an undefeated record. He is from an Irish traveler background and demonstrates this with his never say die style of fighting. His rise in the British and world rankings has hit a speed-bump however when he recently vacated his British and Commonwealth titles. This came suspiciously soon after fellow Brit on good form David Price became the mandatory challenger. Many believe that he feared defeat but this remains to be seen and it is plausible a fight will happen some point down the line. Fury does demonstrate some durability and potential but to suggest he is near world title level would be quite presumptuous. Despite this his age and current ability does show some potential and although I see other fighters out there much more likely I would certainly not rule out the chance of him having world success.
Chances of a future world title: 7/10.
5. Robert Helenius-17-0, 28 years old.
Many have tipped current EBU champ Helenius to be the guy to take the Klitschko throne. His large frame and reasonable skill set has proved difficult to deal with for many European level heavyweights. He has had some larger scores, albeit against fighters clearly past their best, such as Liakovich and Peter. His last fight against British novice Chisora somewhat exposed his vulnerabilities of fighting on the inside slightly and some are now doubting this previously-held optimism. It is generally perceived that Chisora won that bout and was a victim of a home decision, this I agree with as Helenius looked far less than a fighter I would consider world-class or in any position to follow the Klitschko brothers.
Chance of a future world title: 6.5/10.
6. Evander Holyfield- 44-10-2, 49 years old.
This is quite clearly more of a wild-card choice than anything else, but I dare not leave out my all-time favorite heavyweight in the risk of being one of his doubters who have continuously ate their words over the years. The guy who has fought all comers of his generation, won a heavyweight world title more than any other in the business, scored two high-profile wins over Mike Tyson and multiple other greats achievements, still continues to fight and is genuinely determined to reach the top of the game that once more. Many believe he did it against the Russian giant Nikolai Valuev, and I to subscribe to this. To my surprise he clearly out-boxed Valuev, controlling the pace of the fight most of the time, only to lose a terrible decision. Although as upsetting as it sounds it is very difficult to perceive much chance of Holyfield finding the glory days once more, I do not doubt he has that one more big fight in him. Should that be enough to beat one of the above and the several other viable contenders however that is a different matter.
Chances of a future world title: 3/10.
To conclude, as much as I will always remember and respect the Klitschko brothers, I am somewhat excited to see what will result following their retirement. The uncertainty and slight chaos of title fights in such a short period may be a remembered period of the heavyweight division. Whether this excitement will continue solely depends on whether the new kings of the division are willing to risk their titles by fighting one another, as opposed to simply digging trenches and fighting opposition with little chance, as was known by some of those who reigned prior to the cleanup of the division by the Klitschko family. What is largely doubtful is that any name will dominate and rein the division in the same manner in the foreseeable future.
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