Boxing

 

Big Time’s Big Shot: Jameel McCline looks to derail the Klitschko Express

Ron DiMichele

03.12 - Make no mistake about it, Saturday night’s WBO heavyweight championship bout is Wladimir Klitschko’s party, but wouldn’t WBO #1-ranked challenger Jameel McCline just love to crash it.

Klitschko (39-1, 36 KO’s) has his ducks all in a row. His five round tattoo job on ‘Merciless’ Ray Mercer thrust him into the title spotlight. Reports claim he is the final piece in heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis’ farewell line-up. Lewis will face the other Klitschko brother, Vitali, as early as this coming March. A return engagement with Mike Tyson would be next for Lewis, followed by the final showdown between Lennox Lewis and heir apparent, Wladimir Klitschko.

Jameel ‘Big Time’ McCline (28-2-3, 16 KO’s) has played the role of stepping stone before. Michael Grant, following his 2nd round KO loss to Lenox Lewis, chose the unheralded McCline as heavyweight fodder for his comeback bout. Bad decision. McCline tagged Grant with a left hook seconds into the fight and Grant went down, breaking his ankle in the process. The referee stopped the contest forty-three seconds into the bout declaring McCline a TKO winner. Following the Grant fight, McCline pounded out decisions over erstwhile heavyweight contenders Lance ‘Goofi’ Whitaker and Shannon Briggs. These victories established McCline as a bonafide contender for the heavyweight crown.

Unlike Wladimir Klitschko, who had an extensive amateur background and won Olympic gold in the super heavyweight division in Atlanta in 1996, Jameel McCline boasts little amateur experience, to be exact, 1 fight. This may explain the less-than-illustrious 2-2-1 start to his professional career. But Jameel McCline, who turned pro in 1995 and hasn’t lost a bout since 1996, kept at it. He used Cedric Kushner Promotion’s monthly "Heavyweight Explosion" series as a training ground and has earned prominent rankings in all of boxing’s major sanctioning bodies. McCline also cut his teeth as a sparring partner for Lennox Lewis, Hasim Rahman, Larry Holmes, Henry Akinwande, Tim Witherspoon, Ray Mercer, Larry Donald, and Andrew Golota. For a fighter who didn’t turn pro until the age of 25, his rise to the top has been expecially impressive. McCline has earned a reputation as a hard worker and fast learner. In addition to standard training regimen, he has staff for strength, running, yoga, swimming, and hypnosis, and at the age of 32, his skills and career appear to be blossoming.

At 6’6’’, 260-pounds, Jameel McCline is a massive heavyweight. Though not a devastating puncher, McCline has floored both Michael Grant and Shannon Briggs. He has speed, strength, good mobility, athleticism, and he’s not easy to hit. He is primarily a boxer with a solid jab, and his excellent work ethic provides stamina not usually expected in such a big man. And yes, he’ll need it all if he’s going to hang with the formidable Wladimir Klitschko.

The 26-year-old Klitschko appears to be on a collision course with Lennox Lewis and his heavyweight title. He has won 15 straight fights since 1998. When Klitschko enters the ring at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, he will be a heavy favorite, and Jameel McCline will need all cylinders firing if he hopes to derail the Klitschko Express.

At the very least, McCline should test Klitschko in this fight. The size, strength, ability, and confidence that Jameel McCline brings to the table will be new to Klitschko, who is used to smaller opponents, and with the exception of Chris Byrd and perhaps Ray Mercer, fighters of substantially less skill. Jameel McCline is confident. He is ready, determined, and expects to win the fight. This in itself will test Klitschko.

McCline must enact an aggressive strategy. That does not mean all-out attack. It means staying awake and working the fight plan, every moment of the fight. Because if he dozes off for one second in a fight with Wladimir Klitschko, it could mean a ten-count. He needs to stay on top of Klitschko, not to trade punches, but to wear him down and smother his power shots. Nobody doubts the towering Ukrainian can whack, and if he drops the iron curtain on McCline, especially in the early going, it could be lights out for the big guy from Port Jefferson, New York.

McCline needs to pitch his battle either inside Klitschko’s power range or outside of it. At some point in this fight, McCline is going to taste Klitschko’s power. If he’s going to win, he’ll need to absorb it and push on. But it is imperative that he not wallow in Klitschko’s eraser zone. McCline must get the fight into the middle, or even better, late rounds, where his superior conditioning and tremendous heart can take hold, dramatically improving his chances for victory.

Wladimir Klitschko is an awesome fighting force with tremendous punching power, but he’s still just a little bit raw and a little bit robotic. This stand-up style can be exploited with a varied, smothering attack which short-circuits the mechanical technique and throws a wrench into the blueprinted fight plan. Can Wladimir Klitschko take a punch? Jameel McCline will need to explore and expose these potential chinks in Klitschko’s armor if he hopes to win the fight.

In the Shannon Briggs’ bout, McCline avoided mixing it up, preferring to stay outside and sharpshoot with his jab. This won’t work with Klitschko. He’ll soon catch up with a timid opponent and take him out, he’s that good. McCline must alter his style for this fight by taking the fight inside to Klitschko. It won’t be the first time a boxer has turned brawler to win a championship.

The vast majority of boxing pundits predict a relatively easy victory for Wladimir Klitschko, but Jameel McCline just might forget to read the papers.

0 comments
 


Bookmark and Share

 

If you detect any issues with the legality of this site, problems are always unintentional and will be corrected with notification.
The views and opinions of all writers expressed on eastsideboxing.com do not necessarily state or reflect those of the Management.
Copyright © 2001- 2015 East Side Boxing.com - Privacy Policy