08.04.04 – By Paul Ruby – Over the course of the next three weeks, Corrie Sanders, Chris Byrd, both Klitschko brothers, John Ruiz, and many of the heavyweight division’s upper echelon of fighters will all enter the ring. No single month in recent memory has begun with as much potential for finding answers to questions about the division’s future as April, 2004. The pessimistic view is that the division is in a shambles and this is a historically feeble era. While I cannot argue against those claims, I’ll try to accentuate the positives about the coming weeks. I can list countless reasons that these scheduled fights are intriguing in their own ways. I’ll pose the questions I’m anxious to see answered and then briefly address each of the fights:?
1. Is Vitali Klitschko truly the next dominant force in the heavyweight division?
2. Is the Corrie Sanders who demolished Wladimir Klitschko going to show against Vitali?
3. How will Andrew Golota react mentally and physically to an opponent whose bread-and-butter is frustrating his opponents into submission?
4. Is Fres Oquendo as talented as he appeared against Chris Byrd, or was his performance largely a result of Byrd’s tactical errors?
5. Does Lamon Brewster bring anything to the table that Fabio Moli or Dannell Nicholson did not??
Wladimir Klitschko vs. Lamon Brewster
Chronologically the first fight of this blockbuster month, I see the clash between Wladimir Klitschko and Lamon Brewster as a fairly run-of-the-mill type of affair. I would hope this is the last phase in the rebuilding process of Wladimir’s career after getting dramatically (and quickly) stopped in two round by Corrie Sanders over a year ago. Credit Wlad for getting back on the horse quickly after a bad defeat, but, at the same time, let us not get too carried away given the caliber of his opponents.
Lamon Brewster is a decent fighter, but he’s also a flawed fighter. I would compare his level, but not his style, to that of Dannell Nicholson. Brewster is a relatively big hitter as his 26 KO’s in 29 wins will attest. That said, he’s lost decisions to both Charles Shufford and Clifford Ettienne. The glass-half-full view of Lamon Brewster is that he has not lost a fight since 2000. The glass-half-empty view of him is that he has fought only 5 times since then, with only a single win in 2003 to his credit- a TKO 3 over a 300+-pounder with a 9-17-3 record to his name. One thing Brewster does have in his favor is what we can call ‘The Buster Douglas Factor.’ He lost the man who was his trainer, mentor, and father-figure last October in Bill Slayton. Brewster should arrive in great shape and try hard to honor Slayton’s memory.
Will that be enough? Personally, I would doubt it- it seems obvious to me that Brewster lacks the innate physical gifts of Buster Douglas.. I would comment, though, that Brewster has not appeared to be afraid of Wladimir in any of the pre-fight hype events, but I just do not believe he’s got the fire power to truly test Wladimir. I understand the rationale behind Wlad taking fights like this, but I cannot see it truly helping his status within the division or doing anything to dispel the persistent comments that he does not take a punch well and he is just another protected European fighter. Personally, I predict that Brewster will come out of the gate too hard in this fight and I’m going to look for him to get stopped early. My pick here is that Wladimir Klitschko wins by an impressive TKO 3 when Brewster walks into a big left hook. Wladimir holds essentially every advantage in here, but his biggest asset against Brewster should be his considerable speed advantage.
Questions will remain about Wladimir and his chin after this fight. Questions will also exist about the impact of Manny Steward in his corner. One thing I’ll say about Steward is that he did wonders for another big hitter with a questionable chin in Tommy Hearns. Still, Wlad is no Tommy, and Fritz Sdunek remains Wlad’s head trainer. Basically, I would hope that this is Wlad’s last confidence building fight before he returns to taking on the Top-20 caliber guys he should be facing. I think we all know that his talent is tough to question after seeing the fights with Chris Byrd and Jameel McCline and we, as fans, are anxious to see whether that night last March with Corrie Sanders was a fluke or whether Wladimir will finally earn the elite place in heavyweight boxing that his talents merit.
John Ruiz vs. Fres Oquendo
Fres Oquendo can fight. He is the one who discovered the secret to beating Cliff Etienne, flooring him numerous times en route to a TKO stoppage. He is the one who was beating David Tua until Tua unloaded on him, halting that fight prematurely. And, most notably, Fast Fres more than held his own against Chris Byrd, dropping a decision most felt he deserved.
John Ruiz really cannot fight. He can hold, clinch, and smother. Fighting, though, is not his strong suit. John Ruiz’s talents in the ring can be questioned, but his determination cannot. Although I’m not entertained by his style, I recognize a guy who is out there fighting for a decent check to provide for his family. If you divide talent by dollars, John Riuz is perhaps the most successful boxer of this era.
John Ruiz is a known commodity. The questions here revolve around Fres Oquendo. Even the most casual observer knows that a short stocky fighter like David Tua can be outboxed, but did Fres also manage to outbox the slippery Chris Byrd or was his success there a product of Byrd’s weak game-planning and preparation? Those are the questions that their fight at Madison Square Garden, the world’s most famous arena, will address. I would anticipate that this fight goes the distance. I would love to see Fres Oquendo win, but John Ruiz is a tough guy to fight. Physically, he’s ordinary, but he mentally refuses to change his style. He’s a decent fighter when he can land his right hand, but I think Fres is ready to elevate himself into the upper echelon of heavyweights today.
Chris Byrd versus Andrew Golota
Frank Lotierzo recent wrote an accurate and honest critique of Andrew Golota that can be found on this site. There’s no reason for me to re-hash the valid points he brought to bear there. Honestly, I think Byrd is a bad opponent for Golota. His game is all about frustrating his opponent. Golota has shown a tendency to produce interesting, but not always good results, when he grows frustrated.
The biggest question mark here is whether or not the Foul Pole will do something that results in a disqualification or, worse yet, injury to his opponent. I’ve made no bones about my disdain for Byrd’s pawing style, but the man can be quite effective. He performed poorly against Oquendo recently, but I’m going to look for him to get back to the Chris Byrd who danced circles around Evander Holyfield in late 2002. I’m not crazy about his inactivity of late, but Chris lives a very clean lifestyle and is always in great shape so I don’t think this will really have much of an effect on his performance. Honestly, I don’t understand how anyone who’s seen Golota’s two comeback fights against club-level competition can believe he still has the speed or jab to trouble Chris Byrd all that much. That said, he’s unpredictable, he’s entertaining, and he’s white- three things that equate to dollars in the heavyweight division. You can bet that Don King will do all in his power to get Golota a win. With that in mind, I’m sticking with Byrd by a wide UD or DQ.
Vitali Klitschko vs. Corrie Sanders
More impressive than his monumental punching power and devastating right hand in his loss to Lennox Lewis and his blow-out of Kirk Johnson was the confidence Vitali Klitschko showed in the ring those nights. He proved, in both winning and losing, that he is worthy of the title of ‘Champion’ in a way that few thought he could after retiring early against Chris Byrd. Just as impressive was the devastating power and killer instinct shown by South African Corrie Sanders when he blew out Vitali’s younger brother just over a year ago.
Unfortunately, Corrie Sanders has not fought since then and his window may have closed. Then again, a lefty with power and speed like Sanders’ will have a chance against anyone at any time, anywhere they fight. I have not though about this month’s last major event enough to make a prediction quite yet as to who will win, but I will make one prediction here and now: This fight will not go to the scheduled 12 rounds.
Closing Comments
It’s truly unfortunate that among the division’s elite today are a number of boring, defensive-minded fighters. There are few heavyweights that can provide the fireworks that made the division boxing’s most glamorous. That said, you and I cannot do anything to fix that. We cannot make James Toney recover faster. We cannot make Jameel McCline more aggressive. We cannot make Mike Tyson 24 again. We cannot make Wladimir Klitschko take a punch like David Tua. We cannot make John Ruiz move like Muhammad Ali. We cannot make Chris Byrd set his feet when he throws his punches. We can, though, make the best of what we’ve got. And this month is the best one of heavyweight boxing we’ve had in a while.