28.05.05 – By Michael Amakor: On May 28th Germany’s, Luan “The Lion” Krasniqi knocked out NABA Heavyweight and WBO NABO Heavyweight Champion Lance Whitaker in the sixth round to become the mandatory challenger for the WBO Heavyweight Belt currently held by Lamon Brewster at the Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle, Stuttgart in far away Germany.. Whitaker, who was the number one ranked WBO contender before this bout, usually talks a good game, and for this fight he went the extra step by enlisting the services of Steve “Crocodile” Fitch – Mike Tyson’s former sunglassed, military style, loud talking, motivator to add to the intimidation quotient to his entourage.
Whitaker appeared to be in shape as he worked out for the press in the pre-fight hype, as the Crocodile repeatedly predicted the destruction of the Lion to all. Whitaker backed up by the threats of his entourage and a Crocodile even refused to shake hands with a villianized Krasniqi, who pushed him, igniting a scuffle that nearly degenerated into a laughable riot with Whitaker threatening “I’m gonna knock him out today, I’m not gonna wait “til tomorrow.” All these antics built up our expectations for a great long fight.
The bout was a stark contrast to all the Whitaker pre-fight braggadio, as a seemingly angry Krasniqi comprehensively out-boxed him through the first five rounds, before unleashing a right cross to the head in the sixth round that put Whitaker flat on his back for the first time in his career. We all stared in horror as Whitaker was unable to raise his 253.5 pound, six feet foot eight inch frame from off the canvas, forcing the referee to halt the contest at the 2:33 mark of the round. Amazing.
Prior to this fight, not much was known about Krasniqi, since he has restricted most of his campaigns across the pond in Europe. To his credit, he is the reigning European Heavyweight Champion and has so far amassed a record of twenty seven victories, suffering only one defeat and a draw. This victory against a high caliber veteran like Whitaker, has finally showcased Krasniqi’s ability on the world stage and catapulted him into the seventh ranked heavyweight in the world slot.
A review of his record shows decision wins over vaguely recognizable fighters like Sanil Sam Samil, Julius Francis and a draw against Timo Hoffman. Most boxing fans are going to place him as a favorite to dethrone Lamon Brewster for the WBO Crown but boxing experts should be wary of jumping on this bandwagon as ramrod stiff European style fighters are extremely prone to American uppercuts. His true pedigree will be revealed after the Brewster fight- That is if the fight even happens.
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