by James Slater – It has been confirmed, by ESPN.com, that reigning WBC heavyweight king Vitali Klitschko will fight next on October 16th in Germany. “Dr. Iron Fist,” now aged 39 and looking towards retirement, wants most of all a fight with WBA ruler David Haye, the man who has done a great job at getting underneath the skin of both Klitschko brothers, but it looks like the senior brother will instead face former lineal champ Shannon Briggs..
Bernd Boente informed Dan Rafael of ESPN.com that “The Cannon” is the leading candidate to face Vitali in October, but that this fight is not a done deal yet. So, with it looking as though the fans will have to wait until next summer until finally getting to see Haye face either Klitschko (if even then), the paying customers will have to make do with seeing Wladimir in a rematch with Sam Peter in September, and then big brother Vitali taking on an as yet confirmed foe, most likely Briggs, the following month.
If it is 38-year-old Briggs, 51-5-1(45) who gets the call to challenge Vitali, the Brooklyn man will get his chance to live up to the pre-fight predictions he has been making. Sure he has what it takes to bring a belt back to the U.S, Briggs has many times condemned both Klitschkos for not giving the fans the action they deserve. Haye too has been highly critical of both giants from Ukraine, yet he has gone very quiet as of late, with no next fight currently in the pipeline for him (could it even be that “The Hayemaker” remains inactive until next year?). At least Briggs appears ready and willing to step up to the plate and actually fight Vitali, 40-2(38) if and when the final paperwork arrives. But what kind of a fight can today’s version of Briggs give the iron-chinned champ?
Fans everywhere are aware of Briggs’ past stamina problems; problems that saw to it that he fought effectively for a limited number of rounds in a good number of bouts. Suffering from asthma, Briggs has reportedly been undergoing a hard roadwork regimen so as to help build his stamina levels. But will it be the same old Briggs against the WBC boss in October? If it is, we can probably expect the still-dangerous puncher to cause the champion, who he measures up to well in terms of height, reach and weight, an argument in the early rounds. However, unless Briggs is able to cause the shock and take the unstoppable-looking (Vitali has, after all, been halted on injuries only – by Chris Byrd and then by Lennox Lewis) champion’s belt in quick fashion, it’s likely Vitali will come on strong and get his next win.
Briggs’ best shot is surely to come out like a train and try his hardest to catch the slow starting 39-year-old before Vitali has a chance to get into his usual groove. It’s a long shot that these tactics actually work, but Briggs doesn’t look too much like the fighter capable of defeating Klitschko in a battle of attrition type rumble, does he?
Last time out, Vitali was given a reasonable challenge by the game Albert Sosnowski. Briggs may not last as long as the Pole did, but there is a chance he could cause some early-rounds excitement before exiting. If Briggs does get the date, look for a good action fight for around three or four rounds, before the active WBC champ (the October bout will be Vitali’s fourth in a little over a year – not bad, especially for a guy pushing forty) begins to dominate the action as his challenger tires. Unless, that is, Briggs HAS somehow managed to increase his stamina and wind at this late stage in his career.