By James Slater: Last seen crumbling to the floor in great pain in his disappointing challenge of WBC heavyweight king Vitali Klitschko, 31-year-old Odlanier Solis has had knee surgery and is ready to return to the ring. The Cuban amateur standout who captured Olympic gold will face little-known German Varlo Vekiloglu in Germany on October 14th, with the IBF Intercontinental strap on the line.
Solis, 17-1(12) talked a great fight going into the March challenge of Klitschko, but the fight was over with so quickly fans never had a chance to see whether or not he could back up his words. For his part, Solis says he realized in the fight how “easy” Vitali is to beat. The German-based Cuban went on to say that he still believes he will become world champion one day and that no-one can stop him “as long as my knee holds.”
But will Solis’ knee hold? And will the fans risk paying to see him fight knowing there is a chance the action could be short-lived if the knee problem flairs up again?
Against 28-year-old Vekiloglu, 18-2-1(10), Solis should be able to ease his way back into action as he tests his knee. Known as “The Restless Lion,” Vekiloglu has never been stopped but he has faced a lot of unknown names in his five-year pro career. Not only that, but Vekioglu is really a blow up cruiserweight. Boxing mostly in Germany, with one fight taking place in Austria, Vekiloglu is pretty much an unknown figure – at least to U.S fight fans. He has been active though, with four wins picked up this year.
Before the Klitschko fight, Solis was looked at by some as the best, most naturally gifted heavyweight contender out there. Some of his critics say Solis’ excess weight was a contributing factor in his knee blowing out, however, and the 6’1” contender’s discipline has been questioned a number of times. Hopefully he will get himself down to a reasonable weight for his first comeback bout – say somewhere in the low 240s (he was a fraction over 246 for Klitschko, a vast improvement on previous fights where he tipped-in at or around the 270 mark).
Promoter Ahmet Oener has not given up on Solis, and he too feels his man was on his way to beating Vitali before the knee went out. That is debatable to say the least, but one loss does not equal a finished career. Fans will always have that knee issue uppermost in their minds when Solis fights, though.
Look for him to pound out a late-rounds stoppage over Vekiloglu in October. A quick and impressive KO would be a far more encouraging statement of intent, however.