By James Slater: There isn’t long to go now until World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight king Vitali Klitschko meets Polish hero Tomasz Adamek in the latest defence of his belt. And though most experts feel “Dr. Iron Fist” will have too much strength, size, power and, well, everything for the former light-heavy and cruiserweight ruler known as “Goral,” these same experts concede the fact that Adamek is at the very least a “live” underdog.
And though Vitali is now 40-years-old, he feels as confident as ever approaching what could well be his last, or second-to-last, ring appearance. Not one for trash-talking, Vitali has heaped a ton of praise on his latest challenger, saying he is training for Adamek “as though he is the best fighter in the world at this time.”
Despite acknowledging Adamek’s strengths – his speed and his big heart being two assets Klitschko has touched on – Vitali has also stated that Adamek will not be able to defeat him, “even with a baseball bat.” Klitschko also said he “does not know how anyone can beat me.” It will, as expected, then, be an ultra-confident, perfectly conditioned Klitschko who steps into the ring in front of around 50,000 largely pro-Adamek fans on September 10th.
Vitali sees yet another KO win going in the books, but he doesn’t think he will blast Adamek out; as he did his last opponent, Odlanier Solis who, handicapped by a serious knee injury, went out in the opening round back in March.
“I think I’ll stop him in the 12th,” Vitali said to bokser.org when speaking on Adamek. “We have a special Plan A, [Plan] B – many different strategies. My personal opinion is he’s the best fighter in the world at this time. Adamek moves around the ring perfectly and he has a big heart. However, remember that I am the [natural] heavyweight boxer, and I hit hard.”
Vitali also said that his own speed will be enough to match that of the smaller challenger.
In real terms, though he is fighting at home and bristling with absolute self belief, Adamek will have done extremely well if he sees it to the final bell. The tough Pole is unlikely to play it safe, however, preferring to give it his best shot as promised. This means he will have to engage at some point if he’s to pick up points (Adamek, as powerful as he was down at 175 and 200-pounds aside, can forget about a KO win next month!) – and this will, in my opinion lead to his downfall.
The fight will be interesting, especially in the early rounds as Adamek’s speed and movement causes the six-years-older man some problems. Adamek will make the fight competitive, of that I’m sure. But eventually – probably in the later rounds as he’s predicted – Vitali’s sheer strength and power will begin to take their toll on the brave challenger.
I see a Klitschko TKO win somewhere between the 8th and 10th-rounds.