Body Blows: What’s Next For The Russians (plus some news)

Columns, News

For all the boxing fans that say the heavyweight division is in a downswing, you wouldn’t know it from reading any headlines. James Toney and Samuel Peter battled to a controversial decision just last week. Evander Holyfield’s comeback attempt is getting mainstream attention. All four holders of the major heavyweight titles were born in Russia and most Americans still can’t get over it. With all that said, let’s take a look ahead in the heavyweight division.

Klitschko and….

After months of searching, Wladimir Klitschko has found an opponent for his IBF Heavyweight title. America has a chance to re-claim a piece of the Heavyweight Title puzzle on November 11, when Kiltschko defends his belt against Calvin Brock.

“I’m very confident that I am going to win and I feel very blessed,” said Brock. “Everyone has been gunning after Klitschko and I am blessed to be the one to get this world title shot. I’m very excited and very happy about everything that is about to take place.”

Klitshcko’s camp had originally offered Brock a title shot in June but the 2000 Olympian turned it down. After a unification bout with Maskaev fell through, and an offer to Shannon Briggs was rejected, Brock was given a better offer and accepted. Calvin Brock is 29-0 (22 KOs) but is taking a step up in class by facing Klitschko. Brock’s biggest win is a unanimous decision over Jameel McCline. Brock was knocked down in that fight but showed heart in getting up from a knockdown and winning the fight.

Klitschko is considered the best of the heavyweight champions and Calvin Brock is considered the best heavyweight without a belt. It should be a good heavyweight fight, but it also has the potential to be a boring jab contest. With Emanuel Steward in his corner, Klitschko will be difficult to beat. Steward will make sure his man doesn’t do any more than he has to in order to get the victory.

Maskaev and….

Samuel Peter’s win over James Toney made him the mandatory challenger to Oleg Maskaev’s WBC title. Unfortunately, Peter and Maskaev aren’t on the same page in terms of scheduling for the fight.

“Sam is ready to fight Maskaev immediately,” says Dino Duva, Samuel Peter’s promoter. “Fighting him for the WBC heavyweight title is the only thing on Sam’s mind right now. We want to make this fight sometime before the end of the year.”

Maskaev is looking to defend his title in mid-December but Peter is not among the rumored challengers. Maskaev is allowed to make a voluntary title defense against someone other than Sam Peter as long as the fight takes place before the end of the year. After that fight, Peter would be next in line.

Maskaev is likely going to defend his title in Moscow. He probably wants an easier fight than Peter would give him so could have a sure win in front of his hometown fans. If Maskaev decides to delay the fight with Peter, and I think he will, his opponent will probably be Peter Okhello. You’ve never heard of Okhello and you should consider yourself better for it. He is 18-4 (16 KOs) but most of his wins were against Japanese heavyweights. The Japanese are known for a lot of good things, but heavyweight boxers are not at the top of their list. The Japanese haven’t had a capable heavyweight since Piston Honda.

Valuev and….

Nicolay Valuev is the only heavyweight champion with an undefeated record. That would usually be enough to make the claim that Valuev is the best heavyweight, but not in this case. Valuev won the title from John Ruiz in a close decision, but Ruiz is known for clinching more often than punching. Other than Ruiz, Valuev has no quality wins. That why it makes sense that his next opponent isn’t a quality opponent.

At 7 feet tall and 320 lbs, Valuev has that freakish appeal that Don King is waiting to exploit. Best not to expose Valuev before a big payday can be reached. That’s why Valuev’s next fight will be against Monte Barrett. Barrett hasn’t fought in over a year since an embarrassing loss to Hasim Rahman. Barrett also holds losses to Joe Mesi and Wladimir Klitschko. Barrett was down five times in his fight against Klitschko.

Valuev will fight Barrett on HBO Oct. 7th. It will be Valuev’s first national broadcast and I’m sure Barrett was hand-picked as an easy introductory win to the American audience. Valuev will knock him out in six rounds and move on to big things in 2007.

Liakhovich and….

Sergei Liakhovivh, 23-1 (14 KOs), is the least heralded of the heavyweight champions. He defeated Lamon Brewster to win the WBO title in a vicious brawl. Despite his lack of notoriety, Liakhovich is easily the most fun heavyweight to watch in the ring. He is willing to punch and seems to come from the “You have to take a punch to throw a punch” school of boxing. Bad for him. Good for us.

Liakhovich will step into the ring on November 4th to defend his title against Shannon Briggs. Briggs was rumored to be an opponent for Klitschko but backed out when he found he could fight Liakhovich instead. Good decision by Briggs. Briggs has won his last 11 fights, with his last loss being a 2002 decision to Jameel McCline. This fight will be broadcast live on Showtime and ought to be the most entertaining of all the upcoming heavyweight title fights.

Holyfield and….

While Evander Holyfield is not defending any titles, his comeback is just about the biggest story in the heavyweight division. Evander’s next opponent will be Fres Oquendo. The fight is scheduled for November 10th, and will take place in the Alamodome in San Antonio. The fight will be Fox Sports’ first venture into the world of PPV. That’s a shame. The last thing boxing needs is another pay-per-view carrier.

“I am asked all the time why I still fight,” Holyfield said at a news conference Thursday. “My answer is always the same. I want to reach my goal. And that goal is to become a world champion one more time.”

Fres Oquendo is certainly a step up from Jeremy Bates, but not quite the top 10 contender Holyfield said he was going to fight next. Oquendo is 33-years-old with a record of 26-3 (16 KOs). He is the type of fighters that championship contenders beat. Oquendo doesn’t have any big wins, but his three losses came to David Tua, Chris Byrd, and John Ruiz.

Evander shouldn’t get in the ring with a top 10 heavyweight and Oquendo was the perfect choice. If Oquendo wins, Holyfield will know it’s time to retire (if that’s possible). Depending on how Holyfield looks if he wins the fight, we will know if Evander truly has what it takes to become heavyweight champion once again.

Results From Last Week

– Cornelius Bundrage defeated Walter Wright by unanimous decision to advance to the semi-finals in The Contender.

– Chris John retained his WBA Featherweight Title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Renan Acosta. John has had the title for three years and made his sixth successful defense of his title.

– Oliver McCall, best known for literally crying during a fight with Lennox Lewis, scored a 4th round TKO over Darroll Wilson. Both fighters are 40+ years of age so no one really cares about the fight. Wilson announced his retirement but unfortunately, McCall seems like he is going to keep on fighting.

– Heavyweight prospect Travis Kauffman won via second round KO against Alan Prescott.

Spit Bucket

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Check out the latest episode of The Ultimate Fighter.

Tom Pandich returns with Gaming Zen!

Donnie Darko was stupid.

It looks like this is the last edition of Body Blows as you know it. Inside Pulse will have a new look next week and I will have a new home. Please join me and all my barbaric colleagues as we venture into the world of combat sports. Check out this preview of Inside Fights for a taste of what’s to come. I’ll see you there next week with a review of the Marco Antonio Barrera/Rocky Juarez rematch.