Fury vs. Klitschko: A Virtual Chess Match of Attrition…

By j80caldwell - 11/30/2015 - Comments

klitschko#9By J Caldwell: The science of boxing never seems to amaze, showing fans just how unpredictable some mega-fights can be. Just when we think we’re finally going to get a war of attrition between two really big heavyweights, this same probable war slowly metastasized into a virtual chess match of sort. It became very apparent, (especially after watching the first two rounds of the boxing match, at least) what Tyson Fury (25-0, 18 KOs) came to do in the biggest night of his career with his win over IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (64-4, 53 KOs).

Using his reach, height and lateral movement to an advantage, the young Brit braggadocios’ game plan, (at least in the early rounds) appeared to be more along the lines of staying away from the aging Ukrainian’s rocket of a right hand—the rest of the fight would play out pretty much the same way, with an occasional flurry of punches thrown from Fury in the mid-rounds.

As for the other really big guy in the opposite corner, Wladimir Klitschko (64-4, 53 KOs) not only entered the packed Dusseldorf’s arena as a 4-1 favorite to retain his WBO, IBA, WBA, IBF titles, but (with an 80% KO ratio, and a rather impressive resume for the heavyweight division) the 39 year Ukrainian Hall of Famer, entered the ring as one of the most feared men in all of boxing.

In fact, former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, had all but written off his fellow countrymen, stating before the fight that Tyson Fury didn’t have what it took to fight someone of Wladimir’s caliber. Lewis’ theory was mainly based on the similar sizes of the two big men, and how that would play a major factor to Fury’s ultimate demise in the ring against a man his own size sort of speak.

Could this fight have been another Lennox vs. Vitali?

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Ideally, a fight of this magnitude, (and with so much on the lines for both men) you would’ve like to see the big fellows duke it out a bit more, much in the likes of the classic slugfest between Lennox and Vitali, the older of the two Klitschko brothers. In deference to Fury’s “boxer-poser” style, you get the sense what was really apart of Fury’s strategy (e.g., mind games) after all: Fury used an Ali like gift of gab to not only agitate the stoic nature of Wladimir, the younger of the two Klitschko brothers, but the man from Manchester, (on the eve of the biggest fight of his career) used old-school pre-fight rabble-rousing to give his opponent the impression that he was preparing for an all-out war the night of the fight, but what he was really coming to do, (much to the delight of the average casual fan) was showcase his talents as a master boxer, utilizing a somewhat “throwback” Ali style to dethrone a modern-day version of a kind of mid-aged George Foreman.

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The thing about using a very classic “boxer- poser” style on the biggest fight of your life is this: 1) Casual fans now are going to label you an impostor; 2) Die-hard fans are now put into a very unique position, confused perhaps as to whether Tyson Fury truly has what it takes to dominate the heavyweight division; and in that same vein 3) The heavyweight division, is now ruled by a guy who has claimed the titles in a not so traditional manner, preferring instead to “box and pose” as oppose to staying in the line of fire and battling it out like two really big guys are supposed to.

So, what happened to war of attrition we were promised?

Fans will be the judge. Perhaps better inquires as to what transpired last night are these: Can Tyson Fury continue his streak of wins posing as a chess playing master boxer in a division laden with really big boxer-power-punchers; to be exact, does his rather whimsical ways in the ring poses a direct threat to both Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder’s titles?”

To say the least, Joshua and Wilder shouldn’t be shaking in their shoes, especially after watching either man do their things Saturday night. Alas, you get the general impression, Joshua and Wilder will both be waiting in haste; that is, of course, Fury truly poses a true threat to both men’s titles. Albeit, Fury demonstrated that he can box when he needs to, (going on to win the fight with scores of 115-112 twice and 116-111) you get the general impression the young Mancunian, would rather, (especially against really big guys that can punch) trade in his boxing gloves for catchers mitts, catching and striking a pose every time a power punch is pitched his way.



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