Vitali Klitschko suffers hand injury, will miss remainder of 2013

vitali9By Allan Fox: It’s already been 11 months since WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko (45-2, 41 KO’s) last defended his World Boxing Council title in an optional title defense against Manuel Charr last September, and now it looks like it’s going to be a lot longer before he defends his trap because the 42-year-old fighter reportedly has injured his right hand in training.

The injury will require the 42-year-old Vitali to miss the remainder of 2013, and his mandatory challenger, #1 WBC, Bermane Stiverne is not pleased about it. He wants his title shot, and he’s tired of waiting for Vitali to get around to finally defending his WBC title.

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Deontay Wilder doubts the Klitschko brothers will want to fight him now

deontay4444By Scott Gilfoid: Unbeaten heavyweight contender Deontay Wilder (29-0, 29 KO’s) put the heavyweight division on notice that he’s a force to be reckoned with after his impressive 1st round knockout win over Sergei Liakhovoch last Saturday night in Indio, California.

That was Deontay’s 29th straight knockout, and his goal is to knockout his first 30 opponents. After that, all Deontay wants is to capture a world title.

Getting an opportunity to fight for a world title may prove to be difficult for Deontay, because the Klitschko brothers aren’t likely to hand-pick Deontay for a fight when there are so many marks for them to fight.

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Sprott: The Klitschkos will have to fight Fury if he beats David Haye

fury1By Scott Gilfoid: 38-year-old journeyman fighter Michael Sprott, who is currently helping Britain’s heavyweight contender Tyson Fury (21-0, 15 KO’s) get ready for his September 28th fight against David Haye (26-2, 24 KO’s), believes that the Klitschkos will be in a spot where they’ll have to fight the 6’9” Fury, #5 WBC, #5 WBO, if he beats Haye next month.

Sprott said this as quoted by Fightnews “He [Fury] is very hungry and he really wants it. He knows there are big fights that can come from this. If he gets past David Haye then the Klitschkos will have to fight him.”

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The Heavyweight State of Affairs

By Ivan Ivanov: The heavyweight division today is almost riding into the sunset as far as casual fan interest and mainstream media coverage is concerned. The Klitshkos were dropped from the pay-per-view circuits and even if the move was justified, no one has filled the void. I am not complaining, we get to see heavyweight championship fights for free in real time.

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WBC gives Vitali an extension on purse bid for Stiverne fight

vitali35By Allan Fox: WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko (45-2, 41 KO’s) has reportedly been given an extension by the World Boxing Council after asking for one for his purse bid with mandatory challenger Bermane Stiverne (23-1-1, 20 KO’s). It’s unknown what Vitali is waiting for as far as the purse bid goes. He seems to want to take the fight, but he’s postponed the purse bid twice.

Stiverne’s manager Camille Estephan isn’t happy about it, and he’s wondering what’s going on with the 42-year-old Vitali. Estephan doesn’t understand why Vitali keeps getting extension after extension for the purse bid.

Estephan said to ESPN “It’s a bit frustrating to hear only two days before the scheduled purse bid that it has once again been postponed. We are waiting for a new date…the longer Klitschko plays politics rather than man up and fight, the more ready we will be and the older he will get. Bermane will KO him.”

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Haye hoping to get Wladimir or Vitali fight after Fury bout

haye1By Scott Gilfoid: If former WBA heavyweight champion David Haye (26-2, 24 KO’s) is able to beat Tyson Fury (21-0, 15 KO’s) in their fight on September 28th in Manchester, UK, Haye is hoping that one of the Klitschko brothers, Vitali or Wladimir, will choose to fight him.

This is the reason why he chose to fight the 6’9” Fury, because in his mind it will catapult him into a fight with one of the huge Ukrainian Klitschkos.

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Vitali Klitschko turns 42 today; still no word when he’ll defend his WBC title

vitali35By Allan Fox: WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko (45-2, 41 KO’s) turns 42-years-old today on July 19th, and the big question is how much longer will he go before he finally makes his next title defense.

It’s been 10 months and yet he still doesn’t have an opponent picked out. You would have to imagine that if he were to pick an opponent out for his next defense it would still likely take him 2 or 3 months before he finally gets in the ring.

That means that a year would have gone by before Vitali had last defended his title. The World Boxing Council quickly gave former WBC super middleweight champion Andre Ward a status of “Champion in recess” four months after he won the title from Carl Froch after Ward injured his shoulder in training for another bout.

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The Monday Supplement: Heavyweight Boxing, What Is Going On?

wilder46By Ciaran McKinney: Once upon a time, the heavyweight boxing scene was set alight by names such as Cassius Clay, Joe Frazier, Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis, Joe Lewis and Rocky Marciano, to name but a few. For as long as one could recall, when these warriors plied their trade in the 200lbs and over category, they captivated spectators the world over, other divisions paled into a certain insignificance, certainly when it came to live gates, viewing figures and pay per view purchases.

It has been over 11 years since there has been a bout that can fairly be referred to as a ‘Super Fight’. This battle took place between Lennox Lewis and ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson. The capacity crowd in Memphis, Tennessee witnessed a battle between two fighters that were indeed past their resplendent and brutal best.

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Haye hoping to face Vitali Klitschko in 2014

haye213By Scott Gilfoid: #7 WBC, David Haye (26-2, 24 KO’s) says he’s hoping to get a fight against WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko (45-2, 41 KO’s) in 2014. Haye seems to have changed his mind about wanting to target IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko for some reason and now he’s back to trying to get a fight with Vitali.

This situation seems a hopeless one for the 32-year-old Haye, as he’s not ranked high enough to force a fight with Vitali in 2014, and chances are that the big 6’7” Ukrainian will choose to retire next year, if he doesn’t do it this year.

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