By Dan Ambrose: In the latest boxing news, IBF heavyweight champion Wladmir Klitschko (50-3, 44 KOs) has reportedly turned down an offer of five million Euro to fight his #1 challenger for his IBF title Alexander Povetkin, according to Bild Zeitung, a German paper. If the story is indeed true, then it means Wladimir has turned down $7 million in U.S dollars to face Povetkin. Klitschko instead is aiming at fighting American Tony Thompson (31-1, 19 KOs), Wladimir’s number #1 challenger for his newly won WBO heavyweight title. Thompson, 36, appears to be the easier option than having to face Povetkin, which perhaps is why Klitschko may be holding off on facing him for the time being.
Klitschko has no option in the future if he wants to continue to hold onto the IBF title due to Povetkin being the mandatory for the title. However, it looks as if Wladimir wants to knock out one more easy fight before having to face the prospects of fighting Povetkin, who would no doubt doubt be a very tough opponent for the 32 year-old Klitschko. It’s doubtful that Wladimir will get anything close to seven million for fighting Thompson, but then again he doesn’t present the same kind of danger that Povetkin does, meaning that Wladimir could get a decent payday against him before taking the Povetkin fight which will considerably more.
By Nate Anderson: Much has been made of IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko’s comments made recently to the BBC Radio 5 Live, saying this about WBA/WBC/WBO cruiserweight champion David Haye (21-1, 20 KOs): “He’s an exciting fighter so why not?…If he wants to bring excitement then I wish him best of luck. He better get himself in the gym and get ready to fight.” However, for those who failed to listen to the audio of the interview, Klitschko was for all practical purposes making fun of Haye, 27, who has been critical of Klitschko since he recently defeated WBO heavyweight champion Sultan Ibragimov in February. 
By Nate Anderson: With yesterday’s news of IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (50-3, 44 KOs) to fight his #1 mandatory for his WBO crown, Tony Thompson (31-1, 19 KOs) next, where does that leave Klitschko’s number one mandatory for his IBF title, Alexander Povetkin? It seems to me that Povetkin just finished winning the right to fight Klitschko next, after Alexander won the IBF tournament to decide who the mandatory challenger would be for Klitschko’s title. Povetkin went through hell to defeat both Chris Byrd and Eddie Chambers, with the assumption that he’d be Wladimir’s next opponent. 
By Jim Slattengren: As WBA/WBC cruiserweight champion David Haye prepares for this Saturday’s bout against WBO cruiserweight champion Enzo Maccarinelli (28-1, 21 KOs) at the O2 Arena (Millenium Dome), Greenwich, in London, United Kingdom, Haye is making it clear that he not only wants to move up to to the heavyweight division after his match with Maccarinelli, but that he also feels that he’ll beat WBO/IBF heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, who is considered to be the premier heavyweight in the division by many fans and sports writers alike. In a recent interview, Haye, 27, had this to say about Klitschko’s recent fight with Sultan Ibragimov:
By Nick Kelly: After Saturday’s rather lacklustre fight there was discussion as the whether Klitschko’s single handed victory merited a place within the top 10 or 15 of boxing’s pound for pound rankings.
By Nick Adams: I was one of the vocal minority who felt that IBF heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (50-3, 44 KOs) was wasting his time in taking a unification fight with WBO heavyweight champion Sultan Ibragimov (22-1-1, 17 KOs) last Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. I thought nothing good could possibly come of such a bout, since few people would bestow upon Wladimir any more respect and love for beating Ibragimov, a fighter that few consider a really talented fighter, than he would get by fighting someone else instead. 
By Eric Schmidt: IBF heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (50-3, 44 KOs) won a listless safety first 12-round unanimous decision over WBO champion Sultan Ibragimov (22-1-1, 17 KOs) tonight at New York’s Madison Square Garden. The bout was important in that Klitschko, 31, unified one of the titles, the WBO, which he took from Ibragimov in getting the victory. Rarely did Klitschko attempt a right hand, mostly using his jab to keep the much smaller Ibragimov on the outside. Though he tried to make a fight of it, Ibragimov was simply too short, too weak and too slow to do much with Wladimir.