By Chris Williams: Not too many people are giving heavyweight contender Chris Arreola (26-0, 23 KOs) much of a chance at beating IBF/WBO champion Wladimir Klitschko (52-3, 46 KOs) in their rumored bout for the Spring, but unlike some of them, I think that Arreola has a very real chance at beating the 32-year-old Klitschko. Of course, Arreola’s only hope is to try cutting off real estate on Wladimir and force him into a fight rather than allowing him to jab at a distance.
The good thing that Arreola has going for him is that he always turns his fight into a series of battles, rarely letting his opponents stay on the outside and jab away at him. This is exactly what happened in Arreola’s fight with Chazz Witherspoon in June 2008, a bout in which the 6’4” Witherspoon attempted to use his reach and boxing ability to jab Arreola from the outside and keep him at a distance.
Witherspoon quickly found out that things don’t work like that against Arreola, who cut off the ring on him like an expert, staying close to Witherspoon, not letting him get any space and pounding him at close range. For those that have seen Witherspoon fight, his style is almost identical to Wladimir Klitschko’s pattern of fighting, whom he spars with at times.
Witherspoon uses the same jab-left hook and right hand combination that Wladimir likes to use in his fights, and likes to keep things at a distance where he can take advantage of his size advantage. Against Arreola, though, Witherspoon was neutralized almost immediately, unable to jab or get distance from the constantly mauling Arreola.
Without the ability to get space, Witherspoon was helpless to fend off the big shots from Arreola at close range and was punished unmercifully for three rounds, ending with two knockdowns in the 3rd. I see the same thing happening with Wladimir, the same kind of fighter that likes to keep things on the outside rather than in close.
In fact, Wladimir is a poor fighter on the inside, unskilled at throwing an uppercut or hooks at that distance. Unlike other tall fighters like Lennox Lewis and Riddick Bowe, both of whom had a great uppercut that they could throw with either hand when shorter fighters pressured them at close range, Wladimir only is able to clinch.
That’s worked for him during the course of his career because he’s not faced any talented pressure fighters except for Ross Puritty, Lamon Brewster and Corrie Sanders, all of who have wins over Wladimir. I think we’ll be seeing another loss for him if he decides on fighting Arreola.
Forget about Arreola’s lack of professional experience, he’s got a ton of amateur experience, even more than Wladimir, which makes him more than ready for a fight with the big Ukrainian. What this fight will end boiling down to is the American style of fighting, which includes a lot of in fighting, going up against a stand up European style, known for throwing a lot of jabs, staying on the outside and not doing well at the inside aspect of fighting. With Arreola dictating how the fight will be fought, Wladimir will be way in over his head in this fight and will lose badly.
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