By Dave Lahr: World Boxing Council heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko (37-2, 36 KO’s) doesn’t truly understand what he’s up against in facing American Chris Arreola (27-0, 24 KO’s) on September 26th. Klitschko, 38, will be facing a perfect knockout machine against the large 250 pound Arreola.

Klitschko may think this is going to be an easy win for him, just like his other two victories against Samuel Peter and Juan Carlos Gomez since coming out of his four year retirement. However, Arreola is a huge knockout puncher with power that rivals former Klitschko conqueror Lennox Lewis.

The effects of Lewis’ punches on Klitschko’s face were evident by the 5th round of their bout in 2003, with Vitali’s left eye and mouth ripped to pieces by Lewis’ big over hand rights and uppercuts.

Arreola is much of the same kind of puncher as Lewis with a big right hand similar to Lewis and an uppercut that he likes to use on the inside. This is a fight where the longer it goes, the more the likelihood that Arreola stops Vitali with one of his big right hands or left hooks.

Since making his comeback last year in October against Peter, Klitschko seems to be fighting at a much slower pace than he did four years ago before he retired from boxing. However, if Klitschko has any chance of winning against Arreola, he has to go after him immediately to try and take Arreola out before his big right hands and uppercuts start to have their effect on Klitschko’s this skin around his eyes.

Klitschko’s skin, for some reason, tends to tear quite easily in his fights, almost like paper. With the power that Arreola has, he’ll have Klitschko’s face looking like a bloody jigsaw puzzle before long if he’s allowed to stick around and trade shots with Klitschko.

There will be no denying Arreola. He’s going to land his shots no matter what defensive strategy that Klitschko deploys. Arreola is too big at 6’4”, and his reach is almost the same as Klitschko at 77”, which means that Arreola will be able to land his long right hands and left hooks without Klitschko being able to lean away to avoid them.

The only way out for Klitschko is to either quit, like he did on his stool in the 9th round against Chris Byrd in 2000, or go toe to toe and beat Arreola down with power shots. There won’t be a decision in this. Arreola will force Klitschko to fight a kind of fight that he hasn’t experienced since Lewis, and unless Klitschko’s will is strong enough and his face can hold up under the pounding from the pounding from Arreola, he’ll be stopped.

Klitschko’s an old man now at 38, showing gray hair all around the sides of his head. It looks as if he might dyed it because I can’t see the gray anymore in recent pictures and video. It doesn’t matter. Vitali is still old and unless he can summon up some of his youth and power from years ago, the talented and powerful Arreola will pound Klitschko into the turf.

I suspect that Arreola will be too powerful for Klitschko and will back him up against the ropes in the first five rounds and have at it until Klitschko collapse in a huge bloody pile on the canvas. It won’t be a pretty sight, I imagine. Wladimir will have to help Vitali up to his feet and take him to his corner where he will be consoled. In the meantime, Arreola will become the first Mexican heavyweight champion of all time. This is going to be quite an achievement for Arreola.