By Erik Schmidt: With less than three weeks to go before his March 20th fight against American heavyweight contender Eddie Chambers (35-1, 18 KO’s), IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (53-3, 47 KO’s) is looking really bulky, much bigger than usual. In a recent German television program, Klitschko, 33, looked a lot heavier than normal, appearing to weigh above his ordinary weight of 245. Could it be that Klitschko is taking Chambers for granted for this fight? After all, the 6’6” Klitschko will have an enormous height and weight advantage over the 6’1” 209 pound Chambers when they step into the ring on March 20th.

But if Klitschko comes in even heavier at above the mid 240s, the size differences between the two fighters will be even more dramatically pronounced than it already is. Could it be that Klitschko’s new Hollywood girlfriend Hayden Panettiere is causing him to neglect his training? The two have been almost inseparable for the past couple of months and seen together all the time seemingly.

Chambers is an opponent that uses a lot of speed and in and out attacks. This is the type of fighter that you would think that Klitschko would need to come in lighter against rather than bigger to ensure he’s able to move well enough to dominate. In Klitschko’s two fights against the small 6’0” 213 pound Chris Byrd, Wladimir came into both fights at 238 and 241 respectively, both low weights for him.

The lighter weight helped Klitschko with being able to move around the ring and take the fight deep without tiring in the case of their first fight in October 2000. Hopefully, Klitschko isn’t making a mistake of thinking he can come in heavier against Chambers and still win the fight. In Chambers last fight, he beat 6’7” 253 pound Alexander Dimitrenko by a 12 round majority decision last year in July.

Chambers, despite giving up a lot in height and reach to Dimitrenko, was able to use his hand speed and maneuverability to control the fight on the inside. Chambers was also good at getting past Dimitrenko’s jabs, left hooks and right hands by coming in fast and ducking under or blocking his shots on the way in. If Klitschko is in any way slowed from putting on weight, Chambers would make for a long night for him by beating him up on the inside.

Chambers isn’t easy to grab in a clinch, because he keeps throwing punches. Any success that Klitschko had in the past with styling the attacks of his shorter punches by clinching may not work against the elusive Chambers. This fight may come down how well Klitschko is able to land while Chambers is briefly on the outside.

Klitschko could find himself with only a few limited moments to throw his shots before Chambers charges in to work on the inside. If Klitschko’s speed is slowed down because of extra weight that he’s lugging around, this could be an upset win for Chambers.