By John F. McKenna (McJack): Vitali Klitschko AKA “Dr Ironfist” (41-2, 38 KO’s) takes on his mandatory challenger Odlanier Solis AKA “La Sombra” (17-0, 12 KO’s) on March 19, 2011 in Germany. In all honesty Vitalii has been doing his best to build up Odlanier as a legitimate threat to his title. Solis had a terrific amateur record (227 Wins – 14 Losses) and won the Olympic Gold Medal at Heavyweight in Athens in 2004. His most notable victory as an amateur was his TKO of David Haye at Heavyweight in the finals of the World Amateur Boxing Championships in 2001. Solis went on to win the World Amateur Boxing Championships at Heavyweight in 2003 and at Super Heavyweight in 2005. He competed at the Super Heavyweight level in the 2005 Pan American Games where he was Champion. He also defeated Sultan Ibragimov twice as an amateur and never lost a major amateur bout.
Since turning pro Solis has put on a huge amount of weight, entering the ring weighing as much as much as 260 lbs, up 50 to 60 lbs from his amateur fighting weight. When questioned about his huge weight gain Solis’s responses have been defensive and he was quoted a couple of months ago as saying “I am able to do more sit ups than anyone I know.” Not something you want to hear if you are the trainer of a fighter who is 6’1”, weighs 260 lbs and is going to fight Vitali Klitschko. To his credit, Solis recently went into the mountains of Germany for some serious high altitude training. The question is will his recent conversion to serious training be too little, too late. Recent pictures of Solis indicate that he has lost a considerable amount of weight around his middle, but he has a way to go before being down to real fighting weight. “La Sombra” is at the point in training where he needs to focus on his technique. He has probably lost as much weight as he is going to. Above all, Solis has to figure out what Vitali’s previous challengers have not been able to, a way to get inside on “Dr. Ironfist” without being destroyed in the process.
Despite the talk in some circles of Vitali slowing down and losing his power, there does not seem to be any evidence of that. In his recent outings Vitali appears at the age of 39 to have improved his skill, delivering his punches from angles that are nearly impossible to defend against. To paraphrase Mark Twain, any rumors of Vitali Klitschko’s demise are highly exaggerated and most likely wishful thinking by those who never liked him anyway and have lost all objectivity.
Let’s look at the facts and the reality of what Odlanier Solis will be facing when he fights Vitali Klitschko on March 19, 2011. Vitali at 6’7”, 253 lbs is always in superb condition and is a very intimidating fighter to face. He uses his awkwardness as a plus and at 6’7”, actually appears taller than he is because of his stand straight up style of fighting. Vitali is extremely difficult to get to and frequently turns his left jab into a hook followed by a punishing right hand. His left is also used as a range finder, making it difficult even for fighters who have a similar reach to get to him. Klitschko has a proven chin of granite that even his detractors do not dispute. In addition, Vitali is a cerebral fighter who always seems to be a step or two ahead of his opponents in his ring strategy during a fight. Since his return to the ring in the fall of 2008, Vitali has won all six fights and has not lost a round. Vitali has never been knocked down and has never been behind in a fight. Couple those stats with his extremely high per round punch output and it becomes increasingly clear how difficult Klitschko is to defeat. More than one fighter had what he thought was a well planned strategy to beat Vitali until climbing into the ring with him. One of Joe Louis’s favorite quotes was “Everybody has a plan until he gets hit.”
It is likely that Odlanier Solis will find out all too quickly how difficult it is to defeat Vitali Klitschko.
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