By John F. McKenna (McJack): It has long been this writers opinion that World Boxing Council (WBC) Heavyweight Champion Vitali Klitschko (44-2, 39 KO’s) is way underrated as a fighter. While boxing fans in Eastern Europe have long looked at “Dr. Ironfist” as a great fighter, boxing fans in the USA have been slow to recognize just how good a fighter he is.

Let’s take a look at a possible reason why Vitali Klitschko is under estimated in the United States as a fighter and as a champion. Going way back to John L. Sullivan, who was the first recognized Heavyweight Champion of the World, and an American, almost all of the Heavyweight Champions have come from the USA. Max Schmeling and Primo Carnera in the 1930’s and Ingemar Johansson in 1959 were notable exceptions to the rule and in each case they were just brief interludes. After holding the title for a year or so the title came back to its rightful place in the United States where it belonged. Growing up in the United States that was the way it was supposed to be. It was okay if a fighter from somewhere else won a lesser title, but the Heavyweight Champion had to come from the good old USA. It was even thought that fighters in Europe did not really know how to fight that well. And forget about Eastern Europe, they were locked behind the Iron Curtain in the then Soviet Union. They were awkward and clumsy anyway. They could never compete with the slick fighters from America. We Americans were smug in our arrogance.

Then the Berlin Wall came down and the Soviet Block fell. I remember thinking at the time that when some of these guys who had been behind the Iron Curtain and were now free had the opportunity some pretty good fighters were going to be coming out of there.
The handwriting was on the wall. It was only a matter of time. We had all seen some of the tremendous athletes who participated in the Olympics who came from Eastern Europe.

Vitali Klitschko and his brother Vladimir came out of that system. Vitali was hardened by his formative years growing up in the Soviet Union. It made him a tougher individual.
When Vladimir speaks of his older brother he says that Vitali was born a fighter, while he had to work at it.

When you look at Vitali Klitschko’s career it is nothing short of amazing. His first big fight on the world stage was against all time great Lennox Lewis in 2003. He put up a tremendous fight and had a two round lead on the score cards when the fight had to be stopped due to a horrific fight. Lennox retired rather than give Vitali a Mega Bucks rematch. There are those who say because of that fight that Vitali is a bleeder, but he has not had a significant problem in other fights with cuts.

For the record Vitali has never been behind in a fight. He has a chin of granite and has never been knocked down or even hurt in a fight. Although he appears awkward he maximizes his athletic ability and his 6’7 ½” height. He uses his left hand as a range finder, making it difficult for opponents to get close enough to land a punch. When an opponent gets past his left jab he usually makes him pay for it by clubbing him with a short left hook or his potent right hand.

Sine returning to the ring in 2008 after a four year layoff due to injuries Viali instead of slowing down only appears to have gotten getting better. He has won virtually every round of the seven fights he has had sine his return to the ring.

So how does Klitschko stack up against past champions? First of all boxing fans, including this writer tend to look at past champions through rose colored glasses.
We tend to see what we want to see and overlook the obvious.

Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano were my three favorite Heavyweight Champions. The shocker is that Dempsey was 6’1” and weighed only 185 pounds. Marciano was 5’10” and weighed about the same as Dempsey, 185 pounds. Joe Louis was 6’1” and throughout most of his career went into the ring at about 200 pounds.
Louis of the three would have the best chance against Vital, but let’s be realistic. Giving away 6 inches in height and fifty pound in weight it is difficult to see how Louis could close the gap against the huge Ukrainian. Louis faced some big heavyweights in his twenty five title defenses such as the 6’6” Buddy Bear, but Baer had nowhere near the skill of Vitali and did not use his height wisely.

Fighters like Sonny Liston and Joe Frazier would also be at a major disadvantage. Liston was 6’1” and went into the ring in his first fight with then Cassius Clay at 214 pounds. Clay weighed 210 pounds for that fight. Joe Frazier weighed just 206 pounds in his first fight with Ali.

Kenny Norton won his first fight with Ali and the 2nd and 3rd fights could have gone either way. Norton seemed to have a style that Ali just could not figure out. Norton tipped the scales at about 211 pounds for most of his fights.

Obviously there are numerous fighters that have not been mentioned, but the point is clear. Fighters of even twenty years ago would have a major problem competing against today’s super heavyweights. The thought of a fighter who weighs less than 200 pounds getting a shot at the title today is laughable. When Liston fought Clay in 1964 they were both considered to be huge fighters.

It is time to reassess our old ideas at how we rank the great heavyweights. And it is a bitter pill for Americans to face, but they are not coming from the USA anymore.