We needn't recount the waste land that has become the heavyweight division in recent years. Everyone knows that the little men, like the Mayweathers and Pacquiaos have sustained the sport in a manner that was once exclusive to the heavyweight division. The heavyweight championship of the world was once deemed the most coveted title in all of sports whose champions were household names. The heavyweight division was the matinee idol of all sports. Today its fighters are the least recognized and hardly revered. Talent is not so much the problem as is the lack of that star quality that generates interest. Everything is showbusiness.
It is an interesting misfortune that Wladimir Klitschko has not evoked any passion whatsoever within the sport. He certainly possesses the attributes we so long for our athletes to have. He and his brother, Vitali are multilingual and highly educated. How many athletes, particularly boxers, do you know with doctorate degrees? Also, they have never been caught up in the kind of controversy and scandal that plagues the American athlete. Klitschko comes with no frills, no entourage, no reality show, no trash talk, he just goes about his business; and that may very well be the problem. No matter how much we claim to appreciate the down to earth, blue collar guy - who do we all inevitably pay to see? Not Mr. Blue Collar. Accept it or not, the world of boxing is just violent theater. We want a show and a show needs a star! the public craves a heavyweight that ignites their imaginations. Wladimir Klitschko, like Lennox Lewis before him suffers from an acute form of
Larry Holmes Syndrome. This is when a fighter, despite his talents, despite a will to fight anyone put in front of him, despite being a model sportsmen, through no fault of his own has the misfortune of following one of the most thrilling eras of his sport. For Larry Holmes, a tragically underrated champion, it was Muhammed Ali. For Klitschko, the shadow of Mike Tyson still looms far and wide. Just ask Lennox Lewis. Even after Lewis viciously vanquished Tyson, Iron Mike was still the talk of the sport. Indeed, if timing is everything, then time has been particularly unfriendly to the likes of Klitschko.
Enter WBA Champion, David Haye, the handsome and brash Brit with quick hands and serious power, who promises to wallop the reigning Ring Magazine Champion, Wladimir Klitschko. According to a number of accounts, Klitschko's among them, Haye merely talked his way into this fight. If so, then indeed, "the power of life and death are in the tongue." There is an underlying hope that July 2nd in Hamburg, Germany will mean the "death"of the otherwise somber reign of Wladimir Klitschko and the"life" of a new and exciting era in boxing ushered in by the charismatic David Haye. This kind of excitement in the heavyweight division is long overdue; and despite the cries of "Haye's mouth got him this fight," Haye is a legitimate challenge. At least for this particular encounter I will reserve my penchant for predictions. After all, this is the heavyweight division for which one punch can change the fortunes of any fighter, no matter how accomplished they might be. I, like most are on the fence. "The heart says Haye, but, the mind says Klitschko" has been the general theme through out the boxing world. Which is to say, a Haye win would be great for the sport, but, Klitschko is a fantastic hurdle to overcome if that is to happen. Anyway you might call this fight, the heavyweight division, at least for this moment in time has finally recaptured our imaginations and that's very good news for the
Sweet Science.
Copyright 2011
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