The O2 World Arena in Hamburg, Germany will host its fifth boxing event next September and what an extravaganza it promises to be. Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko will put his WBA, WBO and IBF titles on the line when he faces undefeated Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev in a scheduled 12-round title fight.
September is loaded with top-class boxing action with Floyd Mayweather putting his 46-match unbeaten streak on the line against Argentine brawler Marcos Maidana in a rematch of their highly-entertaining showdown last May (preview of that first fight here). In the meantime, you can read more on this heavyweight title showdown as Klitschko and Pulev engage in this modern-day clash of the giants.
If you prefer fighting with pads on, you can check out our list of 10 players due for breakout years in the NFL. Otherwise, read on for everything you need to know about this big time boxing match.
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Wladimir Klitschko vs. Kubrat Pulev, WBA, WBO, IBF Heavyweight Championship Match, Betting Preview and Prediction
What else is there to say about this one-of-a-kind fighter? Klitschko (62-3, 58 KOs) has just been totally dominant in the heavyweight division, successfully defending the title he won back in 2006 16 times. He just trails Joe Louis (25) and Larry Holmes (20) for the most number of consecutive title defenses and is now targeting Louis’ record of being the longest-reigning heavyweight champion. His eight-year plus reign is now second all-time to Louis’ record of 11 years, 8 months and 8 days.
[sc:Other240banner ]In his last fight against Alex Leapai back in April, Klitschko was simply unstoppable as he recorded a fifth-round knockout over the Australian in a one-sided fight. Compubox total punch statistics showed that the champion outpunched Leapai 147-10. That’s almost a whopping 15-to-1 punch ratio.
That has been the recurring theme every time the 1996 Olympic gold medalist enters the ring for a heavyweight title fight. After suffering that upset defeat to Lamon Brewster back in April 2004, Klitschko has gone unbeaten in his last 20 fights.
He has utilized that same boxing style that infuriates some fans for being too boring but has proven to be effective for the heavyweight champion. Given his huge 6’6” frame, Klitschko always uses his long reach with an accurate jab and a sledgehammer right hand acting as his main weapons. Both punches are thrown from long range, meaning opponents will have a difficult time hitting the Ukrainian.
It allows Klitschko the opportunity to hide his main weakness and that is his inability to exchange punches with sluggers as proven in his knockout losses to Corrie Sanders, Lamon Brewster and Ross Purrity. His suspect chin is vulnerable to these big haymakers and Klitschko has decided that the best way to maintain success and prolong his career is to utilize his strengths and that is fighting from long-distance to avoid these costly, heavy exchanges.
With his win against Leapai, Klitschko’s world title fight record now stands at 23-2.
He may be entering the biggest fight of his career but Kubrat Pulev (20-0, 11 KOs) is clearly not intimidated with the prospect of facing the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
In a statement Pulev made last June, he said, “I will get the titles. I am ready to replace Wladimir Klitschko as the world champion. This fight is the highlight of my career. I will show the fans worldwide that Klitschko is no invincible machine and fulfill my dream. I have worked hard for this chance.”
That last part is definitely true. Pulev basically won an IBF box-off as he defeated Alexander Ustinov and then Tony Thompson to earn a mandatory title showdown with Klitschko. He knocked out Ustinov in the 11th round back in September 2012 then won by unanimous decision over Thompson in August last year.
Compared to Klitschko’s previous challengers, Pulev will not be daunted by Klitschko’s huge 6’6” frame. Pulev stands at around 6’5” and will just yield a one-inch advantage to the Ukrainian fighter. “The Cobra” showed he can handle bigger fighters when he scored a stunning upset over Ustinov, knocking out the 6’8”, 300-pound Belarussian two years ago.
He outboxed Ustinov with some right hands in the early going then put to good use his incredible stamina towards the end, as Ustinov wavered in the latter rounds. He pulverized the big giant with a barrage of punches, resulting into Ustinov taking a knee for the full count in the 11th round.
That basically is the same framework on which the Bulgarian fighter will base his strategy on for his heavyweight title showdown with Klitschko. It will be easier said than done, though, with Klitschko being miles ahead of Ustinov and Thompson in terms of skill level. In fact, Thompson was twice knocked out by Klitschko in mandatory title fights before.
Pulev also takes a while to get warmed up as evidenced by his early struggles in his fight with Tony Thompson but once he’s got his juices flowing, watch out. The Bulgarian fighter can carry his power late into fights and that may spell trouble for Klitschko who has the tendency to waver in the latter stages of a bout. In his match against Thompson, he posted an 80-28 advantage in punches landed in the final four rounds of the bout as Pulev coasted to an easy unanimous decision victory.
Since becoming the mandatory challenger last year, Pulev has won twice, recording knockouts over Joey Abell in December and Ivica Perkovic last April 5.
Writer’s Prediction
Klitschko will extend his consecutive title defense streak to 17 as he will defeat Pulev with a late stoppage to hand the Bulgarian his first-ever loss.
