Klitschko vs Mormeck: Wladimir's Choice for 50th Knockout a Disappointing One

It's not every day that a boxer has the opportunity to achieve a milestone quite as incredible as a 50th career knockout.

Which is precisely why it's so disappointing to see Wladimir Klitschko go for the mark against a prototypical tomato can like Jean-Marc Mormeck.

Nothing against "The Marksman" Mormeck's career record of 36-4 with 22 knockouts, or his years spent as a Cruiserweight champion in several capacities between 2002 and 2007.

He's looking to become just the third former Cruiserweight champ in the history of boxing to win a world title at heavyweight, along with Evander Holyfield and David Haye.

But Dr. Steelhammer is no cruiserweight, and neither is Mormeck truly a heavyweight, let alone one of the caliber to match a Klitschko brother between the ropes.

Only three times before has Mormeck climbed into the ring as a heavyweight, pulling out head-scratching decisions in each on his home turf in Paris.

Somehow, those wins were enough to land Mormeck a top-10 heavyweight ranking from the IBF, the WBO and the WBA and, in turn, a measure of prestige worthy of touching gloves with Wladimir Klitschko.

Even though it's clear as day that Mormeck doesn't belong anywhere near him. At 5'11, 215 pounds and 39 years of age, Mormeck is too short, too light and too old to so much as hold a candle to the 6'6, 35-year-old Wladimir.

Clearly, fighting Mormeck provides Klitschko with a clean and easy opportunity to get knockout No. 50 and retain his title in an almost foolproof manner, especially given that the bout will be held on Klitschko's adopted turf in Dusseldorf, Germany. 

But is it the right way to go about securing such a noteworthy milestone?

Boxing has been blessed (or cursed) with so few chances to capture the world's sporting attention that to squander one of this magnitude on an overmatched tomato can seems a disservice to every corner of the pugilist landscape.

The Klitschko brothers have done and meant so much to boxing on the whole, and the heavyweight division in particular, that they don't truly owe anyone an apology for going about their business however they please.

That being said, with boxing fans so starved of real excitement, the least Wladimir Klitschko could've done was go for his 50th KO by picking on someone his own size.

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