Wladimir Klitschko Looking Better Than Ever After KO Win vs. Kubrat Pulev
Unparalleled but underappreciated, world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko looked more dominant than ever on Saturday in his Round 5 knockout win over previously undefeated contender Kubrat Pulev in Germany.
Klitschko floored the tough and determined Pulev twice in Round 1, each time toppling the square-chinned slugger to the canvas with an explosive left hook.
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Pulev was down again from the same punch in Round 3, this time after being wobbled seconds earlier by Klitschko’s patented straight right.
After Pulev landed a few punches of his own in the next two rounds, Klitschko stepped in and ended things with perhaps the prettiest left hook he’s ever thrown. Pulev went down for the count quickly, landing straight onto his back, barely able to move as referee Tony Weeks counted to 10.
The win was Klitschko’s 17th straight heavyweight title defense, third-longest in the history of the division behind Joe Louis’ 25 and Larry Holmes’ 20.
Unlike some of Klitschko’s other performances, such as his clinch-filled victory over Alexander Povetkin last year, the Pulev win had U.S.-based boxing writers salivating over him.
TheSweetScience.com’s Michael Woods went so far as to beg for a Klitschko fight to come near him in Brooklyn:
Klitschko has been excellent for years now, but to Pulev’s credit, he tried tactics against Klitschko onlookers have long desired to see.
Pulev went into the bout unafraid of Klitschko’s power. Being almost as tall as Klitschko and having just as long a reach at 79 inches, Pulev stayed in front of Klitschko in an effort to force him to trade punches.
He fought rough and mean. It’s what people wanted to see. It failed.
Because Pulev found the same thing other title challengers have discovered over Klitschko’s long reign: No strategy is perfect against someone as big, strong and skilled as the world heavyweight champion.
Klitschko’s jab was as good as ever against Pulev, something he consistently uses to dominate would-be title grabbers. But instead of focusing on Pulev’s head, Klitschko made a concentrated effort on including jabs to the body.
You could be forgiven for wondering if Klitschko even knew how to throw a body punch at all before this fight. After all, in his 12-round win over Povetkin in October 2013, Klitschko didn’t land a single one.
But Klitschko’s tactics are devised to keep his chin out of harm’s way. Standing 6-foot-6, the powerful puncher nary has a man in front of him on fight night whom he needs to hit on the body. He uses his height and reach to its utmost potential.
Klitschko throws punches from a safe distance, and he never leaves his head in punching range. If one finds himself in close, Klitschko clinches close and turns his head away from any incoming fire.
In order to win any given fight, Klitschko knows he only needs opportunities to land his powerful punches while avoiding anything hard on the chin in return.
In this way, Klitschko is your typical prizefighter. He cares little about style once the bell rings. All he wants to do is win.
Unlike almost every other prizefighter in the sport, though, that’s what Klitschko actually does: win. No, he might not take home any awards for style or grace for his efforts, but Klitschko is as elite as any fighter in the world.
Calling the action for American fight fans from thousands of miles away in San Antonio, HBO’s Jim Lampley and Max Kellerman guffawed over Klitschko’s performance.
“A tremendously dominating performance. He’s [a] 38-year-old. Is he getting better?” asked Lampley.
“Maybe,” Kellerman opined.
If he’s not getting better (and he might be), he’s at least becoming more appreciated for his excellence.
Klitschko has won 20 straight fights overall and hasn’t lost in over 10 years. He won the Olympic gold medal at super heavyweight in 1996, and he’s has parlayed early professional career struggles, including three knockout losses, into one of the most impressive heavyweight championship reigns in the history of the sport.
“Wladimir Klitschko stands alone as the one and only heavyweight champion,” said Kellerman after the fight.
That’ s not exactly true, and Kellerman knows it. Klitschko holds the Transnational Rankings, Ring Magazine, WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO heavyweight titles. Bermane Stiverne is the division’s champion, according to the WBC.
But Klitschko stands alone as the absolute best fighter in the division. If the term “champion” is to mean anything in today’s world of alphabet titles, then Kellerman is spot-on about who stands atop of the heavyweight mountain.
Klitschko looked as good as ever on Saturday. His grip on the division appears firmer than ever, too.
Kelsey McCarson is a boxing writer for Bleacher Report and The Sweet Science. In December, he’s sparring undefeated junior middleweight Jermell Charlo in an effort to raise money for a six-year-old recently diagnosed with bone cancer. You can contribute at www.GoFundMe.com/TeamCorbin.
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