On Saturday, November 15, reigning Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Kitsch (62-3, 52 KOs) will put his WBO, IBF, WBA, and IBO titles on the line against undefeated mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev (20-0, 11 KOs) in a scheduled twelve round main event from the O2 Arena in Hamburg, Germany.
Klitschko vs Pulev will air on HBO’s Boxing After Dark, with a live start time of 4:45 p.m. eastern time, and an encore presentation at midnight eastern and pacific time.
The 38 year old father to be will be seeking his seventeenth consecutive successful Heavyweight title defense, which would rank as the third most, behind legendary Heavyweight Champions Larry Holmes (20) and Joe Louis (25).
Although Wladimir Kitschko (-600) is understandably the betting favorite leading into the highly anticipated contest, the prolific pugilist from Sofia, Bulgaria, is sitting quietly but confidently at (+400) on most Vegas Sports Books.
At age 33, Pulev has been patiently waiting for his time to shine. Since thoroughly out-boxing former title challenger Tony Thompson in August of 2013, the talented boxer/puncher has flown under the radar but could prove to be one of Klitschko’s most difficult challenges.
Despite facing an experienced opponent with a deep amateur pedigree on Saturday, Wladimir has proven to be one of the more dominant champions in the history of the storied division and looks to remain in his winning ways.
Will the underrated technician prove to be a much more difficult assignment for the long reigning Heavyweight Champion?
Let’s take a look at our “Tale of the Tape”!!
Klitschko vs Pulev: Tale of the Tape
Wladimir Kitschko stands 6’6″ tall and fights out of an orthodox stance, while working behind a very effective 81″ reach. The 38 year old Ukraine native has great size, strength, athleticism, and power, but surprisingly has very few weapons in his arsenal.
The foundation of his entire boxing strategy is his athleticism and footwork. Dr. Steelhammer moves in and out of punching range extremely well, and keeps his opponents at a safe distance, which ultimately frustrates his opponents and limits their attack.
His primary offensive weapon is his punishing jab, which he uses intelligently throughout the great majority of every contest. He confuses his opponents by mixing it with an effective touch jab, keeping his opponents at bay while also measuring distance to set up the straight right hand bomb.
When opponents happen to work their way underneath the mixture of jabs, Wladimir will often utilize his short, compact check left hook. He likes to pick off his opposition as they’re coming in, or lead with it if an opponent is moving laterally and picking off the straight jab.
Klitschko also likes to use feints, like he’s throwing the jab, and lead with a short, crisp left hook.
Astonishingly, those are the only three punches that he consistently uses. The Ukainian fighter doesn’t throw many uppercuts and doesn’t like to go to the body at close range.
When an opponent gets in punching range, Wladimir will either tie his man up or use his brilliant footwork and athleticism to scurry out of harm’s way. His primary defense is his footwork, which is exceptional for a large fighter. When an opponent throws a punch at him, he backs away and changes distance.
Klitschko doesn’t move his head or upper body very much, and also doesn’t stand in the pocket and pick off punches very well, which could prove to be a major factor in this contest.
Kubrat Pulev stands 6’4 ?” tall and fights out of an orthodox stance. The 33 year old title challenger currently hails from the capital city of Bulgaria, and possesses a perfect record of 20 professional victories with 11 knock-outs. After competing extensively as a highly decorated amateur for over ten years, Pulev represented Bulgaria in the 2008 Olympic games before beginning his pro career.
The Bulgarian ‘Cobra’ has above average hand speed and fights sporadically behind a combination of jabs and feints, which he ultimately uses to set up the straight right down the middle or overhand right.
The proficient sharpshooter likes to slip and counter effectively under and over the lead left hand.
Pulev has a very good understanding of distance and range, and will often take a step back or merely lean away to avoid incoming punches while staying in position to land an effective counter. Although Kubrat doesn’t possess world class power, he will often hurt his opponents with quick, sharp counters as they’re trying to land their own offense.
He has above average footwork and likes to move in and out of range while keeping his opponents at odd angles. When an opponent aggressively takes the lead, Pulev will often occupy their focus with a series of jabs while moving back or pivoting around them, always looking to set up the straight right hand.
The mandatory challenger has exceptional mental and physical durability, but has never been tested by a fighter with the kind of speed, power, and athleticism of Wladimir Klitschko.
Will Kubrat Pulev be smart enough to offset the many strengths of Wladimir Kitschko, or will he become the seventeenth consecutive successful title defense for Dr. Steelhammer?
Klitschko vs Pulev: Keys to Victory
For Wladimir Klitschko to reign supreme on Saturday night against Kubrat Pulev, he will have to be cautious early while he’s trying to impose his will on his deceptively intelligent opponent.
Because the crafty challenger likes to fight sporadically and always looks to counter under an opponent’s jab, Wladimir will have to use his footwork and many left hand feints to disrupt the timing and rhythm of the 33 year old fighter from Bulgaria as he works his way in firing range.
What Pulev lacks in power, he more than makes up for it with speed and precision. Wlad must be very careful not to walk into any traps set by the challenger, while attempting to fight at a much quicker and busier pace than Pulev.
Also, because Pulev always looks to slip and counter an opponent’s lead left hand, Klitschko would be wise to feint the left and launch the straight right hand early and often. If he gets Kubrat’s attention early with a hard right hand bomb down the middle, the Cobra could become a more tentative fighter and really think twice before committing to a sharp right hand counter.
If Wladimir can use his footwork and left hand feints to disrupt the timing and rhythm of his opponent while dictating the pace of the fight, he should be able to coast to an impressive mid to late round stoppage victory.
Kubrat Pulev absolutely must use lateral movement and sharp right hand counters to offset the lead left hand of the reigning Heavyweight Champion.
It’s been a while since Wlad has faced a prolific counter puncher, so it’s going to be interesting to see how effectively he cuts off the ring and closes the distance against a sneaky and precise sharp-shooter like Pulev.
Kubrat will often lean to his left and counter with a sharp right hand down the middle while sitting in the pocket. He absolutely must be careful not to walk into a straight one-two from arguably the hardest puncher in boxing. So Pulev will have to set up his shots strategically, using his footwork to set traps for the more experienced world champion.
If Pulev can use his speed and precision to sting the current champion with short, crisp right hand counters down the middle while Wlad is attempting to establish his jab from mid to long range, he could hurt Klitschko early and make him think twice about throwing out his primary weapon. But because the challenger doesn’t possess world class power, he’ll have to win this fight by decision with clean, accurate, and effective punching….quality over quantity will get the victory for Kubrat Pulev.
Klitschko vs Pulev Prediction
Although I think this contest will be competitive in the outset, I don’t believe Pulev has the power or athleticism to overcome the strengths and exploit the weaknesses of the Heavyweight Champion.
If Klitschko can soundly defeat a much more explosive and athletically gifted counter puncher like David Haye, I really don’t see him having too much trouble with a less talented fighter like Kubrat Pulev.
If Wlad takes Pulev seriously and doesn’t get too anxious early in the fight, I like Klitschko by mid to late rounds stoppage.
Prediction: Wladimir Klitschko TKO 7 over Kubrat Pulev – See more at: http://www.fightsaga.com/news/item/4932-Klitschko-vs-Pulev-prediction-odds#sthash.QgKv3J4H.dpuf
