THE knockout that I predicted never came, but Vitali Klitschko still handily defeated and dominated the obnoxious Derek Chisora.
I thought the media reports gave Chisora more credit than what was deserved as the fight appeared quite one-sided and the tallies submitted by the judges (119-111, 118-110 twice) confirmed this.
The limited Chisora was taken to school by an opponent who utilized his advantages in height and reach considerably well. Considering that Vitali reportedly hurt his shoulder from the third round on and had to rely more on his right hand, I would give his performance a B+.
B for Boring, that is.
SLAP. Blame it on the fact that everybody expected a knockout from a supposedly fired-up Klitschko after the slap heard around the world during the weigh-in.
Had it been Mike Tyson or Lennox Lewis on the receiving end of that cheap shot, the temerity shown by ?Del Boy? would have been amply rewarded with a devastating knockout.
Of course the shoulder injury comes in as a convenient explanation.
Or maybe at 40 years of age, that performance was a bellwether of things to come for the elder of the Klitschko brothers.
CAREER. After a career spanning three decades and a record of 44 wins, 2 losses and 40 KOs, ?Dr. Ironfist? is clearly no spring chicken.
He won the WBO title in 1999, knocking out Herbie Hide in 2 rounds. However, after two defenses, he lost the belt to the unorthodox Chris Byrd after suffering an injury to his left shoulder.
He would bounce back nicely with 4 victories and in the process annex the WBA inter-continental belt. And that?s when he would be matched up unexpectedly with reigning king Lennox Lewis.
He would lose via TKO in 6 rounds, but gain more respect in that losing effort to Lewis than in all his previous victories over second-tier opponents.
After Lennox nixed a rematch and thereafter retired from the sport, Vitali won the WBC belt and defeated the likes of Kirk Johnson, Corrie Sanders and Danny Williams before deciding to retire in 2004.
He surprised most pundits by successfully staging a comeback four years later and turning down the challenges of Juan Carlos Gomez, Chris Arreola, Albert Sosnowski, Kevin Johnson and a faded Shannon Briggs.
It doesn?t take much to conclude that Vitali?s retinue of opponents isn?t exactly a Hall-of- Fame roster. Together with his brother Waldimir they have presided over a lackluster, moribund division beset by a woeful dearth of talent.
In the brilliant clarity of hindsight, maybe it was too much to expect a knockout from Vitali who hasn?t excited fight fans since that bloodfest with Lewis.
BRAWL. An interesting side story was the brawl that erupted during the post-fight press conference between Chisora and fellow Brit David Haye.
Don?t look now, but apparently the Ricardo Mayorga of the heavies is getting some competition from the recently un-retired Haye.
A grudge match between these two loud-mouths might just be the shot in the arm that will awaken this division. Never mind if they aren?t exactly the most talented heavyweights out there.
If these blokes fought half as well as they talked, I?d take that anytime over another Klitschko snooze-fest.
ARCE. Jorge Arce?s destruction of Lorenzo Parra in five rounds has recently generated some excitement over his inevitable showdown with our very own Nonito Donaire Jr.
But I beg to digress. Parra hasn?t won a fight in two years and his last two wins came against nondescript fighters with a combined record of 32 wins , 23 losses.
Donaire will destroy Arce in less than eight rounds.
HE SAID IT. ?I will challenge whoever has the belt. I want to be the best, I want to be the Manny Pacquiao of the MMA,?- Mark Munoz (www.inquirer.net)
LAST ROUND. It?s on my kumare Tetchie Zosa-Tan who recently celebrated her birthday. Cheers!
