By Jake Donovan

Among the 37 wins presently on his ledger, heavyweight titlist Vitali Klitschko may have just scored the biggest victory of his career – this one taking place outside of the boxing ring.

A recent arbitration hearing to determine whether or not he was obligated to next face Oleg Maskaev was ruled in the Ukrainian’s favor, BoxingScene learned Friday afternoon. The verdict means that he is now free to face whomever he chooses for his next fight.

“(Vitali) can fight anyone with no obligation to Maskaev,” famed boxing manager Shelly Finkel informed BoxingScene.com via e-mail.

The arbitration hearing was ordered after former WBC titlist Maskaev was named as a mandatory challenger to Klitschko’s title last December. The WBC stated the winner of Klitschko’s then-forthcoming bout with Juan Carlos Gomez would have 120 days to next face Maskaev or else run the risk of being stripped of their title.

Klitschko (37-2, 36KO) went on to win the fight by 9th round knockout this past March, but had no interest in next facing Maskaev, nor did any major American television network have any desire to air it.

Furthermore, he took great issue with being ordered to make consecutive mandatory title defenses (Gomez was his mandatory challenger), which led to his filing a complaint with the Court of Arbitration For Sport in late February.

Maskaev was dubiously named a mandatory challenger despite not fighting in a sanctioned elimination match in either of his two wins since the Peter debacle last March, nor were either of the opponents he faced (Robert Hawkins and Richard Boruff) even ranked in the organization’s Top 40 ratings.

The hearing puts an end to the years long circus that has surrounded the WBC heavyweight title. Klitschko, who announced his desire to return to the ring in 2007 after having not fought since December 2004, attempted to enforce his “Champion Emeritus” status in obtaining an immediate title shot, which at the time would’ve come against Oleg Maskaev.

The WBC was willing to cooperate, much to the chagrin of Samuel Peter who won not one but two separate mandated eliminators against James Toney. After spending most of 2007 going back and forth with the Mexican-based organization, Peter was granted a title shot against Maskaev, with Klitschko agreeing to face Jameel McCline.

Both Klitschko and Maskaev would suffer injuries to force them out of their respective bouts, leaving Peter to accept McCline as a late replacement for their October 2007 bout, with the promise of a guaranteed shot at Maskaev with a win. He barely managed that, thrice climbing off of the deck to rally back and escape Madison Square Garden with a unanimous decision.

Things went much smoother for Peter in his title winning effort against Maskaev five months later, stopping the Kazakhstan import in six rounds to obtain the title. However, his reign was short-lived, as Klitschko would dominate the Nigerian from the opening bell until forced to quit on his stool after eight painfully one-sided rounds.

The win marked Klitschko’s emphatic return to the sport after a four-year hiatus, but has made only one official title defense (versus Gomez) and seems to have been fighting more in a courtroom than a boxing ring in the past few years.

Thanks to Friday’s ruling, he can finally ditch his briefcase for a pair of boxing gloves against the opponent of his – and the public’s – liking.

Jake Donovan is the managing editor of Boxingscene.com and an award-winning member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Contact Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com .