Here's a sobering and sickening thought about boxing in America today

[ManchesterMike]

Bigger doesn't mean superior. Could you imagine someone like Joe Frazier (who was a truly great fighter) getting in the ring with some of these giants of today. Boxing has weight classes for a damn good reason, why the hell shouldn't it apply to bigger guys too?

How can it be right that a guy who's natural fighting weight is 210lbs has to fight in the same division as someone weighing 250lbs? The is only 28lbs between welterweight and light heavyweight, would anyone put fighters in together form these weight classes? NO, and for a very good reason

Stick a weight limit of 235lbs on it and bye bye big slow eastern european boxers that no one wants to watch.

[Trapped Bird]

I have mad respect for the klitcho bro.... they should be on everyone p4p list...

Pound for pound.

Look at their competition.

[Grinderman]

The belt that muhammad ali once wore is on the line tomorrow in a HW clash and nobody here gives a damn.

I would bet 999/1000 people in America don't know who vitali is, much less adamek.

There is no appreciation or respect, and that's a shame for a HW as great as vitali. It sickens me.

The boxing media here has been running down the heavyweight division since Lennox Lewis took it over and they have continued this with the Klitschkos.

They might talk nice about Lewis now, but when he was actually fighting he took almost as much abuse as the Klitschkos do here currently.

Old farts like Bert Sugar see the heavyweight division as something that belongs to Americans, especially black Americans, and since that hasn't been the case for quite some time, Sugar and his ilk have turned their backs on the division and run it down to the general public every chance they get.

Americans are in general jingoistic and are many still are swayed by the Cold War mentality, so it's easy to get them to dislike the "Russian" Klitschkos by referring to Rocky movie stereotypes.

But I wouldn't worry about it. America is getting left behind in other sports as well, like men's tennis. It's part of a general shift in power away from the US in the sporting world.

The heavyweight division will likely be in European hands for a long time to come, so Americans will likely just keep on with the "take my football and go home" mentality, which is their loss.

[Grinderman]

Well Vitali took steroids so he's disqualified.

You ever get tired of trolling?

[Trapped Bird]

You ever get tired of trolling?

Oh, Vitali never took steroids?

[Grinderman]

Oh, Vitali never took steroids?

Yeah, as an amateur. And he admitted it. Roy Jones Jr., Evander Holyfield, James Toney, Ike Ibeabuchi, all took them as professionals. And that's just ones we know about. What is your point?

[Trapped Bird]

Yeah, as an amateur. And he admitted it. Roy Jones Jr., Evander Holyfield, James Toney, Ike Ibeabuchi, all took them as professionals. And that's just ones we know about. What is your point?

Why did you list four black fighters that took steroids?

You do realize I was born in the Ukraine?

[Forza]

Why did you list four black fighters that took steroids?

You do realize I was born in the Ukraine?

Any proof?

btw, Mike Tyson smoked crack. There are a lot of worse things in this world than doing steroids when you know your opponent is using them as well.

[Weebler I]

Stick a weight limit of 235lbs on it and bye bye big slow eastern european boxers that no one wants to watch.

Are Eastern Euro heavies really all big and slow, or is it just the Klitschkos?

I must admit, it did seem a bit ridiculous a 'little' guy like Haye going up against huge men like Valuev and Vladimir.

I think it's fair to say people do want to watch them, just not in Western Europe and the US.

But I wouldn't worry about it. America is getting left behind in other sports as well, like men's tennis. It's part of a general shift in power away from the US in the sporting world.

The heavyweight division will likely be in European hands for a long time to come, so Americans will likely just keep on with the "take my football and go home" mentality, which is their loss.

The US's sporting world really exists in the US with US football, baseball, basketball...the other sports only seem to gain prominence when they win in them.

[ghns1133]

The belt that muhammad ali once wore is on the line tomorrow in a HW clash and nobody here gives a damn.

I would bet 999/1000 people in America don't know who vitali is, much less adamek.

There is no appreciation or respect, and that's a shame for a HW as great as vitali. It sickens me.