By Alexander Pavlov

Emanuel Steward, the trainer for IBO/WBO/WBA/IBF world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (57-3, 50KOs) believes his fighter is fully capable of stopping Tony Thompson (36-2, 24KOs) in the first five rounds of their rematch this Saturday night in Berne, Switzerland. Klitschko stopped Thompson in the eleventh round of their 2008 match. Steward says the Thompson fight was one of the hardest in Wladimir's career and he was hoping they would never face him again.

"After the last fight between Wladimir and Thompson in 2008, I was hoping that we would never meet this guy again. In the course of the match, we had to adjust to the style of Tony - because of his speed, incredible stability and excellent vision of the ring, as well as understanding what punches [work] and at what point they should be applied. I note that Thompson is one of the best right hand striker that I have ever seen. In this fight - we should apply pressure on the opponent, act aggressively. If he succeeds [in following the plan], Wladimir should knock Tony out in a maximum of five rounds. Klitschko is capable of [ending the fight on] a single punch. He is very serious and well prepared for this fight. Also note that right now Thompson is the most dangerous of all of the possible opponents for Wladimir. I think that the fans are in store for an exciting fight," Steward said. 

Alexander Pavlov covers boxing for Sportbox.ru

Tags: Emanuel Steward , Wladimir Klitschko , Tony Thompson , Klitschko-Thompson , Klitschko vs Thompson