by David P. Greisman
Wladimir Klitschko used to have three major world titles and was the lineal heavyweight champion. Now he does not and is not. But now that Tyson Fury does have the belts — and is the champ— there’s still the matter of the owner of the fourth title, Deontay Wilder.
Klitschko and Wilder had spoken before about hopefully being able to meet sometime in 2016. Fury doesn’t have the same desire as the man he just defeated.
“Why do we need to mention Deontay Wilder?” Fury said in response to a question about the World Boxing Council beltholder, shortly after directing attention to the belts sitting in front of him that he’d just acquired from Klitschko — the International Boxing Federation, World Boxing Association and World Boxing Organization titles, as well as the International Boxing Organization belt.
“Let’s have a laugh at his name, shall we?” Fury said. “Wladimir Klitschko was No. 1 in the division, probably pound-for-pound king, if you want to say pound-for-pound because it doesn’t exist, because if we’re all the same weight, then that would never happen. But this man has been on top for so long and reigned as the champion of the world for the longest. Now that Floyd Mayweather is gone, Wladimir Klitschko took his place. I just took him out tonight, so why would I have to be bothered about a novice basketball player who just came to boxing a couple of years ago?”
Wilder took up the sport in 2005, won bronze in the Olympics at heavyweight in 2008, turned pro afterward and developed along the way before topping Bermane Stiverne for a world title earlier this year. He’s won two defenses since and is 35-0 with 34 KOs, the lone decision win coming against Stiverne.
Fury turned pro less than a month after Wilder did. His amateur career didn’t lead to the Olympics — David Price represented Great Britain instead and won bronze at super heavyweight in 2008. He, too, has improved markedly since his earlier days as a pro and is now 25-0 with 18 KOs with the victory over longtime heavyweight champion Klitschko.
“I’m a true, natural fighter. I’ve been doing it all my life,” Fury said. “You get animals, horses, dogs, anything, and it’s bred into them to be what they are. I’m bred to be a fighter. If Deontay Wilder wants a unification fight, he’s going to have to wait because Wladimir Klitschko has a round 2. Ding ding ding ding.”
Klitschko had a rematch clause. The date and location are to be determined.
Pick up a copy of David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” at http://bit.ly/fightingwordsamazon or internationally at http://bit.ly/fightingwordsworldwide . Send questions/comments via email at fightingwords1@gmail.com
