By Cliff Rold

Heavyweight isn’t what it used to be. 

Then again, neither is Lightweight or Cruiserweight (weighed against just a few years ago) right now.  They’ll get better.  Boxing, and its many weight divisions, have ups and downs.  For most of the last ten years, Heavyweight inside the ring has been down.

The business of Heavyweight hasn’t been all bad depending on where the business has taken place.  New York, Los Angeles, and points throughout Europe have hosted some large and variably entertained crowds for the few Heavyweight ticket sellers out there right now.

At the top of course is the brother tandem of World Champion Wladimir Klitschko (54-3, 48 KO) and WBC titlist Vitali (39-2, 37 KO), megastars who can fill stadiums abroad even if they’ve never quite crashed the lucrative U.S. pay-per-view market.  Their fistic merit in comparison to Heavyweight leaders of the past is always ripe fodder for debate, but their merit as the physical and economic heart of the class in 2010 is indisputable.

Even when Vitali was out of the ring for a period of some four years, Heavyweight has been, since the retirement of Lennox Lewis, a two-man show without much in the way of co-stars.  A mis-mash of apathetic challengers who vary from technically sound but inaggressive, to old, to grossly out of shape has made it hard to get excited about the show outside the Klitschko fan base. 

Vitali hits the ring this weekend against what appears the least hopeful challenger either Klitschko has faced since Wladimir picked up an HBO appearance fee for Ray Austin in 2007.  Albert Sos-who-ski? 

Sosnowski (45-2-1, 27 KO)…but who will do just fine.  If he wins, it would be the biggest upset at Heavyweight since David and Goliath.  David can’t bring a slingshot this Saturday.  Buster Douglas would sit up and say, ‘Really?”

When it’s over, the two-man show should still be intact.  The co-stars?

Maybe, just maybe, they’re coming together as well.

A pair of former Cruiserweight champions and a former Gold Medalist have emerged at Heavyweight to give the division below the Klitschko’s something it has lacked for years: hints of life.  David Haye (24-1, 22 KO), Tomasz Adamek (41-1, 27 KO), and Alexander Povetkin (19-0, 14 KO) need now to do only one thing when the opportunity arises.

They need to fight like being the best Heavyweight in the world still means something, both to them and to the sport. 

Povetkin, the 2004 Olympic Super Heavyweight Gold Medalist from Russia is the x-factor in that regard for now.  With wins over Chris Byrd and Eddie Chambers on his way into a long run as the IBF’s leading Heavyweight contender, he’s clearly built some resume.  Since hooking up with Cus D’Amato protégé Teddy Atlas last year, he’s also shown renewed dedication.  Weighing closer to 220 again, Povetkin is showing some of the pop, speed, and combination punching which once had him pegged as the most promising young Heavyweight in the world.

The biggest knock against him has less to do with Povetkin and more to do with geography.  The lack of effort, the failure to go for broke, from Ruslan Chagaev and Sultan Ibragimov in clashes against Wladimir is enough to generate skepticism about Povetkin.  Those previous Eastern Heavyweight bloc figures were solid fundamentally but they behaved in the ring as if they were in a regular sporting event rather than a fight.  If Povetkin can behave like a bona fide challenger, perceptions can change quickly. 

Behaving like bona fide challenges to the Klitschko’s, behaving like they are willing to do whatever they have to do to win, is less worrisome when it comes to Haye and Adamak.  The rabid crowds each pulls, Haye as a WBA titlist in the U.K. and Adamek in both New Jersey and Poland, are a testament to what they bring to the ring.  Fans know that a ticket to see either man usually results in a display of fire and leather flying at some point in the night.

The exception so far has been Haye’s win-today-look-good-tomorrow belt win over seven foot monster Nicolay Valuev.  In that November 2009 affair, Haye used his speed and legs to pot shot his way to a win, though he did supply a memorable twelfth round barrage to nearly floor the giant.

It wasn’t Hulk slamming Andre or anything, but it was at least enough to remind of why Haye is such an intriguing figure.  Beyond his obvious conditioning, gift for trash talk, and athletic gifts, Haye is of a temperament to go for a knockout.  He might not get one versus a Klitschko but at some point at least he’ll try and he’s good enough, dedicated enough, to be taken serious in doing so.

Adamek is a fighter who can’t help being entertaining.  In title reigns at Light Heavyweight and Cruiserweight, he was regularly involved in wars.  At Heavyweight, he’s boxing a bit more but it’s never dull.  Against worn Andrew Golota, former U.S. Olympian Jason Estrada, and recently in defeating Chris Arreola, Adamek has yet to produce a fight not worth watching.

And that, ultimately, is the point.  Heavyweight has been lackluster because it has lacked for fights worth genuinely wondering about.  Povetkin, Haye, and Adamek would all be underdogs against a Klitschko but they supply something few others have.

They are intriguing. 

Win or lose, any of them is capable of making the Klitschko’s work harder than they have in years.  They are capable of, and have enough chops to, assist in validating, or invalidating, arguments about how good the Klitschko’s really are.  If the brother kings aren’t available, any of the three against each other is a hell of a fight in its own right.

Heavyweight might not be what it used to be but, among its top five right now, there are at least some pairings which can elicit, “I’d want to see that,” amongst the fans.  That’s more than Heavyweight has had in a long time.

Who’s Up?

Of the three, Povetkin may have the inside track for first crack.  If Wladimir and Haye, a genuine grudge match which has added anticipation built on the back of a cancelation in 2009, can’t be made then Povetkin may finally take the mandatory he’s sat on since defeating Chambers in January 2008.

Adamek appears headed towards faded Michael Grant later in the summer.  Haye could end up with an all-Brit showdown against 2000 Super Heavyweight Gold Medalist (and so far disappointing pro) Audley Harrison if no Klitschko looms.  Both matches can temper any feelings of potential optimism but there’s only so much fighting to be done before a Klitschko is inevitable.  As long as they keep winning, asking ‘what if?’ will remain valid and, importantly, worth asking.

After Sosnowski, Vitali’s dance card is empty so one can hope for the best.

Weekly Ledger

But wait, there’s more…
 
Kim’s ESPN2 KO: https://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=27985    
Showtime Report Card: https://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=28025      
Picks of the Week: https://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=28095   

Cliff’s Notes… Undefeated Denis Boystov is another Heavyweight worth pondering but, until he has a serious win over a contender, he’s still just a wee bit hypothetical.  It doesn’t mean he’s forgotten in the mix…Pernell Whitaker just called Crystal Bowersox and said “Remember the Alamodome.”  It always sucks when being the best isn’t enough.  It might be ‘the way life is’ but better can always be aspired to…The IBF is in turmoil!  Nobody but the IBF cares…How funny was it when Antonio Tarver made a joke about being surprised some silly belt wasn’t attached to Marquez-Vazquez IV and then it turned out there was?  Pretty funny actually.  Dan Rafael has a fascinating take on that whole mess on his blog this week.  Check it out. 

Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com