By Lyle Fitzsimmons
It wasn’t too long ago that Tom Loeffler had the most dominant stable in boxing.
Not only is the California-based managing director of K2 Promotions responsible for steering the career of middleweight KO machine Gennady Golovkin, but he’s also the man behind the stateside scenes for the 21st century’s premier heavyweight – Wladimir Klitschko.
Golovkin will aim for a 22nd consecutive stoppage on Saturday when he meets unheralded American challenger Dominic Wade. But rather than putting promotional ducks in a row for yet another one-sided win for his heavyweight champion, too, Loeffler is left to plot the Ukrainian’s resurgence.
Lest anyone forget, the curiously passive and confused Klitschko – who turned 40 a few weeks ago – was outhustled over 12 rounds while dropping a unanimous decision to Tyson Fury that not only cost him a closet full of title belts, but also ended a win streak that had stretched back to his late 20s.
He gets another shot at the brash Englishman in a July 9 rematch, though the heavyweight landscape he’ll return to looks more than a little different than the one he ruled for nearly a full decade.
The IBF belt that Klitschko took from Chris Byrd in 2006 is now in the possession of another Englishman – ex-Olympian Anthony Joshua – who earned the strap thanks to the sanctioning body’s decision to strip Fury for accepting an immediate rematch rather than a mandatory defense.
Meanwhile, WBC champion Deontay Wilder has been busily establishing himself in the shadows and prepares to make a fourth defense against former Klitschko victim Alexander Povetkin on May 21.
If Klitschko is able to rejoin the belted class, he’ll have a new frontier in front of him.
Toward that end, Loeffler sat down for a quick chat to discuss the rematch, the division’s remodeling and his man’s motivation after his first setback since 2004.
BoxingScene.com: Where is Wladimir’s head at these days? The heavyweights have gone through some flux since he fought Fury. How is he feeling about the way things are shaking out in the division?
The heavyweight division is definitely reenergized with Joshua’s win, with Wilder going over to Russia to fight Povetkin and with the big upset with Fury beating Wladimir. That fight will definitely happen. The rematch with Wladimir and Fury.
BoxingScene.com: From your perspective, even though he lost, is it suddenly a lot more interesting and sellable division?
I think it’s even bigger now, the rematch, than the first fight. Wladimir was so dominant that people thought heavyweights had no chance to beat him.
He’s 40 years old and has been fighting since the mid-1990s. Does the status of the division impact how much longer he’s likely to fight?
He’s definitely motivated for the rematch and he definitely wants to show that he’s still the best heavyweight in the world today. He definitely wants to get his titles back and I think with his drive and his determination, we’ll see a dominant Wladimir Klitschko that’s still the best heavyweight out there in the rematch.
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This week’s title-fight schedule:
IBF/IBO/WBA middleweight titles – Inglewood, California
Gennady Golovkin (champion/No. 1 IWBR) vs. Dominic Wade (No. 3 IBF/No. 9 IWBR)
Golovkin (34-0, 31 KO): First IBF title defense; Twenty-one straight stoppage wins (93 rounds)
Wade (18-0, 12 KO): First title fight; Fourth fight scheduled past eight rounds (3-0, 1 KO)
Fitzbitz says: Precisely nothing about Wade’s resume indicates he’ll be more than speed bump No. 22 for the Golovkin Express. Still, the feeling is that he’ll acquit himself well. Golovkin in 7
WBC super flyweight title -- Los Mochis, Mexico
Carlos Cuadras (champion/No. 2 IWBR) vs. Richie Mepranum (No. 14 WBC/No. 39 IWBR)
Cuadras (34-0-1, 26 KO): Sixth title defense; Twenty-ninth fight in Mexico (27-0-1, 20 KO)
Mepranum (31-4-1, 8 KO): Third title fight (0-2); Fifth fight in Mexico (1-3, 0 KO)
Fitzbitz says: The Filipino veteran has been around the block a few times, but has consistently fallen short of reaching the highest-profile residences. That won’t change here. Cuadras in 9
WBC flyweight title – Inglewood, California
Roman Gonzalez (champion/No. 1 IWBR) vs. McWilliams Arroyo (No. 10 WBC/No. 22 IWBR)
Gonzalez (44-0, 38 KO): Fourth title defense; Sixth fight in United States (5-0, 4 KO)
Arroyo (16-2, 14 KO): Second title fight (1-1); Third fight in United States (1-1, 1 KO)
Fitzbitz says: The Saturday night date in California is as much a showcase for Gonzalez and for Golovkin, and the Nicaraguan won’t at all disappoint his burgeoning fan base. Gonzalez in 4
WBO junior featherweight title -- Cebu City, Philippines
Nonito Donaire (champion/No. 3 IWBR) vs. Zsolt Bedak (No. 4 WBO/No. 36 IWBR)
Donaire (36-3, 23 KO): First title defense; Ninth fight in weight class (7-1, 4 KO)
Bedak (25-1, 8 KO): Second title fight (0-1); First fight in the Philippines
Fitzbitz says: The “Filipino Flash” may be a few years past vintage, but he’s got the right opponent here to make him look good in spite of his advancing timeline. Donaire in 10
Last week’s picks: 2-1 (WIN: Pedraza, Russell; LOSS: Cunningham)
2016 picks record: 20-5 (80.0 percent)
Overall picks record: 752-253 (74.8 percent)
NOTE: Fights previewed are only those involving a sanctioning body's full-fledged title-holder – no interim, diamond, silver, etc. Fights for WBA "world championships" are only included if no "super champion" exists in the weight class.
Lyle Fitzsimmons has covered professional boxing since 1995 and written a weekly column for Boxing Scene since 2008. He is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Reach him at fitzbitz@msn.com or follow him on Twitter – @fitzbitz.
