By Rick Reeno

Upon hearing the news on BoxingScene.com that Vitali Klitschko (35-2, 34 KOs) had pulled out of his Sept. 22 bout with Jameel McCline, boxing manager Ivaylo Gotzev was relieved that he did not allow a Klitschko-Maskaev bout to happen.
 
Gotzev, manager of Samuel Peter (28-1, 22 KOs), had fought tooth and nail to land Peter his mandatory shot at Oleg Maskaev (34-5, 26 KOs) on Oct. 6 in New York's Madison Square Garden. After winning two mandatory bouts over James Toney, Peter's title shot was in jeopardy when Vitali Klitschko, who retired in 2005 as WBC champ, announced his return to the ring in January. Upon retiring, the WBC promised Klitschko an immediate shot at the title if he ever made a decision to return to the ring.
 
Klitschko and Maskaev were offering Peter money to step aside, with a guaranteed shot at the winner. Sensing that something might happen, like Klitschko or Maskaev receiving an injury during their bout and then having to sit out for months or the winner possibly announcing their retirement, Gotzev and Peter turned them down.
 
After months of fighting and legal threats between the camps of Klitschko, Maskaev and Peter, the three sides held a mediation in April and agreed on the following terms;

1. Peter gets his mandatory shot at Maskaev.
2. Klitschko becomes the official WBC mandatory and immediately fights the winner.

The trouble did not end there. Months after the three sides came to terms, Maskaev refused to sign the fight contract, citing that he wanted the usual split of 75% for his purse. Eventually the two sides agreed upon the monetary terms.

Gotzev had predicted a possible injury to Klitschko months ago, and he was right. On Saturday, Klitschko's suffered a back injury during his training camp for McCline. Most reports say a herniated disc was the source of the problem, placing pressure on a nerve in his back. He required immediate surgery to relieve the problem in a health facility in Austria.
 
"It is what it is. This is the reason we fought so hard for Samuel to get his shot at Oleg Maskaev. This way, we were in a better position because we were the champion. Then he could pull out all he wants and we would just replace him with another opponent," Gotzev said. "Right now we are focused on Samuel Peter fighting Oleg Maskaev on October 6 and winning the heavyweight title."