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Chagaev to face Skelton!
By Wolfgang Schiffbauer
Unbeaten WBA heavyweight champion Ruslan Chagaev will make the first defense of his title against Commonwealth champion Matt Skelton from the United Kingdom. The bout will take place at the Burg-Wächter-Castello in Dusseldorf, Germany, on January 19, 2008. Since a impressive decision victory over then-champion Nicolay Valuev in April 2007, “The White Tyson” was slated to unify the WBA and WBO belts in a October clash against Sultan Ibragimov. But Chagaev had to withdraw because of a serious illness. Ibragimov decisioned Evander Holyfield and will face IBF king Wladimir Klitschko next year in a unification bout – the first since Holyfield and Lennox Lewis unified the division in 1999. “I’m healthy and can’t wait to get back to boxing. It finally starts again”, said Chagaev. “I can’t wait to get back to the ring and I’m looking forward to fighting Matt Skelton in Dusseldorf. It will be a tough fight against a hard puncher.” The champion is also excited to be back in Dusseldorf. “I have good memories about this town”, said the 29-years old Chagaev. “In November 2006, I beat John Ruiz in a eliminator fight. And that made my title winning effort possible. I’m really excited about the Dusseldorf crowd.”
Chagaev is 23-0-1 with 17 knockouts. His has wins over former heavyweight champions John Ruiz and Nicolay Valuev, as well as victories over contenders Michael Sprott and Vladimir Virchis. He fought to a technical draw with Rob Calloway in 2002 but avenged it via third round knockout in 2006. Skelton is, at age 40, 21-1 with 18 knockouts. His loss came by split decision against Mike-Tyson-conqueror Danny Williams. In a rematch, Skelton scored a unanimous decision victory. He also holds two wins over Michael Sprott, one of them in his most recent bout in July.
By Wolfgang Schiffbauer
Unbeaten WBA heavyweight champion Ruslan Chagaev will make the first defense of his title against Commonwealth champion Matt Skelton from the United Kingdom. The bout will take place at the Burg-Wächter-Castello in Dusseldorf, Germany, on January 19, 2008. Since a impressive decision victory over then-champion Nicolay Valuev in April 2007, “The White Tyson” was slated to unify the WBA and WBO belts in a October clash against Sultan Ibragimov. But Chagaev had to withdraw because of a serious illness. Ibragimov decisioned Evander Holyfield and will face IBF king Wladimir Klitschko next year in a unification bout – the first since Holyfield and Lennox Lewis unified the division in 1999. “I’m healthy and can’t wait to get back to boxing. It finally starts again”, said Chagaev. “I can’t wait to get back to the ring and I’m looking forward to fighting Matt Skelton in Dusseldorf. It will be a tough fight against a hard puncher.” The champion is also excited to be back in Dusseldorf. “I have good memories about this town”, said the 29-years old Chagaev. “In November 2006, I beat John Ruiz in a eliminator fight. And that made my title winning effort possible. I’m really excited about the Dusseldorf crowd.”
Chagaev is 23-0-1 with 17 knockouts. His has wins over former heavyweight champions John Ruiz and Nicolay Valuev, as well as victories over contenders Michael Sprott and Vladimir Virchis. He fought to a technical draw with Rob Calloway in 2002 but avenged it via third round knockout in 2006. Skelton is, at age 40, 21-1 with 18 knockouts. His loss came by split decision against Mike-Tyson-conqueror Danny Williams. In a rematch, Skelton scored a unanimous decision victory. He also holds two wins over Michael Sprott, one of them in his most recent bout in July.
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