Comments Thread For: Wlad, Vitali, Haye, Adamek: What is the Final Four Outcome

[Die Antwoord]

As a fan of the HW division I do worry about it. I really believe Wlad will beat Haye with relative ease and that Vitali will beat Adamek even easier. While on paper it looks like the Klitschko's matched themselves up wrong for the fights, I think its a perfect matchup. Haye is incredibly defenseless against a jab and known for tiring out and will have to doa ton of work to even get shots off on Wlad, and Adamek I dont think poses any problem for either Klitschko. I am sorry, but I have watched Arreola vs Adamek 3 times now and I am completely convinced if Arreola hadnt gotten hurt he would have won by 3 rounds. As it stands I had Adamek winning by 1 round...literally 6 rounds to 5 with one round even. I also think if Arreola had more intelligence or stamina he could have won even with the injury. I also think if Grant wasnt a complete coward and threw more he might have beat Adamek as well. I like Adamek, he's an amazing cruiser, but I have seen nothing to suggest he is a great HW. Vitali is durable, will throw more than anyone else, and has amazing endurance, he is a nightmare for adamek.

But the worry is, as this article suggests, Wlad beats Haye, Vitali beats Adamek and then what? Wlad can go give out rematches? Take on Fast Eddie again? And internet geeks will say he is cherry picking and he should fight Holyfield or Tua or Toney...and then Wlad could fight Holyfield, Tua or Toney and internet geeks will ask why he isnt fighting Boystov etc...there really is no pleasing people and if he beats Haye and Vitali beats Adamek...the only reasons for Wlad to continue is to win Vitali's belt, get all the belts and retire or just for money. I worry Wlad and Vitali will both retire one fight after the Haye/Adamek fights. Vitali I think will finally get Valuev in the ring. Wlad I think will fight Chisora just to shutup any doubts. I worry theyll do this, retire, and the division will go into the dark ages.

[Dave Rado]

As a fan of the HW division I do worry about it. I really believe Wlad will beat Haye with relative ease and that Vitali will beat Adamek even easier. While on paper it looks like the Klitschko's matched themselves up wrong for the fights, I think its a perfect matchup. Haye is incredibly defenseless against a jab and known for tiring out and will have to doa ton of work to even get shots off on Wlad, and Adamek I dont think poses any problem for either Klitschko. I am sorry, but I have watched Arreola vs Adamek 3 times now and I am completely convinced if Arreola hadnt gotten hurt he would have won by 3 rounds. As it stands I had Adamek winning by 1 round...literally 6 rounds to 5 with one round even. I also think if Arreola had more intelligence or stamina he could have won even with the injury. I also think if Grant wasnt a complete coward and threw more he might have beat Adamek as well. I like Adamek, he's an amazing cruiser, but I have seen nothing to suggest he is a great HW. Vitali is durable, will throw more than anyone else, and has amazing endurance, he is a nightmare for adamek.

But the worry is, as this article suggests, Wlad beats Haye, Vitali beats Adamek and then what? Wlad can go give out rematches? Take on Fast Eddie again? And internet geeks will say he is cherry picking and he should fight Holyfield or Tua or Toney...and then Wlad could fight Holyfield, Tua or Toney and internet geeks will ask why he isnt fighting Boystov etc...there really is no pleasing people and if he beats Haye and Vitali beats Adamek...the only reasons for Wlad to continue is to win Vitali's belt, get all the belts and retire or just for money. I worry Wlad and Vitali will both retire one fight after the Haye/Adamek fights. Vitali I think will finally get Valuev in the ring. Wlad I think will fight Chisora just to shutup any doubts. I worry theyll do this, retire, and the division will go into the dark ages.

I agree with most of your post but I strongly disagree with your long term analysis. IMO, Vitali should retire immediately after beating Adamek, leaving the division to his brother to finish cleaning out. Vitali is nearly 40, and has started to slow down noticeably; and with the division being so weak, he can't do much to enhance his legacy - and his legacy is far weaker than his brother's, and will remain so whatever he does now.

If Vitali retires this year, that gives Wlad a chance to really cement his claims to be an ATG. (Vitali had the talent to be one, but not the resume, and it's too late for him to get an ATG resume now - but it is not too late for Wlad).

If Wlad beats Haye decisively, his critics will simply have to shut up. And if Vitali retires this year then the Heavyweight division will at last have a dominant and universally acknowledged world champion, for the first time since Lewis retired.

Wlad can then tread water for a couple of years, by beating the likes of Valuev, Povetkin, Arreola and Boystov, until someone exciting comes along who can test him. Maybe Solis will at last take his training seriously now, and will come back rejuvenated - he certainly has the skills and speed to test Wlad if he would only train properly. Or maybe someone like Garret Simon will mature into a world class fighter in 2-3 years time.

Wlad needs to stay around for a few more years if he wants to be regarded (outside the Ukraine and Germany) as a top 10 ATG. And Vitali needs to leave the field clear for Wlad, because having two brothers who won't ever fight each other as joint champions is harming the division, and harming Wlad's legacy - and Vitali has nothing much to gain legacy-wise by staying around after he beats Adamek, as there are no really good opponents left for him in the short term and he's too old now to stay around for the long term anyway, whereas Wlad is not too old.