Comments Thread For: Wladimir Klitschko on Facing Vitali: He Would Have Beat Me

[Boxing Goat]

I watched that fight live and many times since.

At the time I was always confident that Lennox was going to win, even when Vitali appeared to be in control, because I'd seen Lennox go the distance many times and I didn't know back then how much stamina and determination Vitali had. That only became evident later in his career.

I see the fight differently when I watch it now, and I believe that if the cuts hadn't happened Vitali would have won on points. But he must have known that he could not go 12 rounds with such bad eye damage and went balls out for the KO. That was when Lennox began catching him with hard punches as he came in, including the uppercut which landed right on the button and buckled Vitali's legs.

Lennox was definitely past his best when they fought but Vitali had not yet reached his peak. He learned a lot from his two defeats and became a better fighter as a result.

I really cannot say who would have won if they had met when both were in their prime, so I think of it as a 50/50 fight. Depending on how the cookie crumbled on the night, either man would have been capable of beating the other.

This is a lot more fair of an assessment than most posters on here offer. I disagree but this was well said. Good job.

[lefthook2daliva]

I'm glad they never fought. I, like most, would pick Vitali as well, but I'm sure it would have been extremely competitive, because they would know each other far to well.

I'm also pretty sure Vitali would say Wlad would beat him as well lol

Good post. Though I would favor Vitali who seems to have a better chin, I agree that if asked, he would likely respond the same. Both appear to be classy dudes. Good on em they kept their promise to their Momma.