Klitschko and Bryant Assert Their Place

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

You can now say it, Wladimir Klitschko is the best heavyweight in the world and his demolition of Chris Byrd clarified the big picture. Okay, there are four official heavyweights. but after reviewing the last big bouts in the division leaves no doubt who is the best. That man is Wladimir Klitschko. [details]

[Nautilus]

You can now say it, Wladimir Klitschko is the best heavyweight in the world and his demolition of Chris Byrd clarified the big picture. Okay, there are four official heavyweights. but after reviewing the last big bouts in the division leaves no doubt who is the best. That man is Wladimir Klitschko. [details]

I liked Bryant's KO of Sykes, but what makes him belong in the same piece of news as Wlad does?

[yrrej]

Thanks a lot, Byrd, for disapproving my assertion that even an average American heavy with good skills is better than any of the Europeans.....

[Hous]

Thanks a lot, Byrd, for disapproving my assertion that even an average American heavy with good skills is better than any of the Europeans.....

Im American and I think thats a foolosh statement. I actually think Americans are in a bit of a slump, seems we are losing 9 in 10 fights to the Europeans.

At least we still have Mayweather

[BrooklynBomber]

Mayweather rocks

[PBDS]

....Excellent article on Wlad and it's 100% corect. Anyone who doesn't think he is the man is obviously an agenda pushing hater. It's good though because it exposes those people for all of us to see. And, it's only going to get better. What a great time to be a Wlad fan!!!

[RAESAAD]

....Excellent article on Wlad and it's 100% corect. Anyone who doesn't think he is the man is obviously an agenda pushing hater. It's good though because it exposes those people for all of us to see. And, it's only going to get better. What a great time to be a Wlad fan!!!

Yeah I bet you liked that fight.I still dislike Wlad but he did fight well.I still think anybody who fights back has a good shot at beating him.

[King Koyle]

I agree with Nautilus on this one.Great victory for Wlad,but why
mention Bryants victory in the same piece?Good win for the kid
and all,but Taurus Sykes isn't exactly a world beater.

[PBDS]

Her's another article saying th same thing basically.

WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO TKO7 CHRIS BYRD
MANNHEIM, GERMANY, April 22



Archive:
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MANNHEIM, GERMANY, April 22
Main Body:

I don’t think we’ll be hearing too many negative comments about Wladimir Klitschko for a while, not after the way he dominated and destroyed a brave Chris Byrd in seven rounds on HBO’s Saturday afternoon telecast from Germany.

This was a Klitschko who was back to the fighter he seemed to be before a four-knockdown, two-round stunner against South Africa’s Corrie Sanders three years ago caused many to write him off.

Klitschko’s career has been up and down — figuratively and literally — since then, but now he has come good in devastating fashion with a performance that surely makes him the world’s No. 1 heavyweight.

It is easy to say that Byrd did not look the fighter he used to be, that he stood in front of Klitschko and allowed himself to get hit, that at 35 he had deteriorated beyond our wildest imaginings — but not too many were saying that before before the fight. In fact, money had shown for Byrd on the offshore sports books and in Las Vegas. People were giving him a serious chance of pulling off the upset, but it never looked like happening even though two of the judges gave Byrd a largely feeling-out first round on the basis of a few solid lefts to the body. From round two it was all Klitschko, with knockdowns in the fifth and seventh as he left Byrd the proverbial bloody mess with blood pouring from a cut over his right eye.

Klitschko’s calmness and precision impressed me as much as his punching power, while he had the look of a fighter who knows he is going to be altogether too much for his opponent.

We knew. of course, that the 6ft 6ins, 241-pound Klitschko had the physical advantages over Byrd but I was surprised at just how much bigger he looked. It was like a heavyweight against a middleweight.

Those who picked Byrd to win thought he might be able to take the fight to Klitschko and make him get discouraged. That always seemed a dubious scenario, all the more so once the huge Ukrainian started to get his left jab on target and drilled quick, sharp right hands through the middle of Byrd’s southpaw stance.

Really, all Byrd had to offer was defiance, a “hit me again” type of bravado. And Klitschko obliged. It was like a long-range artillery shelling and Byrd, normally so hard to hit with a clean punch, seemed unable to get out of the way.

Whereas most heavyweights wing big, wide punches at Byrd, he was this time faced with a big man who was punching swiftly and sharply, almost all the punches quick and straight. Once he had his man a bit beaten up and disorientated, Klitschko was able to whip in the occasional punch around the side of Byrd’s guard by way of variety so that the smaller man was in the unfortunate position of not quite knowing where the next blow was coming from.

The general feeling going into the fight was that Byrd would be more competitive than when he lost widely on points to Klitschko six years ago but instead he was totally shut down. On the outside he could not cope with Klitschko’s size, reach and hand speed while when he got close he was simply manhandled. It was an unhurried, relentless demolition and another of the classic fight plans devised by the master trainer Emanuel Steward.

I thought the only moment of danger for Klitschko, strangely enough, came after dropping Byrd heavily with a classic one-two in the fifth, because I remembered how he had seemingly exhausted himself trying to finish off a shaky Lamon Brewster two years ago. Klitschko must have remembered that night, too, because after a barrage that had Byrd in dire straits he eased back once he sensed that his opponent had weathered the immediate crisis. Klitschko knew there was more calamity in store for Byrd — “just a matter of time” as Emanuel Steward told him in the corner — and sure enough the big right hand toppled Byrd again in the seventh. Although he got up, Byrd was bloodied and bemused and New York referee Wayne Kelly did the only thing he could have done by waving the fight over.

Byrd’s courage and dignity in defeat had one’s heart going out to him, but this was Klitschko’s shining hour in a performance that not only makes him the major player among the big men but has also gone a long way, I believe, to revitalising the heavyweight division.

[Hitman932]

I liked Bryant's KO of Sykes, but what makes him belong in the same piece of news as Wlad does?

bryant came into that fight the heaviest he has ever been and looked better than he ever has, i know the guy isnt going to step up and take wlads title or anything but i do believe he deserves a little ink for a very impressive showing. if they wouldnt have thrown his in as a footnote for the wlad story they would have had to given him his own story altogether... now that wouldve been pushing it.

with the victory i think bryant puts himself in the top-20 picture and lumps himself in with a large group of guys who are good but not quite good enough. hes left handed and prefers fighting on this inside, he will not be an easy matchup for anyone considering it seems he has a chip on his shoulder with his chances winding down.