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Having received his first heavyweight title shot, Calvin “The Boxing Banker” Brock was looking to cash in but instead went crashing out. Wladimir Klitschko, meanwhile, had a sound return on his investment.
In a heavyweight landscape where nationalism and ethnocentrism lead to a constant search for the next great American big man, Brock had been the heir apparent – and almost by default, as all of the recent contenders and pretenders were either too inconsistent or too improbable.
A 2000 U.S. Olympian, Brock’s first brush with stardom came in 2005 when he earned victories over Clifford Etienne and Jameel McCline on national television and pay-per-view, respectively. But Brock’s path to prominence stalled when his next appearance was limited to highlights on the Arturo Gatti-Floyd Mayweather pay-per-view.
Brock, though, thought he had done enough to earn a shot at the heavyweight title – or at least enough to face Vitali Klitschko in a proposed tune-up prior to Vitali’s then-mandatory bout against Hasim Rahman.
But the Vitali Klitschko fight fell through, and Brock saw his spot on the heavyweight landscape being painted over. All he could do to hold on was keep busy.
Brock outpointed David Bostice on a MaxBoxing.com webcast to wrap up his 2005. His first bout the following year was on the Mosley-Vargas I undercard, a humdrum affair against journeyman Zuri Lawrence until a single Brock left hook knocked Lawrence flat out.
The kayo was noteworthy, something of value worth cashing in on. Four months later and Brock was on a coveted HBO Boxing After Dark broadcast, headlining against Timur Ibragimov in what essentially amounted to a tryout for a title shot. [details]
In a heavyweight landscape where nationalism and ethnocentrism lead to a constant search for the next great American big man, Brock had been the heir apparent – and almost by default, as all of the recent contenders and pretenders were either too inconsistent or too improbable.
A 2000 U.S. Olympian, Brock’s first brush with stardom came in 2005 when he earned victories over Clifford Etienne and Jameel McCline on national television and pay-per-view, respectively. But Brock’s path to prominence stalled when his next appearance was limited to highlights on the Arturo Gatti-Floyd Mayweather pay-per-view.
Brock, though, thought he had done enough to earn a shot at the heavyweight title – or at least enough to face Vitali Klitschko in a proposed tune-up prior to Vitali’s then-mandatory bout against Hasim Rahman.
But the Vitali Klitschko fight fell through, and Brock saw his spot on the heavyweight landscape being painted over. All he could do to hold on was keep busy.
Brock outpointed David Bostice on a MaxBoxing.com webcast to wrap up his 2005. His first bout the following year was on the Mosley-Vargas I undercard, a humdrum affair against journeyman Zuri Lawrence until a single Brock left hook knocked Lawrence flat out.
The kayo was noteworthy, something of value worth cashing in on. Four months later and Brock was on a coveted HBO Boxing After Dark broadcast, headlining against Timur Ibragimov in what essentially amounted to a tryout for a title shot. [details]