iamasadlittleboy Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 seen as the #2 Heavyweight in the world by most (and #1 by many of the others) most fans seem to remember him for the bloody war with Lennox Lewis that saw Vitali stopped due to a huge and gruesome cut around one of his eyes. Though what else is their to the legacy of the elder Klitschko, a fighter who's dominance along with his brother has given some legitimacy to a poor heavyweight era whilst David Haye, the only fighter that seems to be wanting to challenge that dominance has yet to face an elite fighter in the division. Continued http://hubpages.com/hub/Vitali-Klitschkos-legacy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshDevilRob Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Nice article. Quite surprising how weak his resume is. He's never beaten a fellow great fighter. He lost to a semi-retired, overweight, under trained Lennox Lewis. He quit against Chris Byrd with a similar injury to what Danny Williams and Audley Harrison had and they kept fighting. He beat Sanders but Sanders was a man living off beating his brother. Sanders was sparked in two rounds by Nate Tubbs (who only went two rounds with David Tua) and Sanders was stopped by Hasim Rahman. He did beat Arreola but Arreola is usually overweight and was relatively raw. His best win was over Travis Walker? Kevin Johnson talked himself into the fight via media releases and hadn't beaten anyone of note before fighting Vitali. Herbie Hide was a good win though everyone knows Hide has no chin. Kirk Johnson on paper is a good win but that guy was not strong willed and was a bad trainer. Larry Donald seems to be a decent win though he's coming in off a loss to Johnson. Vaughn Bean good to stop him but he was no threat. Orlin Norris, his best years were at Cruiserweight. Alot of names not on VK's record unless you want to count one armed shot Briggs. Its a weak record overall. I do rate him above his brother. Better chin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshDevilRob Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Also, Marcos Rhode is an absolute bum. He'd been Ko'd in a round by Tommy Morrison and Joe Hipp and also in 2 by Brian Nielsen before Vitali fought him. There is also a reason he didn't goto the Olympics - Steroid abuse as he admits in his own book. The Russians wouldn't touch him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donlevy Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 You shouldn't sit on the fence on topics like this rob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshDevilRob Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 You shouldn't sit on the fence on topics like this rob. I'm getting it in before someone declares him God or the best Heavyweight of all-time. mlol/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donlevy Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I think Vitali's a hall of famer,but heavyweight great? I just don't see it.Alot will disagree but even though he might be the tougher fighter head to head,I think Wlad's record and accomplishments are alot better than Vitali's.Considering the opposition that there's,Wlad has pretty much fought them all over the last ten years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grapevine241 Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 i think he will make the hall of fame, but i think wlad is the much more accomplished. heavyweights have an easier time making it in due to it being the "glory" division Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
londoner Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I agree with the opinions already expressed. He's a Hall of famer but IMO only since he returned to boxing. Had he remained retired i don't think his resume was strong enough. As i wrote in another thread, the Klitschkos don't get into the HOF for wins over 5 other greats, they get in for 20 wins each against mediocre/good opposition. They have continued success against what is out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skav Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 For me, Vitali will be remembered like Marciano. Although not unbeaten, he's dominated a weak division and will be remembered for doing so. I can see Vitali being more appreciated when he's gone because we have to put up with fat, out of shape heavyweights battling one another and I can see those world titles being passed around like quite rapidly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brooklynbrawler Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I wouldn't say there's a whole lot of difference between Vitali and Floyd Mayweather in that respect. Everyone's pretty sure he's a very good fighter, and you could speculate as to how he would fare against many top fighters, and suspect he may come out on top. When it comes to the crunch though, neither has fought enough top drawer opponents for one reason or another, while a true "great" earn's their reputation and respect by actually doing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavpowell Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 There is also a reason he didn't goto the Olympics - Steroid abuse as he admits in his own book. The Russians wouldn't touch him. Do some research will you, Rob? The Russians wouldn't touch him because he was in the Ukranian team, rather than the Russian one. I'm not sure the word abuse is exactly appropriate either- he was apparently prescribed it by a doctor to help heal an injury. He was promptly caught, thrown off the team and never tested positive again. It's not exactly Mosleyesque. But yes, I've been saying for years Vitali gets way too much credit for what he's actually achieved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshDevilRob Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 There is also a reason he didn't goto the Olympics - Steroid abuse as he admits in his own book. The Russians wouldn't touch him. Do some research will you, Rob? The Russians wouldn't touch him because he was in the Ukranian team, rather than the Russian one. I'm not sure the word abuse is exactly appropriate either- he was apparently prescribed it by a doctor to help heal an injury. He was promptly caught, thrown off the team and never tested positive again. It's not exactly Mosleyesque. But yes, I've been saying for years Vitali gets way too much credit for what he's actually achieved. Research? Whats a border between Soviet neighbours. Yeah it was supposedly for a leg injury. Lets all find Roy Jones, Shane Mosley guilty but give Klitschko a pass. Seems fair. mlol/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McBride Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Depends whether or not the border has got a f***ing great wall in it like Berlin had, i suppose Rob. mlol/ mlol/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshDevilRob Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Depends whether or not the border has got a f***ing great wall in it like Berlin had, i suppose Rob. mlol/ mlol/ Haha. Just send in the Hoff to sing and it'll fall down. grin// I'm sure I read drug/steroid abuse was rife in the old Soviet countries. Didn't the Bulgarian weightlifters take so many that it was hard to tell if they were men or women? grin// Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamasadlittleboy Posted January 16, 2011 Author Share Posted January 16, 2011 Depends whether or not the border has got a f***ing great wall in it like Berlin had, i suppose Rob. mlol/ mlol/ Haha. Just send in the Hoff to sing and it'll fall down. grin// I'm sure I read drug/steroid abuse was rife in the old Soviet countries. Didn't the Bulgarian weightlifters take so many that it was hard to tell if they were men or women? grin// Their are some cases, though I think that was hormone therapy as opposed to actual steroids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavpowell Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Research? Whats a border between Soviet neighbours. Yeah it was supposedly for a leg injury. Lets all find Roy Jones, Shane Mosley guilty but give Klitschko a pass. Seems fair. mlol/ They weren't Soviet neighbours - Ukraine and most of its neighbours have been independent since about 1991. Still, on that basis, hello EnglishDevilRob :) As to your other point, I've never been entirely sure about RJJ - he also seems to have committed one offence, never failed any other tests(so far as we know) and the commission decided to sweep it under the carpet. Mosley on the other hand took an undetectable steroid, lied about it, tried to pass the buck, failed to do that too, had to withdraw a laqsuit against at least one of his former team members, etc etc. So yeah, I think I'll find him more guilty than most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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