• 5th Longest Reigning Heavyweight Champion of All Time
• 3rd Most Consecutive Title Defenses
• WBA / WBO / IBF / IBO / The Ring World Heavyweight Champion
GREATEST ASSETS
• Jab - Powerful, Quick and Accurate
• Defensive Mindset
Aside from his height and reach advantage over the majority of his opponents, Wladimir Klitschko has one of the best jabs in boxing. It’s powerful, quick and accurate which often stuns his opponents and keeps them at a safe distance.
Wladimir also utilizes his height advantage very well by leaning back when punches are coming towards him. His defensive mindset befuddles and frustrates his opponents, and it’s led him to so many dominant victories.
HOW?
Wladimir Klitschko had a decorated amateur career. He has 134 fights and only 6 losses. This experience gave him much practice in sharpening his tools of the trade. However, the amateur scene is drastically different to the professional game.
Wladimir suffered losses in the professional ranks all by stoppage and by huge underdogs. These losses made him realise that he needed to improve on his defense and through legendary trainer Emmanuel Steward, he has become a better fighter.
• Shadowboxing In Swimming Pool - Water provides resistance and Wladimir utilizes this method for his quick and powerful punches. This is a contrast from his amateur days when he never use to swim.
• Punching Tree Leafs – It may sound unusual, but it’s an effective method that has proven to be successful. Tree leafs provide numerous targets at various angles, which is why Wladimir rarely wastes his punches due to his accuracy.
Because of his accuracy and power behind his shots, Wladimir’s opponents are usually very weary of getting within range. He has a very powerful straight right hand which is set up by his stiff jabs. It’s the classic one-two combination in boxing and Wladimir perfects it. This has enabled him to have long winning streaks and continuous reign at the top of the heavyweight division.
VITALI KLITSCHKO
Born: July 19, 1971
Birth Place: Kyrgyzstan
Nationality: Ukrainian
Nickname: Dr. Ironfist
Division: Heavyweight (200lbs+)
Height: 6′ 7½″ / 200cm
Reach: 80″ / 203cm
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• PhD Sports Science and Philosophy
• Germany's Highest Civilian Award, the Federal Cross of Merit
• Leader of the Political Party UDAR of Vitaliy Klychko
• Six Time Kickboxing World Champion
• 1995 World Amateur Boxing Championships Silver Medallist
• WBC World Heavyweight Champion
GREATEST ASSETS
• Durable Chin
• Powerful Straight Right Hand
Like his brother Wladimir, Vitali Klitschko has a height and reach advantage over the majority of his opponents, though he’s not as defensive minded so his opponents have more opportunities to catch him.
However, his excellent chin and ability to absorb punishment has kept him standing, having never been knocked down in his boxing career. Vitali is physically strong and packs a big punch, most notably his straight right hand which has earned him one of the highest knock-out ratio’s in heavyweight boxing history.
HOW?
Before he took up boxing, Vitali was a world class kickboxer. His athleticism has allowed him to become dominant in both sports. For a person his size, his footwork is excellent which allows him to get out of trouble quickly.
Vitali was on a roll with 27 wins all by KO, but he received much criticism from the media and public when he quit on his stool against Chris Byrd. It was his first loss and many branded him a “quitter”.
After notching up a few wins, he went to war with the great Lennox Lewis. The referee stopped the fight due to Vitali’s severely damaged eye. Although he lost, he restored his reputation as a warrior.
Vitali maintains his physical power by doing many strength based training in the cold climate of the Austrian mountains. It’s a secluded area that helps focus and concentration.
The methods that are implemented by Vitali are reminiscent of Rocky IV. It consists of pulling a sledge with his trainer sitting on it, walking through snow at waist height while carrying a large log on his shoulders and chopping logs for that explosive power seen in all his fights. An avid chess player, Vitali brings his smarts into the ring also.
“ Chess is similar to boxing. You need to develop a strategy, and you need to think two or three steps ahead about what your opponent is doing. You have to be smart. But what's the difference between chess and boxing? In chess, nobody is an expert, but everybody piays. In boxing everybody is an expert, but nobody fights”
• 2001 World Amateur Boxing Championships Silver Medallist
• Unified World Cruiserweight Champion
• WBA Heavyweight Champion
GREATEST ASSETS
• Power in Both Hands
• Very Fast Hands
As proven by his record, David Haye has extreme power and is pound-for-pound one of the hardest hitters in boxing. He can produce a knock out with any one punch at any time during a fight. His overhand right (hayemaker) is his most devastating shot which has either badly stunned or taken out many of his opponents.
The speed of Haye’s punches is also a problem for his opponents, as they are often caught off guard. Haye is not a combination puncher, which means that he usually only throws one or two punches at a time, but they are fast, powerful and accurate.
HOW?
David Haye likes to fight on the back foot to draw his opponents onto his powerful shots. He doesn’t have a high punch output and is very selective with his punches. This is not only due to his style, but also because of his stamina issues, which has caused him problems in the past.
In only his 11thpro fight, he faced former world champion Carl Thompson. Haye started fast and almost got rid of Thompson with a constant barrage of punches in the first few rounds. However, as the fight wore on, Haye began to tire and was knocked down with a right hand in the 5 thround. Visibly fatigued, this prompted Haye’s corner to throw in the towel.
It was his first loss and many wrote him off. Since then, Haye has proven himself by unifying all the major world titles at Cruiserweight and has won a title at Heavyweight. Stamina is still an issue for Haye, but his speed, power and movement manages to dispatch opponents whose only hope is to pressure and tire him out.
• Haye switches his training camps between the hot climates of Cyprus and Miami, where he gets a real test by sparring against Cubans, who are known for their high quality boxing skills.
• As quoted by the man himself - “I eat 24 egg whites every day, raw, which contain no fat, just protein. I stick them in a glass and swallow them whole, six at a time. I also have four tins of sardines a day.”
• Clap Push Ups -Haye does 3 sets of 20 reps, and would also do as many as he can in under a minute. “With a clap press-up you generate a sudden burst of force to get yourself up and away from the floor and clap the hands. It mimics the punch action. Good for power endurance.”
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