Well you certainly can’t blame HBO for this one. They set the table with the premiere of “Joe Louis: America’s Hero…Betrayed,” arguably one of the finest boxing documentaries ever made, and then they broadcast the first heavyweight unification bout in nine years. In between, they even showed a replay of last week’s exciting Kelly Pavlik-Jermain Taylor fight, which probably attracted a goodly number of viewers in its own right, considering the disappointing number of PPV buys that the fight received.
Then the main event, with the IBF/IBO heavyweight titlist Wladimir Klitschko, now 50-3 (44), vs. WBO belt holder Sultan Ibragimov, 22-1-1 (18), began and the best laid plans turned into a story about mice, not men.
Who would have thought when they touched gloves that that was the key to Wladimir’s early game plan? Throughout the fight, Klitschko slapped away the southpaw Ibragimov’s right jab to the point in which it appeared that they were in a scene from some moronic sit-com, slapping at each other.
Last week I wrote that, given the relevance of the encounter, Klitschko-Ibragimov was somewhat overlooked because it was sandwiched between Pavlik-Taylor last week and Israel Vasquez-Rafael Marquez this week. Well, over 14,000 fans appeared at Madison Square Garden to support a fight between a Russian and a Ukrainian.
So the fans responded well, just not the participants. Hopefully the same fans will be back after this snooze-fest.
To further illustrate my ignorance, I picked Sultan to win. Despite my analytical assessment of why I thought the underdog had a solid shot at victory, I knew by the fourth round that he had no shot. By then it was apparent that Ibragimov was fighting the survival fight of a heartless, choking dog. No risk, no reward.
It looked like a 6’7” Adonis against a fat, little guy. HBO measures arm length from the arm pit to the end of the fist, which gave Klitschko a 26” to 25” advantage. Using the traditional method, the advantage is 81” to 75” because Wlad’s super-wide, muscular shoulders could hold a food tray. HBO also listed Wladimir at 6’6” and Sultan at 6’2”, but as you could easily see if you watched the fight there was likely a six inch advantage.
But I don’t want to hear about how Klitschko’s physical attributes and left jab kept Ibragimov at bay. Even if true, three other fighters have found a way to get to that glass chin. The fact is that Plan “A” didn’t work because Klitschko didn’t throw right hands to counter, and instead of taking some risks to get inside and make a fight of it Sultan just cruised along, eating jabs, content that Klitschko was as uninspired as he was, and grateful not to taste the right.
Apparently, just the threat of Wladimir’s right was enough to keep him in check. The most offensive move by Ibragimov all night was a great full body tackle in the 10th round. As the rounds ticked by it became increasingly obvious that Sultan’s only shot was an all out assault at Wlad’s chin, the Holy Grail of Klitschko opponents, and he didn’t rise to the occasion.
Wladimir didn’t do much himself, aside from the left jab. You would think that after a dominating victory by scores of 119-110, 117-111, and 118-110, Sultan would have had more lumps than a rack of peanut brittle. In truth, neither man showed significant marks of combat.
Klitschko may have been robbed of a knockdown in round nine when Ibragimov was left squatting on the ropes after a Klitschko right, but referee Wayne Kelly chose not to call it, and Sultan did come off the ropes in good shape. Klitschko also gave Ibragimov a scratch under his left eye during round 11, but it would be reaching to call that damage.
Klitschko, known as Dr. Steel Hammer, might become known as Dr. Sleep-Hammer for his performance. His trainer, Manny Steward, gave good instructions after every round, and in the final rounds implored Wlad to score the knockout despite his commanding lead. Steward knew that the fans and the media expected it, and anything else was a step in the wrong direction for Klitschko as he tries to win over the American public.
The Compubox statistics tell the story of the fight. Klitschko landed 148 of his 348 punches, but 108 of 245 of them were jabs. That means he landed a mere 40 power punches in 12 rounds.
Ibragimov connected on only 97 punches total in 316 attempts, and a puny, but very believable 16 of 137 jabs. So Sultan somehow won the power punch battle, 81 to 40. Though both numbers are bad, it’s a tough stat to figure. I can only assume that 81 punches launched from four feet away don’t have much impact.
But the stats do reflect that neither man was going to punch himself out, by any means. Klitschko was effective with the jab, and the decision to throw so few right hands against the southpaw is bizarre, and can only be interpreted as a reluctance to be countered. As for Sultan, landing only 97 of 316 could be interpreted as a reluctance to encounter.
NOTES:
Max Kellerman is beginning to grow on me. He’s come a long way in a relatively short amount of time, and is beginning to look comfortable in his role. On Saturday, he astutely remarked in round 12 that Manny’s call for Klitschko to go for the knockout was a gutsy move. Max pointed out that there was a lot of potential future earnings that could be jeopardized by failing to knock out an opponent that shouldn’t have lasted 12 rounds.
Now on the other hand, Lennox Lewis is simply not progressing as a broadcaster, let alone “Expert Analyst.” First of all, he appears to be very nervous in front of the camera. In the opening, sitting up top at the round table, Lennox looked as if he was seated in a dentist’s chair. (“Is it safe?”)
Lennox continues to botch sentences and sometimes even whole thoughts. In the opening he said of Klitschko, “Weight is on his size; size is on his side.”
Later, assessing Wlad’s chin before the fight, he told us that we would find out in the “next coming up rounds.” In round one he managed to say “athleticism” after a couple of failed attempts.
In the mini-debate over whether the ropes held up Sultan in round nine and should have been a knockdown, he offered that it would have been a knockdown if his gloves had touched the canvas.
Lewis is at his best when asked questions about his career, but that’s a topic that’s in lessening demand every day at this point.
But to close on a positive note — Is there any network that does a better job of capturing key replays during the one minute rest period between rounds? Somebody in the truck deserves an “attaboy.”