Klitschko Stops Austin in Two
Klitschko fought a conservative first round before finally unloading four consecutive left hooks in the second round and the fight was over. Austin, Klitschko's mandatory challenger (what a joke!), went down face first and was still trying to get to his feet as referee Eddie Cotton reached the count of ten. The 16,000 fans in attendance in Mannheim, Germany got the result they wanted but were still disappointed that they didn't get to witness a competitive bout.
Klitschko is the best heavyweight in the world today but mandatory defenses like this are pointless. His next bout should be against another beltholder -- either Shannon Briggs, Oleg Maskaev or Nicolay Valuev. If boxing politics prevent Klitschko from securing a unification bout, then he should aim for a rematch with either Lamon Brewster or Corrie Sanders to try and avenge one of his KO losses. Ross Puritty handed Klitschko his only other professional defeat but Puritty, now 40, hasn't won a fight in over three years so it would be hard to justify him as a title challenger ... yes, even harder than it was to justify Ray Austin as a title challenger.
Comments
I agree the top four heavyweights in the world have a free ticket not to fight each other, it’s called being title holders. The thing that will save the division is unifications, not just one but all.
Austin fell down. Klitchko doesn’t even have that good of a left hook. It’s his weak point besides his chin. I think his brother Vitali is better than him. I’d like to see Vladimir fight Valuev. Brewster hasn’t fought since being beat by Lyakovich. Peter would be the best challenger for any of the so called champs.