Beaten to the Punch

Nothing to Ibrag' About
One suspects that the only reason referee Don Ackerman didn't penalise Wladimir Klitschko for continuously pawing away Sultan Ibragimov's woefully inept attempts to bring down the "Russian Goliath" was because his experience told him that that was about as good as it was going to get. If that was his reasoning, he wasn't far wrong. Klitschko threw single jabs and withdrew as though the merest tap to his glass jaw would render him senseless and beltless.

On the rare occasion when he ventured to put a combination together, the Madison Square Garden crowd erupted, only to be sitting back down as soon as they'd gotten to their feet. Klitschko wasn't there to entertain, and no amount of booing was enough to tempt him out of his game plan. Stifled by his own fear of suffering another unexpected and devastating knockout, the lesser Klitschko failed to win over a public that is longing for a heavyweight champ to fall in love with.

Taking his titles and running, the wide-eyed, worried look still furnished on his unblemished face, it's hard not to like the intelligent chess-playing Wladimir outside the ring, but it's hard to ignore the fact that he doesn't appear to be a man who likes getting into the ring. He has the physique and the skills, but lacks the heart to be a great fighter, and probably the chin, too. If this is what we have to look forward to from the best in the world -- 12-round chess matches in which the king is taken with the risk of a single pawn -- few people in these parts will be staying up into the early hours to watch the show.

There is hope, though, and it comes in the form of the undisputed cruiserweight number one, David Haye. The five minutes it took him to dispose of his final challenge at the weight provided more entertainment than Klitschko and Ibragimov could muster in 36. The hard-hitting Londoner came of age in the division when he picked himself up off the canvas to stop Jean-Marc Mormeck last November, and beating fellow Brit Enzo Macarinelli would tie up any loose ends before he made the move up to heavyweight. The fight wasn't risk-free, with both men possessing knockout power and many experts fancying the Welshman to win in the later rounds. Things didn't get that far, of course, and while, in reflection, it was a much safer bet than the bookies made it out to be, it can't be ignored that Haye took a gamble that he could have sidestepped, like a certain compatriot lower down the divisions appears to be doing.

Losing to Macarinelli would have undermined Haye's long-proposed move to heavyweight, but unlike Klitschko, he was never going to try to eke out a win with as little risk as possible. Despite recognising the danger Macarinelli held, Haye took the necessary risk of getting hit in order to knock his man out. In the end, he looked like a classier act, and his obvious power, notching 20 knockouts in 21 wins, makes him a tantalising prospect up amongst the big boys. His only previous sojourn to the division saw him destroy Tomasz Bonin in one round, a man whom the laughably disappointing Audley Harrison took nine rounds to dispatch.

Harrison is a farce who was at one stage lauded as a potential champion, which would make Haye an almost certainty. That could mean facing Klitschko in the future if the Russian can muster the courage to get into the ring with a man who has a longer reach, hits harder, has faster hands, and is a more talented boxer than the second-rate Ibragimov. Haye may not have a better chin than Klitschko, but taking on Macarinelli proved that he has bigger balls. The heavyweight division may just be about to get interesting, and putting your money on Haye could reap the rewards.

No Ordinary Joe
Old men building up a pension fund. Big paydays for two legends whose reputations are already secured. These are opinions that have been raised, though not widely, about 35-year-old Joe Calzaghe taking on 43-year-young Bernard Hopkins. They are, of course, wrong, at least when applied to the unbeaten Welsh super-middleweight king. Although at an age when he would be expected to be past his peak and overdue for retirement, Calzaghe is possibly better than he has ever been. For a long time, he was regarded as the most underrated world champion at any weight, and he is finally getting the recognition he has craved for so long.

Up until he handed top American prospect Jeff Lacy a boxing lesson, Calzaghe's record was sneered upon in the U.S. for containing little more than a handful of over-the-hill big names. Little weight was given to wins over Eubank, Reid, and Woodhall, because their quality wasn't appreciated on that side of the Atlantic, and those they did recognise, notably Brewer, Pudwill, and Mitchell, were seen as has-beens. Not taking on Sven Ottke, though understandable considering the number of questionable decisions the German, who never ventured farther from is homeland than neighbouring Austria, was awarded, was a stick with which Calzaghe's reputation suffered a number of blows.

Beating Lacy forced the American fighting fraternity to admit that he was pretty good after all, and when he put in one of the performances of his career to beat Mikel Kessler, he was being beamed live to prime-time audiences in the US. So impressive was he that, for the first time in his career, Calzaghe had big names from across the water practically begging to get in the ring with him.

Immediately after defeating Kessler, Calzaghe called out Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr. Both seemed willing, but there was little doubt that only B-Hop was able anymore. Despite his age, Hopkins is still a very credible fighter, and wins over Ronald Winky Wright and Antonio Tarver have proven that he can still cut it following back-to-back losses on points to Jermain Taylor. The "Executioner" is a wily operator who will look to frustrate Calzaghe, and his defensive style will test the Welshman's hand speed as well his patience.

The fact that the fight is in Las Vegas may evoke memories of Ricky Hatton's recent failure to shine there, but this time the visitor is the favourite, not just with the bookmakers but with the American public, as well. Hopkins' statement that he "would never lose to a white boy" has soured his popularity, and the greatest cheer in the Thomas and Mack Center on April 19 is sure to go up when the "Pride of Wales" makes his entrance to the arena. Beating Hopkins will cement Calzaghe's reputation as a truly great fighter, and everything tells me he is going to do just that. I don't make many recommendations, but if you have a house, put it on Joe Calzaghe. This is one of my bets of the year in what could be the fight of the year.

At Our Witts End
Elsewhere in the world of boxing, Ricky Hatton's refusal to take on Junior Witter is now being viewed as either sheer stubbornness or a fear of being embarrassed. Had he beaten Mayweather, the "Hitman" could have continued to avoid his biggest domestic rival with impunity, but he didn't, and now is the time to put an end to Witter's unrelenting calls for the match to be made. Juan Luzcano will provide Hatton with another belt, but it won't provide fans with the fight they increasingly want to see.

Kelly Pavlik proved that his first win over the previously unbeaten Jermain Taylor wasn't a fluke by impressing in the rematch, but has swerved a proposed clash with the over-hyped John Duddy. Instead, he will take on Joe Calzaghe's stablemate Gary Lockett in June. This should be an exciting encounter, but Pavlik will be too strong for the less experienced Welshman and a knockout in the middle rounds is very much in the cards. Duddy, on the other hand, flattered to deceive in his brawl with the very average Walid Smichet, and the ease with which the Derryman was hit more than suggests that a meeting with Pavlik would end in defeat. The cuts Duddy suffered means that he will be out of the ring for up to six months, and even then, much work needs to be done if he is to survive long enough to get a chance at a world title. There is a little glimmer of hope, though. Duddy took far too many hard punches, but never looked like he was going down.Pavlik, on the other hand, should have been knocked out by Taylor, and if these two brawlers meet, there is the chance that Duddy's chin could win him the fight.

After defeating Hatton, there is no doubt that Floyd Mayweather is cashing in by taking a rematch with Oscar De La Hoya, but this has all the makings of another underwhelming points win for the "Pretty Boy."

Finally, the mere suggestion that Mike Tyson could take on Evander Holyfield would be laughable if there weren't so many people in boxing willing to encourage what would be little more than an embarrassing debacle. The fact that Holyfield is still fighting at all is embarrassing, and more than a little worrying, but bring Tyson into the equation and the thing becomes a joke. Unfortunately, in this era of Big Brother-spearheaded voyeurism, there is the real possibility that this tragedy to boxing will take place; but I for one will be sound asleep dreaming of better times, when Tyson inspired fear and not curiosity wherever he went.