WLAD RETIRES

[crusader]

Why not? Pushed out by others who are eligible the first time?

[gilgamesh]

Crazy thing is if things fall right Wlad won't be a first ballot HOF fighter.

Depends on if Pac and Mayweather fight again next year, but yeah he'll be up against Pac, Mayweather and Hopkins all retiring at the same time. What a year the HOF is gonna be that year!

[crusader]

Looks like Pac is fighting on for now...

Hop had his last fight in 2016...would that move him to a different year than Wlad?

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Why not? Pushed out by others who are eligible the first time?

Yeah, it could be Floyd/Pac/Cotto. The Klitschko's are beloved by the media, so he could edge Cotto. The odds of all 3 of them retiring this year are slim.

[Kalan]

Boxrec is a lot closer with their # 6 ATG ranking for Wladimir... He's really number 3 behind Joshua and Vitali if you want to be totally honest about it.

Wlad had a somewhat wide and klunky stance and faulty footwork when he was KOing guys like Barrett, Jefferson, Mercer, McCline, and in the 1st Byrd fight.. His defense had major holes in it al a Foreman, Ali, and Louis.. But how many ATG's can you see beating a prime Wladimir after he'd been with Steward for 4 or 5 years ironing his flaws out and building on his strengths? His stance, footwork, timing, jab, and defense have been superb for the last 10 years..

I have to say, I don't think Jonathan Banks was much of a head coach to replace Emmanuel Steward... Wlad suffered some regression in the last 4 years under Banks.. And I don't think he ever beats his brother or Joshua, but I don't see anyone else beating him.

What about those who actually beat him? Like Purity, Sanders, Fury and Brewster?

Wlad would destroy them once he started learning his stuff from Steward -- as easily as he made Brewster quit.

[Covfefe]

Boxrec is a lot closer with their # 6 ATG ranking for Wladimir... He's really number 3 behind Joshua and Vitali if you want to be totally honest about it.

Wlad had a somewhat wide and klunky stance and faulty footwork when he was KOing guys like Barrett, Jefferson, Mercer, McCline, and in the 1st Byrd fight.. His defense had major holes in it al a Foreman, Ali, and Louis.. But how many ATG's can you see beating a prime Wladimir after he'd been with Steward for 4 or 5 years ironing his flaws out and building on his strengths? His stance, footwork, timing, jab, and defense have been superb for the last 10 years..

I have to say, I don't think Jonathan Banks was much of a head coach to replace Emmanuel Steward... Wlad suffered some regression in the last 4 years under Banks.. And I don't think he ever beats his brother or Joshua, but I don't see anyone else beating him.

What about those who actually beat him? Like Purity, Sanders, Fury and Brewster?

So he only lost to Fury because Steward had died?
Wlad would destroy them once he started learning his stuff from Steward -- as easily as he made Brewster quit.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Brewster definitely wasn't diminished.

[crusader]

Brewster took a frightful pounding in the first fight and was clearly overmatched offensively when Wlad had energy. He had more wear on his body for the rematch, but I think that's pretty much how things would've gone if Wlad had decided to box cautiously the first time. The fights where Wlad's stamina cost him are the ones that most clearly would've been different with his later career approach...

[SaadOffTheDeck]

He never would have adopted that approach if he hadn't lost.

[crusader]

I agree

[Blodhemn]

Wlad has ATG accomplishment in numbers, and there's something to be said for consistency and longevity, but I wouldn't place him high in a "Who Beats Who" HW list. In that list, Vitali ranks much higher.

[Evander]

Solid champion Wlad

[Kalan]

Brewster took a frightful pounding in the first fight and was clearly overmatched offensively when Wlad had energy. He had more wear on his body for the rematch, but I think that's pretty much how things would've gone if Wlad had decided to box cautiously the first time. The fights where Wlad's stamina cost him are the ones that most clearly would've been different with his later career approach...

The Saunders fight as well.. Wlad's stance, footwork, jab, and defense were dramatically better after 3 or 4 years with Steward.. A tall southpaw power puncher was the toughest style for Wladimir to deal with, because he fought just a tad too squared up for his first 45 fights.. He easily beat Chris Byrd, who lacked height and power, but Corrie Sanders drove his left hand through his guard like it was Wlad's 1st pro fight..

Tony Thompson,31-1, was also a tough opponent the first time.. That was the first time in 4 years Wladimir looked like he'd been in a fight after he scored the 11th round KO.. If you've carried a flaw for 20 years it's damned near impossible to make corrections stick, but Wadimir did.

[pound per pound]

A top 10-12 all time great
A great Ambassador for a sport that has its share of problems
And its time.

Enjoy the rest of your life Wladimir Wladimirowitsch Klitschko, and thanks for the memories.

-p4p

[pound per pound]

Crazy thing is if things fall right Wlad won't be a first ballot HOF fighter.

Well, he's a heavyweight. Let's be honest that helps.

If he was a bantamweight, I still think he made it due to a number of years he was the champion, but he might not make it on his first try.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Crazy thing is if things fall right Wlad won't be a first ballot HOF fighter.

Well, he's a heavyweight. Let's be honest that helps.

If he was a bantamweight, I still think he made it due to a number of years he was the champion, but he might not make it on his first try.

Definitely helps, I would consider Rafael marquez more accomplished.

[Syntax Error]

I hope he sticks to his decision to retire, although something tells me that we haven't seen the last of him.

[Kalan]

That's the last we've seen of Wladimir Klitschko the boxer -- because he's one of the most disciplined men out there.

When you quit boxing it often never leaves you.. It can be a curse to some like Roy Jones.. Maybe you keep going back to the gym to train youngsters. Keep going to every big fight. You feel a deep desire to get back in there and fight, even when you're 45 or older.. It seems stupid because it IS stupid. It's pure foolishness. Like being addicted to drugs or alcohol for 40 or 50 years -- or needing sex all the time and always a different partner.

The best thing is to shake Boxing out of your system and forget about it. Change your phone number and email address. Move to another location where most people don't recognize you and start incessantly talking about Boxing every time you run into them. Find a new passion -- a new profession -- and throw yourself into your new life with all your strength. You only know you've obliterated Boxing when somebody asks you, "What do you think of Keith Thurman?" and you've never heard of him. Not that you live under a rock as far as Boxing is concerned -- you're just not paying any attention to it so you can discover other interests and passions and get your head into them. Boxing will do fine without you ... believe it or not.

[Ilya Muromets]

THE greatest heavyweight ever, except for his brother Vitali who was even better. They totally dominated the heavyweight division at a time when it was far bigger and stronger and international in scope that it had ever been before. No one has dominated a sport like they did since the great Babe Ruth ruled baseball in the 1920's and 30'.

Ali and Louis dominated the HW as well. Louis had the most title defenses (25) I believe.

Ali was a comedian not a great boxer. Half his fights were fixed one way or another. Now he's supposed to be some kind of deity but in his own time he was widely hated. For instance when they interviewed people who attended his second so called fight with Liston at the arena's exit they couldn't find a single person who thought the fight was legit. he was a comedian not a great fighter, a comedian deeply involved with the Black Moslem prison cult hate group. He himself said that he copied his act from Gorgeous George the flamboyant wrestler who helped popularize television in the early '50's.

Joe Louis was fighting what was called at the time "the bum of the month club". Many were mediocre fighters with numerous previous losses. By contrast the Klitschkos, both of them, fought all comers, the best there was, from all over the world, many previously undefeated.

Neither of the first two ever fought a single Russian or eastern European or Cuban or black African. Often their opponents would weigh only in the 180's. What was called a world championship then was really just a US championship.

That's why I said the Klitschkos were THE greatest heavyweight champions ever.

[Tanzio]

THE greatest heavyweight ever, except for his brother Vitali who was even better. They totally dominated the heavyweight division at a time when it was far bigger and stronger and international in scope that it had ever been before. No one has dominated a sport like they did since the great Babe Ruth ruled baseball in the 1920's and 30'.

Ali and Louis dominated the HW as well. Louis had the most title defenses (25) I believe.

Ali was a comedian not a great boxer.

Never thought I would see the day but you have dethroned Montreal as the Current Scene Moron Laureate.

[Tony1244]

THE greatest heavyweight ever, except for his brother Vitali who was even better. They totally dominated the heavyweight division at a time when it was far bigger and stronger and international in scope that it had ever been before. No one has dominated a sport like they did since the great Babe Ruth ruled baseball in the 1920's and 30'.

Ali and Louis dominated the HW as well. Louis had the most title defenses (25) I believe.

Ali was a comedian not a great boxer. Half his fights were fixed one way or another. Now he's supposed to be some kind of deity but in his own time he was widely hated. For instance when they interviewed people who attended his second so called fight with Liston at the arena's exit they couldn't find a single person who thought the fight was legit. he was a comedian not a great fighter, a comedian deeply involved with the Black Moslem prison cult hate group. He himself said that he copied his act from Gorgeous George the flamboyant wrestler who helped popularize television in the early '50's.

Joe Louis was fighting what was called at the time "the bum of the month club". Many were mediocre fighters with numerous previous losses. By contrast the Klitschkos, both of them, fought all comers, the best there was, from all over the world, many previously undefeated.

Neither of the first two ever fought a single Russian or eastern European or Cuban or black African. Often their opponents would weigh only in the 180's. What was called a world championship then was really just a US championship.

That's why I said the Klitschkos were THE greatest heavyweight champions ever.

I think you're a much better comedian.

[Ilya Muromets]

Ali and Louis dominated the HW as well. Louis had the most title defenses (25) I believe.

Ali was a comedian not a great boxer. Half his fights were fixed one way or another. Now he's supposed to be some kind of deity but in his own time he was widely hated. For instance when they interviewed people who attended his second so called fight with Liston at the arena's exit they couldn't find a single person who thought the fight was legit. he was a comedian not a great fighter, a comedian deeply involved with the Black Moslem prison cult hate group. He himself said that he copied his act from Gorgeous George the flamboyant wrestler who helped popularize television in the early '50's.

Joe Louis was fighting what was called at the time "the bum of the month club". Many were mediocre fighters with numerous previous losses. By contrast the Klitschkos, both of them, fought all comers, the best there was, from all over the world, many previously undefeated.

Neither of the first two ever fought a single Russian or eastern European or Cuban or black African. Often their opponents would weigh only in the 180's. What was called a world championship then was really just a US championship.

That's why I said the Klitschkos were THE greatest heavyweight champions ever.

I think you're a much better comedian.

Why thank you, but Ali himself said that he copied his act from the comedian wrestler Georgeous George, but if you were paying attention instead of just planning something stupid to post in your so called response you would have heard that the first time.

[Ilya Muromets]

From Wikipedia:

"Muhammad Ali and James Brown acknowledged that their own approach to flamboyant self-promotion was influenced by [Gorgeous] George. A 19-year-old Ali met a 46-year-old George at a Las Vegas radio station. During George's radio interview, the wrestler's promo caught the attention of the future heavyweight champion. If George lost to Classy Freddie Blassie, George exclaimed, "I'll crawl across the ring and cut my hair off! But that's not gonna happen because I'm the greatest wrestler in the world!" Ali, who later echoed that very promo when taunting opponent Sonny Liston, recalled, "I saw 15,000 people comin' to see this man get beat. And his talking did it. I said, 'This is a gooood idea!'" In the locker room afterward, the seasoned wrestler gave the future legend some invaluable advice: "A lot of people will pay to see someone shut your mouth. So keep on bragging, keep on sassing and always be outrageous."

[Tony1244]

Ali was a comedian not a great boxer. Half his fights were fixed one way or another. Now he's supposed to be some kind of deity but in his own time he was widely hated. For instance when they interviewed people who attended his second so called fight with Liston at the arena's exit they couldn't find a single person who thought the fight was legit. he was a comedian not a great fighter, a comedian deeply involved with the Black Moslem prison cult hate group. He himself said that he copied his act from Gorgeous George the flamboyant wrestler who helped popularize television in the early '50's.

Joe Louis was fighting what was called at the time "the bum of the month club". Many were mediocre fighters with numerous previous losses. By contrast the Klitschkos, both of them, fought all comers, the best there was, from all over the world, many previously undefeated.

Neither of the first two ever fought a single Russian or eastern European or Cuban or black African. Often their opponents would weigh only in the 180's. What was called a world championship then was really just a US championship.

That's why I said the Klitschkos were THE greatest heavyweight champions ever.

I think you're a much better comedian.

Why thank you, but Ali himself said that he copied his act from the comedian wrestler Georgeous George, but if you were paying attention instead of just planning something stupid to post in your so called response you would have heard that the first time.

Einstein, what does copying GG's shtick have to do with how well Ali boxed? Your brain doesn't work too well.

[Tanzio]

From Wikipedia:

"Muhammad Ali and James Brown acknowledged that their own approach to flamboyant self-promotion was influenced by [Gorgeous] George. A 19-year-old Ali met a 46-year-old George at a Las Vegas radio station. During George's radio interview, the wrestler's promo caught the attention of the future heavyweight champion. If George lost to Classy Freddie Blassie, George exclaimed, "I'll crawl across the ring and cut my hair off! But that's not gonna happen because I'm the greatest wrestler in the world!" Ali, who later echoed that very promo when taunting opponent Sonny Liston, recalled, "I saw 15,000 people comin' to see this man get beat. And his talking did it. I said, 'This is a gooood idea!'" In the locker room afterward, the seasoned wrestler gave the future legend some invaluable advice: "A lot of people will pay to see someone shut your mouth. So keep on bragging, keep on sassing and always be outrageous."

None of which addresses the fact that you claim "Ali was . . . not a great boxer," Moron Laureate.