Approaching His Zenith: Klitschko KO’s Thompson

July 13th, 2008

By Scoop Malinowski

This was a very impressive and important win for Wladimir Klitschko because he showed new aspects in his arsenal we had not seen before such as the body punching and the ability to handle a tricky opponent that he could not control and dominate with just his left hand. This week Jameel McCline said: “Thompson is one of the most underestimated hidden treasures in all of boxing.” And heavyweight-wise, his comment was on the mark. It is simply a credit to Wladimir Klitschko that he was 110% prepared and determined to win this fight at all costs. If he was a few years younger without the experience he has now he might have lost this fight.

Thompson demonstrated he has the skills and intangibles to defeat any other heavyweight in the world today including Peter, Chagaev and quite possibly Valuev. The American came into this fight extremely confident and determined and full of self belief as evidenced by his telling his corner between the later rounds, “Please trust me now, please trust me now.”

But the world champion Klitschko is at the point now where he will not be denied. There is unfinished business. Nothing, no man, nothing is going to halt the Klitschko quest to unify all four heavyweight titles. At 32 he is still approaching his mental and physical prime and his ultimate zenith as a champion athlete. This victory tonight will serve to make Klitschko a better, more diverse fighter overall, similar to how Lennox Lewis’s hard-fought win over Ray Mercer was a major benefit to his career. Speaking of Lennox Lewis, he gave Klitschko a wonderful compliment when said on the air of the HBO telecast that Klitschko is “…almost a complete fighter.”

Inevitably and very soon Klitschko will become that complete fighter – to the misfortune of Povetkin, Valuev, Haye, Peter, etc