By John Murawski, BoxingInsider.com Artist in Residence

BoxingInsider.com’s official artist John Murawski shares his Tomasz Adamek oil painting and thoughts about Poland’s two-time world champion. More of his work can be viewed at: http://myartnsoul.blogspot.com/

“Tomasz Adamek is without a doubt my favorite active fighter right now. I had never even heard of him until the night of May 21, 2005. He fought for the vacant WBC Light Heavyweight title against Australian Paul Briggs in Chicago on the undercard of Golota vs Brewster,” recalls Murawski. “Adamek’s fight wasn’t even shown on HBO, but the repercussions from that fight was amazing. Golota got blown out in one round by Brewster, while Adamek showed the American fans whats he is really made of, by going to war with Briggs for the full 12 rounds and coming away with the title – the first man from Poland to win a major boxing title.”

“That was almost five years ago and Adamek moved up in weight and has won the undisputed Cruiserweight title and is now attempting to become a three-weight class title winner by moving up to Heavyweight. The guy is totally incredible as a professional boxer. He has everything it takes to remain a dominant figure in the sport: Power, speed, a granite chin, throws beautiful combinations, he has alot of ring intelligence, which allows him to adjust on the fly.”

“Thinking about when I did the Adamek painting brings back very good memories. I was showing some of my paintings on another boxing site forum, trying to create some interest in hoping someone would commission me to paint their favorite fighter. It took a while, but finally Patryk in the San Fransico area told me he wants an Adamek painting. I researched many different photos and decided on the one you see. It was just a terrific composition that showed Adamek doing what he does best. Coming forward on the attack. Naturally, the most important thing was to capture his likeness, and I believe I was sucessful at that. I even like the way that Ulrich is protecting himself from the barrage forthcoming. This painting was completed in July, 2008.”

“Adamek is a very confident man in the ring, so it was imperative that my final product showed that strength & confidence that he displays. It was a joy to paint him and I’m happy to say that Patryk in California was thrilled with my artwork and proudly has it on his wall at home.”

“There will be more Adamek paintings to come in the future. My ultilmate goal is to have a painting of Tomasz hanging is his home in New Jersey. That would make me one of the proudest artists in the world.”

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