Wladimir Klitschko vs DaVarryl Williamson. Prefight analysis
As usual, before the fights that either Vitali or Wladimir carries out, we
emailed questions to boxing writers, asking then to answer questions regarding
strengths and weaknesses of Wladimir and DaVarryl, as well as their prediction
of the fight.
However, recently many boxing analysts have expressed their opinion what
Wladimir should retire if he losses this fight against Williamson. We have also
asked this question.
Below you will find responses that were received.

Ed Mulholland, Boxing-Pics.com and FightNews.com
The fight shapes up to be a good comeback fight for Wladimir.
It gives him a name heavyweight that people will recognize, who has some big
question marks that Wladimir can exploit.
Klitschko is definitely the more skilled of the two fighters and I'd expect him
to try and overwhelm Williamson ala Joe Mesi.
The main question mark against Klitschko is his stamina, something was clearly
wrong in the Brewster fight.
I don't expect this to be the fight to answer that question.
Williamson is a very dangerous puncher, but tends to stand too straight up at
times. I'd expect him to try and stay away from Wladimir early in hopes of
wearing him down, but don't see it happening. While Williamson will always have
a puncher's chance, I don't see too many trouble spots along the way for the
returning Klitschko.
Klitschko KO3 Williamson.
The winner of this fight jumps back into the wide open title fray, while the
loser will quietly fade into heavyweight obscurity.
Karl Freitag, FightNews.com
Wlad is the harder puncher.
Wlad's weaknesses are mainly stamina and ability to take a hard punch.
DaVarryl hits hard also, plus has lots of heart.
DaVarryl does not take a hard punch to the chin well.
Result will be a KO one way or the other, probably by Wlad.
If Wlad loses again, he's likely finished as a top contender. However if he
continues to fight he will always be an attraction because his fights are always
exciting.

Thomas Gerbasi, MaxBoxing.com
Wladimir has advantages in size, boxing skills, and most importantly, big fight
experience.
His stamina and chin are questionable, especially after the fights with Sanders
and Brewster.
He has fast hands and excellent power, and he fights well against big men.
His chin is shaky, and in his biggest fight to date (against Joe Mesi) he froze
up and was knocked out in the first round.
I think Wladimir will be a little cautious in this fight, but since he is the
overall better fighter, I see him winning by a late round TKO or by decision.
If Wladimir loses, he's done, and should retire.

Joseph Santoliquito, RING Magazine
This is the most important fight for Wladimir. If Wladimir loses, his career
will be over, so it's very important that Wladimir looks good against
Williamson. The one glaring advantage Wladimir has is that he has desperation on
his side. If Wladimir loses this fight to Williamson, no one in the United
States or the world will look at Wladimir Klitschko again as a future world
heavyweight champion. There will be no future big-money fights on TV for
Wladimir if he loses. Wladimir's biggest advantage is redeeming himself. He'll
knock out DaVarryl Williamson because he has to.
Wladimir lacks endurance. He had Lamon Brewster beat. Wladimir just ran out of
gas. That's a major problem at the world-championship level. Wladimir has every
right to ask for a rematch with Brewster, because for the first three rounds,
Wladimir was killing Brewster, blistering Brewster with punches from every
where. But Wladimir failed to finish the job.
Williamson can box a little. He is the kind of fighter that keeps coming at you.
Williamson has no chin. He can cannot take a solid punch. He won't be able to
withstand Wladimir's attack. If Joe Mesi can knock Williamson out, Wladimir
should knock Williamson out in at least two rounds.
Wladimir will win by second-round knockout.
Wladimir's professional career SHOULD END IF HE LOSES. Wladimir is a very, very
intelligent, likable guy who would have too much to risk if he did lose to
Williamson. A loss to Williamson would tell the world that Wladimir is not good
enough to fight for a world title. Wladimir will also see that there is no sense
in boxing any more if he did lose. So with his career at stake, Wladimir
Klitschko will be motivated to crush DaVarryl Williamson.

Scoop Malinowski, www.boxinginsider.com
This is the most important fight of Wladimir Klitschko's life. He was and still
is the most talented heavyweight on the planet. However, major adversity has
unexpectedly arrived on the the career of Wladimir. Could it be some sort of a
test from the boxing gods when everything seemed to be going so right? If he can
overcome the setbacks to Sanders and Brewster, and regain his previous form, he
will be the champion. His determination and perseverance will have proved to the
world he is worthy of becoming the world's champion of the people.
DaVarryl Williamson's strength in this fight is that he knows Wladimir is most
vulnerable right now. He will be very confident as anyone with a major punch
would be against Wladimir now. But the problem for Williamson is that he may not
be able to endure the fury Wladimir is going to unleash on him. Wladimir has
devoted his life to becoming the world champion and he is going to lay
everything on the line in this fight. Williamson, who fell so fast against Joe
Mesi, will have to land first. But I can see Wladimir boxing his best and
smartest on October 2nd. He has all the ingredients to become a dominant
champion. It's just a matter of putting it all together. Emanuel Steward can not
try to convert Wladimir into a second edition of Lennox Lewis but he must
recognize their differences and let Wladimir be Wladimir. He is at his best with
that tremendous jab - a jab so awesome even Roy Jones is in awe of it. Wladimir
could beat Williamson - and most other heavyweights - with the jab alone (along
with lateral movement). He should stop hooking off the jab - it only puts him in
range and makes him susceptible to counters. Jab and move...and wait for the
proper openings to unload the devastating right. That is what one top American
trainer told me Wladimir should do. And believe it, there are many wekk-known
marquee American trainers who wish they could have the opportunity to work with
Wladimir.
There is the suspicion by some insiders - true or false - that Steward could be
trying to make Wladimir into a new version of Lennox, considering their
similarities. But that would be a mistake. There will never be another Lennox
Lewis - who achieved perhaps the finest career of any heavyweight champion ever
(Lewis beat every man he ever fought). Wladimir Klitschko is his own man with
his own unique brand of greatness. That is why he has climbed so far to this
point. Wladimir and Steward must find their own path to the top of the
heavyweight mountain and not follow Lewis' footsteps.
Wladimir Klitschko will prevail on October 2nd. But the general mood/tone around
his camp of overconfidence and relaxation must be replaced with passion,
intensity and a sort of furious desperation...to regain what was fumbled away in
the last year and a half. There can be no casual underestimating of any opponent
now.
The element of greatness that powered Wladimir to his elite position in boxing
today will shine through in this fight. Those two losses can ruin a fighter or
they can make him even greater. I believe the best of Wladimir Klitschko is yet
to come. Maybe it all makes sense - if Klitschko were to have beaten Sanders and
Brewster, it would have all seemed too easy. To become champion, to achieve
greatness is never even remotely close to easy.
Gary Randall, MaxBoxing.com
Height, reach and power are pro Wladimir. Also, he is much more experienced.
Stamina. Wladimir tends to punch himself out under pressure. He needs to take
his time and remember what got him to being WBO Champion.
Confidence. Knowing that Wladimir loses energy early Williamson can try to
weather the storm and comeback late in the fight.
A good chin and experience.
Wladimir by mid fight TKO. I think Klitschko will prove why he was regarded as a
future champion and not show the same weaknesses he had in his last two fights.
If Wlad loses this match, he should retire.

Jason Probs, journalist and freelance writer, www.jasonprobst.com
Wladimir's advantage is size, speed, and big power.
Wladimir still seems to have trouble pacing himself, and has run out of gas in
fights.
DaVarryl Williamson has a good right hand if he can land a big shot first, but
he'll have to be careful of Wladimir's punches.
Williamson, like Wladimir, has some problems recovering from a good punch. He's
never been hit by a huge heavyweight like Klitschko and might be in serious
trouble early.
I think Wladimir will take Wiliamson out inside of six rounds.

Sean Newman, www.ringsidereport.com
Wladimir's advantage is that he is a good, fluid boxer-puncher and probably
won't have a problem reaching Williamson's chin in this fight. Also, Wladimir
has tons of experience on DaVarryl, and as we saw "Touch of Sleep" absolutely
folded against Joe Mesi.
Wladimir obviously has a problem with conditioning, as we have seen in the
fights against Ross Puritty and most recently Lamon Brewster. There could be
something to the allegations that came after the fight, however, because if one
compares the punch count numbers from Wladimir's fight against Ray Mercer to
those from the Brewster fight, they are remarkably similar. Against Ray Mercer,
though, Wladimir didn't seem tired at all.
DaVarryl William's best strength is his power, although we haven't seen yet if
his punch carries as much effect against better opposition. He also has a lot of
heart, having once fought through an entire fight with a broken jaw.
Simply put, Williamson lacks a sturdy chin. He was knocked stiff by a single
left hook from Joe Mesi in the first round, and looked stiff even before that.
I think Wladimir will take DaVarryl out quickly, probably within the first two
rounds.
If Wladimir loses this fight, I would say that if his goal is to become
heavyweight champion of the world, then yes, he should retire. Losing to
fighters like Puritty, Corrie Sanders, and especially Lamon Brewster and
DaVarryl Williamson are not what champions do. If his goal is simply to fight
and make money, who am I to suggest that he retire? I don't think it will be an
issue, though, because he will win this fight.
Butch Gottlieb, Boxinginlasvegas.com
Klitschko - Size and Power.
Klitschko - Chin and Stamina.
Williamson – Power.
Williamson – Chin.
If DaVarryl can survive the first 4 or 5 rounds I feel he will win the fight.
Not at all but for Wladimir to try and win a world title again he must look good
in this fight.

David Avila, MaxBoxing.com
Wladimir Klitschko is still a very skilled boxer and can punch.
Wladimir does not have good stamina, but usually he doesn't need to go 10 rounds
or more. It's something he must work on to return to the top.
DaVarryl Williamson is a big heavyweight who can punch.
DaVarryl's weakness is he doesn't seem to have the confidence to win the big
fight.
Klitschko should beat Williamson by knockout in the third.
If Wladimir loses this fight, it won't be the end. But he won't be considered an
elite fighter as a heavyweight.

Dan Sisneros "The Boxing Guru", THE GURU'S BOXING MUSEUM,
angelfire.com/nm/boxingmuseum
Wlad's advantage is mainly that he has competed against a better quality of
opponent. His style is just a little smoother than Williamson.
Wlad's weakness, at this time, is mostly a possible lack of confidence after the
loss to Corrie Sanders. He is no longer considered to be in the top ten of
boxing's best heavyweights. Also, his chin is now suspect, and if Williamson
catches him with "The touch of Sleep", it could all over.
Davarryl has good power, and size. and although he hasn't fought the quality of
opponents as Wladimir, he has still fought on HBO in a "big fight" atmosphere,
and this will help him.
Williamson's weakness is mostly his lack of a "fluid" style. He is very stiff
and straight forward in his boxing, which could get him into some serious
trouble from Klitschko's BOMBS!
I think both fighters feel they have a good chance to win this fight. If Wlad
has learned ANYTHING from his losses, he should be able to pull out a hard
earned win in this battle.
I don't think either fighter will have his carreer ended in this fight. But The
loser takes a step into the upper level of being "an opponent", and the winner
breaks into the top ten in the world!
Steve Kim, MaxBoxing.com
Overall experience and success at the world level. Wlad has faced and beaten
better opposition.
There is a question of stamina and the ability to take a punch.
He's got very good power in his right hand.
Williamson has shown a weak chin in his losses.
I dont understand this question.

Marty Mulcahey, MaxBoxing.com
Size, DaVarryl Williamson is a small heavyweight by todays standart. He also
showed Against Joe Mesi that he is vulnerable early in fights.
A lack of stamina has to be seen as his major weakness, since two of his loses
were caused by it. Also a weaker then thought defense, Brewster and Corey
Sanders had no problem finging Wladimir's chin.
A big right hand that can hurt almost any heavyweight, and speed early.
Size and a big time chin.
I think this one ends pretty early, I would say KO 2 or 3 for Wladimir.
If Wladimir loses to DaVarryl Williamson he must leave boxing, he is too smart
to to waste his brain cells on boxing if he can not beat the likes of
Williamson.

Rick Reno , www.boxingscene.com
Wladimir is the much better boxer, he has the advantage in streghth and is a
better all around athlete.
We don't really know for sure. He has shown problems with his stamina and his
chin in his last few fights. Whether or not these factors come into play when he
steps in the ring again remains to be seen.
Williamson may be very confident based upn Wlad's last two fights. He saw two
big underdogs defeat Wlad and may think that he too can get the upset.
Williamson also has that powerful left hand that he calls the "touch of sleep".
Williamson lacks aggression. He has shown in fights that he is not aggressive
enough in fights and because of that, he can get caught and knocked out early.
If everything goes as expected and we have said this with Wlad's last two fight,
he should beat Williamson by way of an early KO.
Whether you consider, what for lost in this duel, his professional career will
end? If Wlad loses this fight, he should hang up the gloves, that would be three
losses in a row to fighters who are not considered anywhere near top level
oppossition. Williamson, who has never been in the limelight, can probably and
continue after another loss.
02, October 2004
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