Klitschko, Ibragimov and the (Rise of the) WBO Heavyweight Title

By Mario Ortega Jr.

On Saturday night, at “the World’s Most Famous Arena” Madison Square Garden, Sultan Ibragimov, ruler of the World Boxing Organization, and Wladimir Klitschko, International Boxing Federation kingpin, meet in a heavyweight title unification bout. Maybe it is because the highly-anticipated rematch between Kelly Pavlik and Jermain Taylor took place just one week prior, but it seems little attention has been given to this bout that I find has an intriguing back story, because of the participants and the history.

The Fighters

One of the reasons this fight has not received all the publicity usually given to a heavyweight unification bout is because it’s a fight between one guy from the Ukraine and another guy from Russia. They are not going to be the subject of countdown shows on HBO or be interviewed on ESPN’s Sportscenter in the build up to the fight. They are however two of the top heavyweights in the world.

Wladimir Klitschko (49-3, 44 KOs) is ranked #1 by Ring Magazine, and just about every other critic of the sport. He is undefeated in his last seven fights, but has been stopped three times in his career. He previously held the WBO title he is looking to gain, having defeated Chris Byrd in 2000, before suffering a devastating knockout in 2003 at the hands of Corrie Sanders. He has looked increasingly dominant in his last several bouts, under the tutelage of trainer Emanuel Steward, destroying then-IBF titlist Chris Byrd in 2006 to win the title and defending it three times since.

Sultan Ibragimov (22-0-1, 17 KOs) is currently ranked #6 by Ring Magazine. The quality of his opposition is a level below what Klitschko has fought in his career, but Ibragimov has never suffered a defeat. He was trained by controversial Panama Lewis earlier in his career and deployed an attacking style. In 2006 he drew with journeyman Ray Austin in an IBF eliminator, a bout most expected him to win. Since Klitschko would go on to brutally knockout Austin, many experts see that fight as a sign that Ibragimov may not be able to handle Wladimir. Instead of pursuing a rematch with Austin, he chose to go after WBO titlist Shannon Briggs. After a postponement, and a knockout of Javier Mora, Ibragimov defeated Briggs for the title. In the fight he employed a new boxer/mover style, most credited to new trainer Roger Mayweather. After a scheduled unification bout with WBA title holder Ruslan Chagaev was postponed, Ibragimov defended against Evander Holyfield, winning a convincing 12-round decision.

Heavyweight Unification and Madison Square Garden

New York’s Madison Square Garden is no stranger to heavyweight championship unification bouts. The first MSG meeting of heavyweight title holders took place on February 16, 1970 between Jimmy Ellis, holder of the WBA title, and Joe Frazier, who had been recognized by the New York State Athletic Commission, and several other groups. Ellis picked up his version of the heavyweight crown when, in the wake of Muhammad Ali’s exile from the sport, the WBA organized a tournament to declare a new champion. Ellis defeated Jerry Quarry in the finals of that tournament in April of 1968. Frazier boycotted the tournament, instead defeating Buster Mathis in March of 1968 at Madison Square Garden. Inevitably the two met at MSG in 1970, with Frazier downing Ellis in the fifth round. For most, Frazier had become the clear heavyweight champion. For others, that did not occur until he defeated Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden in 1971.

More recently, Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis attempted to unify the heavyweight division in March of 1999 at the Garden. Holyfield held the WBA and IBF titles, having defeated Mike Tyson and Michael Moorer in 1996 and 1997. Lewis won the vacant WBC title by defeating Oliver McCall in 1996, after Tyson had vacated the crown. Lewis seemed to clearly defeat Holyfield that night at the Garden, but the bout was declared a draw. Lewis would decision Holyfield in the rematch, eight months later in Las Vegas, and become the clear heavyweight champion – despite the existence of WBO Heavyweight title holder Vitali Klitschko.

The “Spurious” History of the WBO Heavyweight Crown

The WBO was formed in 1988 after some members of the WBA grew frustrated with the organization. One of the reasons the organization was supposedly formed was disgust over the WBA rankings system. Reportedly the WBO was considering using the respected Ring Magazine rankings to determine the order of their contenders. That idea was quickly thrown out the window when the first rankings were released. The number one and two contenders of the heavyweight division were Francesco Damiani and Johnny DuPlooy. At the time, the biggest name on Damiani’s record was Tyrell Biggs, who he stopped on a cut. He had only fought outside of Italy four times. DuPlooy had quit against Renaldo Snipes the year before and split a pair of fights with Mike Weaver. Damiani would knockout DuPlooy in the third round, in Italy, becoming the first WBO Heavyweight Champion in May of 1989. For the next several years, usually when a WBO title fight was mentioned in the press, the word “spurious” often preceded the letters WBO. Many prominent names would hold the title: Ray Mercer, Michael Moorer, Tommy Morrison and Riddick Bowe, but never were they considered by the general public as the heavyweight champ for holding it.

The WBO Heavyweight title seemed to gain credibility around the time Sanders knocked out Klitschko, vacated the title, and was immediately thrust into a WBC title fight against Wladimir’s brother Vitali. The WBC title was vacant because Lennox Lewis had opted for retirement, rather than a rematch with Klitschko. With Lewis gone, the WBO (which had never been tied to any of the other major heavyweight titles) had a chance to be just as sought after as the WBC, WBA or IBF titles. Lamon Brewster would defeat Wladimir for the vacant title in April of 2004 on HBO. Since Lewis’ retirement, the WBO’s title history is no less distinguished than those of the other three organizations. In Ibragimov’s last defense he met Evander Holyfield. The same Holyfield who did not want the WBO title on the line when he met Riddick Bowe in 1995, because it would make him ineligible for the rankings of the of three “real” world titles. The fact that the WBO title is for the first time included in a heavyweight unification bout should say something about how differently it is regarded today than in its once spurious infancy.

The Recognized Champion ?

Although Wladimir Klitschko is generally recognized as the top heavyweight in the world, he is not recognized by Ring Magazine, and those who support their policy, as the World Heavyweight Champion. The Ring’s vacancy can only be filled if he fights #2 ranked Samuel Peter or #3 ranked Ruslan Chagaev. Despite that fact, if Klitschko were to unify the title it would only further enhance his standing as the top guy in the division. If Ibragimov is able to pull the upset, it would be hard to argue that he is not the new number one heavyweight in the world.

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com