By Allan Fox: IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (61-3, 51 KO’s) realizes full well that his April 26th opponent Alex Leapai (30-4-3, 24 KO’s) has the kind of power that can give him big problems if he lands his power shots in their fight this month in Germany. Wladimir isn’t going to let the shorter Leapai get his shots off, because he knows the 34-year-old only has a puncher’s chance of winning this fight. Leapai isn’t as big or as skilled as Wladimir, but he’s got the punch to knock Wladimir out if he can get to his chin.
Wladimir has been knocked out in losses to Corrie Sanders, Ross Puritty and Lamont Brewster in the past, and he’s learned how to keep the big power guys on the outside where they’re less formidable.
Someone like Sanders would still be a problem today if he were alive and the same age he was when he destroyed Wladimir in 2 rounds in 2003. But Leapai doesn’t have the 6’4” Sanders’ speed, size or big left hand. Lepai does have very heavy hands, and he could waste Wladimir if he can catch him coming in for one of his routine clinches.
Wladimir admitting that he’s aware of Leapai’s big power means that he’s going to do whatever he can to keep him from throwing punches in the fight.
“Leapai will try and beat me with pure violence. Technique and tactics aren’t his strengths,” Wladimir said via Sky Sports. “He’s lacking the experience and I’ll use that against him. I’ll demonstrate that I’m the strongest boxer in the world. My mission isn’t over yet.”
A referee could make it difficult for Wladimir in this fight if enforces the rules against excessive clinching, because there’s no way that Wladimir should be allowed to clinch as much as he does. When you get to the point where a fighter is clinching 10+ per round, as we saw in Wladimir’s last fight against WBA champion Alexander Povetkin in 2013, then the referee has to do his job and step in to start giving Wladimir warnings and then start taking points away.
If Wladimir still persists in clinching even after he’s been penalized, he should be disqualified. I don’t see there being a referee willing to put himself in position to take the kind of criticism that he would be getting for disqualifying Wladimir, but they should because clinching has become one of the ways that Wladimir has been able to neutralize his opponent’s offense to keep them from getting their shots off.
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