Vitali Klitschko / Photo © Marty Rosengarten / Ringsidephotos.com

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I bought yesterday's Vitali Klitschko - Albert Sosnowski PPV show.

I know, I know, you don't have to say it...

In fairness, I must point out that my nights have been overtaken by life, so this was a rare chance for me to watch some live boxing.  Or maybe I am just a sick man and would have ordered it anyway.  Either way, I sat myself down to watch the show hoping for the best and while the broadcast was light on thrills, it came with its share of surprises. Some pleasant and some utterly foul.

Things started off with a 12 rounder between Jonathon Banks and Jason Gavern that can be best described as 36 minutes of total slop.  According to FightNews.com, referee Juergen Langos called the bout, "the dirtiest he's ever officiated."

Little could have been done to increase the bout's entertainment value, but when it came to the multitude of fouls that served to bring the contest down even further, much of the blame must lie with Langos.  He had the opportunity to do something about it, and didn't.

Someone has to sit this guy down and explain how dangerous rabbit punches can be. I'm not exaggerating one bit when I estimate that he allowed over 50 of them. Throughout the second half of the bout, Gavern repeatedly held his brain stem after being clubbed in the back of the head by Banks, and even let out a frightening scream at one stage.

Langos did give warnings for holding. About 290 of them before taking a point from Banks, who routinely draped himself on his opponent's back. The timing of the deduction was just bizarre though, as it came after a legitimate exchange lead the fighters into a clinch.

Not only did Langos turn a blind eye to the dirty stuff, he also totally blew a knockdown call. Banks threw an uppercut/hook combo, with the second punch hitting home. Gavern went down, but was clear enough to notice the blank look on the ref's face. The downed fighter convinced Langos that he had just slipped or something, so no count was given.

The late rounds saw the two fighters hold and smother each other for 40 seconds at a time while the man in charge just stood there. Again, no exaggeration. By this time it had become too much for one of the judges who let Langos know that a fighter was holding. He yelled this out during the round. I don't think I've ever seen that before.

One can only hope that the commission reviews the tape and asks Langos to explain his complete lack of action.

The result was a draw by the way.

The Main Event...

Vitali Klitschko came out to ACDC's Hell's Bells, which was my favourite tune when I was ten years old. The Germans really have a knack for ringwalks. Well... unless Scorpions are involved. It was a cool scene. Made the event seem like a bigger deal than it was.

When the time for fighting arrived, it was same ol' Vit. Left hand at the waist, sometimes being turned into a cuffing hook. At first he tried to measure his man, who wasn't exactly the easy target everyone was expecting. Later on he tried to pressure, which made things more fun because he was actually walking into the odd straight shot.

Sosnowski, who looks like a body builder did not come to lay down. He came to win. Props to him for giving everything he had for his one big shot. It wasn't just a brave performance either, as I'd say that he landed more clean shots on Klitschko than the previous four opponents combined!  I even gave the Pole a round or two. Lateral movement set up some really smart jabs to the body, throat and chin that surprised the old champ, as well as the spectators.

Eventually though, class showed. Klitschko began to find the range on his tiring opponent and Sosnowski looked like he might go down a few times before Dr. Ironfist finally lowered the boom with his right hand in the 10th.

He got the KO (not a bad looking one either), but I gotta say, he looked his age.

The Future...

Everyone wants to see former Cruiserweight Champion and WBA title holder, David Haye, take on the Klitschko brothers. He's the obvious number one contender, and the only man out there who has a prayer.

I'm gonna come right out and say it...

David Haye will beat Vitali Klitschko if they ever fight.

The speed difference between the two is just massive at this point, and I can't see the older, slower man being able to do anything about it. Perhaps he could land a fight changer, but even if you give the possibility consideration, how many guys has Vit put down or away with one shot lately? Or ever, for that matter.

Haye has used lateral movement with explosive speed to set up his bombs as a heavyweight. There is no doubt in my mind that he can move side to side and take advantage of Klitschko's aggression and that sagging left. If Vitali chases, he will lose. Maybe by knock out.

Perhaps he'd better leave this one to little bro.

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