Ike Ibeabuchi vs Vitali Klitschko

I disagree, but it's impossible to say, we never saw how Ike dealt with height. It's a crucial factor which we don't have the answers for.

 

And we've never seen how Vitali deals with a big quality fighter in their prime.

Just curious, how well do you think Vitali would've done against the Lewis of Rahman II, 2 years earlier?

 

Byrd stood in front of Ike way more than Vitali would.

 

Very well actually. I've mentioned this a few times before but Lennox Lewis is my favourite boxer (or at least joint favourite with Naz), consequently I was always looking to identify the threats to his reign and Vitali was always a guy I was nervous about him fighting, I knew he would be a stylistic nightmare for Lennox. I think the extra weight actually helped LL absorb some of the shots he took that night. Now, do I think he beats the Rahman II Lewis? No, but he still gives him absolute fits before losing. There's no shame in not being able to beat a prime Lennox. Lewis is one of the greatest heavyweights ever, and he is also probably Vitali's stylistic nemesis too. I happen to think Vitali is a very good fighter who was denied the chance to prove he was great against ATG heavyweights (other than Lewis). If Joe Frazier had nobody but George Foreman to match himself against in the 70's then there is a whole different perspective on him too.

 

Yes, because Frazier would then be considered "unproven."

Yet, based on a loss to a fat old Lewis, Vitali is somehow considered more "proven" than Ibeabuchi, who KO'd the guy Vitali quit against. Is there a single fighter Vitali has beaten in the past decade that you wouldn't pick Ibeabuchi to annihilate?

 

Essentially, yes. Vitali proved he could, at the very least, hang against an elite heavyweight, Ike didn't.

 

fixed

KO'ing byrd (a feat no one else had accomplished and didn't for a good long time after) and going toe-to-toe with tua > losing to Lennox Lewis in his last fight

 

As I said previously, it was a legit loss but it wasn't definitive.

I also disagree strongly with the last statement, performing like he did against Lewis (even that version - who wasn't as bad as made out to be) surpasses the Tua and Byrd wins.

 

OK, then

KO'ing byrd (a feat no one else had accomplished and didn't for a good long time after) and going toe-to-toe with tua > losing to Lennox Lewis in his last fight > losing to Lennox Lewis in his last fight & quitting against Byrd

 

Guess it comes down to how much stock you put into the Byrd "loss", I don't really see it as a proper defeat, kind of the same as Griffin-Jones I. I mean, you can if you want, but Byrd hardly proved he was the better fighter.

 

It was Byrd's defense that made Vitali repeatedly miss & dislocate his shoulder, and furthermore Byrd was starting to come on in the last couple rounds. It's not the same as Griffin-Jones at all. Byrd made Vitali quit. Griffin-Jones I was a DQ. Your excuses for Vitali are getting absurd now

 

Vitali dominated Byrd

Come on now... "Byrd made Vitali quit"??

 

Vitali's shoulder didn't dislocate itself, did it? And Vitali quit because of it, right?

 

I'm pretty sure Byrd lost every completed minute of that fight and lucked out when his opponent suffered a freak injury

You make it sound like Byrd walked him down and beat on him:giggle:

 

Byrd was coming on at the end and Vitali dislocated his shoulder via Byrd making him miss.. a freak injury would be if he slipped, fell, and dislocated his shoulder

 

:: It was a 1 in 100 type occurrence. Byrd was getting his ass kicked.

 

come on, man

How many other stoppages via "Making Opponent Dislocate Shoulder" does Byrd have on his record??:giggle:

Carlos Bojorquez stopped Pernell Whitaker by skillfuly making him break his clavicle?

 

Loaded taking hating to a level of art form:mut:

 

doesn't matter how often it happens or happened, it happened. byrd's actions caused vitali to dislocate his shoulder, vitali quit, the result reads as Byrd W RTD Vitali

 

:: what can i say, i was born with it

 

:bears:::

 

Wasn't Vitali a replacement fight for Lewis. Wasn't Lewis training to fight someone else who got injured and Vitali was brought in as a replacement or am I thinking of a different Lewis fight?

 

yup. he was a last minute replacement for kirk johnson

 

byrd picked ibeaubuchi

 

I agree that Byrd MADE him quit like a bitch hoe...he was too slick and vital hurt his German shoulder

 

::

 

Ike beats him I think. He would be in his face throwing his demon escort raping child kidnapping combos. I don't see Vitaly discouraging or keeping Ike at bay with his arm punches. Give me Ike by TKO9 due to a convenient "injury".