No Holds Barred: Charles Farrell Reviews Klitschko-Chagaev Fight and Awful State of Heavyweight Boxing

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with our colleague and correspondent, Charles Farrell.

In a spirited and lengthy discussion, we review Wladimir Klitschko's predictable TKO victory over Ruslan Chagaev on Saturday, June 20, in Germany in a fight for several alphabet heavyweight belts. We critique this fight and the performance of both fighters, as well as the entire woeful heavyweight division.

We also discuss the disgraceful state of boxing journalism today, and why we do not take seriously what we read in The Ring magazine, including their recognition of Wladimir Klitschko as their "heavyweight champion of the world". And we lament the danger both to fighter safety and public health that this fight entailed, since Chagaev had tested positive for the hepatitis B antigen, and would not have been allowed to fight in many countries.

But we also explain why we do see hope for boxing in many other weight divisions, and especially outside the U.S.

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Chagaev Injured Once More; Why Not Put in Ruiz Against Valuev?

The only news less shocking would have been that more people were massacring each other in the Middle East, that another crooked businessman or politician has been caught, or that you will be getting less service for more money from the medical, airline, and cable TV industries.

Ruslan Chagaev is certainly taking advantage of his medical services, as once again he has pulled out of a fight claiming an injury. He had been scheduled to defend his WBA heavyweight title July 5 against the man from whom he won it, Nikolai Valuev, in Germany. Now, reportedly suffering from an Achilles tendon torn in his left foot during sparring Thursday afternoon, he is out of this fight and is now facing surgery.

Plus, for all you infidels, his promoter, Universum, even has a picture to prove it:

(http://www.boxing.de)

Chagaev had previously pulled out of fighting Valuev on this fight’s original date of May 31, and also a title unification fight with then-WBO champion Sultan Ibragimov last fall, all citing illness.

This July 5 card had been billed as a night of rematches, since Chagaev had won a majority decision over Valuev in April 2007, with the scheduled co-feature having WBA middleweight champion Felix Sturm fighting Randy Griffin in a rematch of their draw from last October. Sturm-Griffin will go on as planned, but the heavyweight fight is off.

But why? Why not try to use another former WBA heavyweight champion, John Ruiz?

I haven’t spoken with Ruiz and don’t know if he is ready or available, especially on such short notice, but Ruiz lost highly controversial decisions to both Chagaev and Valuev in Germany, yet has never been given a rematch.

Ruiz dropped his WBA belt to Valuev by majority decision in Berlin, Germany, Dec. 17, 2005. In Ruiz’s next fight, Nov. 18, 2006, he lost a split decision to Chagaev, also in Germany. If those fights had been judged elsewhere, Ruiz easily could have been declared the winner, or at worst retained his belt by draws.

Since then, Ruiz has only fought twice, stopping journeyman Otis Tisdale in two on Oct. 13, 2007, and winning a lopsided decision over Jameel McCline March 8, 2008, in what was billed as a WBC title eliminator.

Ruiz is still only 36 and should have several good years left in him. He dominated McCline, who in his previous fight had dropped now-WBC champion Samuel Peter three times before fading and losing a decision.

So why no rematch with either Chagaev or Valuev? Once again, boxing puts politics first, and leaves a former champion out in the cold.

The July 5 card will be telecast in Germany by ZDF. No doubt the streamers at SopCast will make it available for the world to see. But don’t tell the promoters, who probably wouldn’t get it anyway.