Klitschko, Williamson Chase Away Disappointments
by Monty McMahon
10/1 - Saturday's heavyweight bout between former WBO champion Wladimir Klitschko (42-3, 39 KOs) and former NABF champion DaVarryl Williamson (20-2, 17 KOs) will be the beginning of the long climb back to the top for one man and perhaps the end of a once-promising career for the other.
Both fighters are trying to chase away the memories of disappointing defeats in high-profile fights.
For the 36-year-old Williamson, it was a first-round knockout loss at the hands of Joe Mesi in September of 2003, in what was Williamson's first appearance on a national stage - the bout was showcased on HBO. Williamson lasted only 97 seconds.
For the 28-year-old Klitschko, once considered the best young heavyweight on the planet, it was an April bout with Lamon Brewster in which Klitschko looked solid for four rounds before Brewster knocked him down in the fifth and referee Robert Byrd stopped the fight. The Klitschko camp has hinted that their fighter may have been drugged.
Now we arrive at this: a once-promising heavyweight with a questionable chin in his comeback fight against a fighter with a lackluster resume, who wilted the last time he stood on a big stage.
If you ask Klitschko's trainer, Emanuel Stewart, this is simply the first step to turn his fighter into what he is supposed to be - the heavyweight champion of the world.
"If you remember, I knocked Lennox Lewis out with a guy named Oliver McCall," Stewart said.
"It took two years to rebuild Lennox, but I believed in Lennox and his talent and after seeing Wladimir Klitschko, even though Lennox Lewis is the best heavyweight I've ever trained, I'd say he has the potential to be as good as Lennox."
Potential, however, does not a champion make. And Klitschko has heard the whispers - he's too soft, he can't take a punch, he has no heart - but he doesn't care.
"I feel no pressure. You know why? I'm on the bottom of boxing," he said. "I used to have a good time when I was champ and right now I'm on the bottom. It's just another opportunity to get up. I have nothing to lose anymore. I'm just going to fight very easy, without any pressure. I'm just going to do my job."
Williamson, meanwhile, is determined to prove that this time, when he steps into the spotlight against a name fighter, things will be different.
"That's what lost it for me the last time, thinking about that," he said. "So I can't think about that. Wladimir is just another man. He puts his pants on just like I do, one leg at a time. We're going to go in there and the best man left standing is the man who has his hand raised. I'm not looking into that. I'm just concentrating on Wladimir, Wladimir, Wladimir.
After the Mesi fight, one in which he said he let people get into his head with talk of big money and television appearances and lost sight of the task at hand, Williamson is clearly focused this time around.
"This is kind of giving myself a second chance to make a first impression after the disaster I fought a year ago," Williamson said.
"I want another opportunity to say, 'hey, that wasn't the real DaVarryl.' You'll get a chance to see the real DaVarryl on Saturday night."
While Klitschko is relaxed for Saturday night's fight, which will be fought outdoors at Las Vegas's Caesar's Palace, he is still addressing the issues raised after the colossal failure of his last fight.
There were reports that Klitschko might have been drugged. He was found to have an abnormal blood sugar level and Stewart claims he could see that something was wrong with his fighter as early as the second round of the Brewster fight. No complaints were ever filed and no evidence has been uncovered.
"I didn't find anything," Klitschko said. "It's important for me to get an answer because I cannot admit that I was in my perfect conditional shape. After the second round I was fighting with myself to move in the ring. That's why I don't want to be in the same situation in this next fight. I think this next fight particularly is going to be one of the best answers for a lot of the questions."
In spite of the conjecture, Williamson expects nothing but the best Klitschko has to offer.
"I expect Wladimir to be at his best," Williamson said. "If it's the Wladimir that showed up against Lamon Brewster, I'd be more than happy to greet him. But I don't think that will be the case."
Williamson has been sparring with boxers between 250 and 260 pounds, most of which are taller than him, in order to prepare for Klitschko's 3-inch height advantage.
"It's just to get used to getting leaned on, because this is a big man and he's very, very strong, so I have to get my body conditioned in the gym workouts to be able to deal with this guy," Williamson said.
And now we arrive at this: one man looking for respect and a signature victory and one man looking to put the past behind him and begin what once seemed an inevitable climb to the top.
For Williamson, a victory means a shot at the big boys.
"I think a win here over Wladimir Klitschko will really mean a different tier," he said. "I would definitely be knocking on doors for one of those four belts that are out there with four different champions."
For Klitschko, a victory is all about a second chance - a chance to keep fighting.
"I'm going into this fight as a fighter and I'm going into this fight to survive," he said. "For me it doesn't matter how many rounds, to me it's a matter of fact that I have to win the fight."
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