Can Austin rain on Klitschko's parade?
 By Benny Henderson Jr, AKA Big Dog (March 10, 2007) Doghouse Boxing (Photo © Will Hart/HBO)
You know the old adage, “When it rains, it pours!” Well in this case the #2 IBF contender Ray ‘The Rainman’ Austin 24-3-4 (16) is in high hopes of cloudy skies and expected showers come this Saturday March 10th in the SAP-Arena in Mannheim, Germany, where he will be taking on the IBF heavyweight kingpin Wladimir Klitschko 47-3 (42) in a scheduled twelve round heavyweight championship clash, which will be aired live on HBO 4:45 PM ET/ 1:45 PM PT and replayed later that night at 10:00 PM ET/PT.
Question is, will ‘Dr. Steelhammer’ bring along his umbrella, and even more so will there be a forecast for dark clouds and disappointing rain?
Many view this fight as just something to fill the void until Klitschko can one day rematch with Sam Peter or get a date with the big man Nicolay Valuev, two fights the fans are craving for, or to put it bluntly, one of King’s fighters (Austin) getting another crack at a title! As far as the thirty-six year old Ohioan Ray Austin is concerned, it is an opportunity he has fought a long time for and hopefully he can produce an upset in beating Klitschko and bring the title back to the states.
The Challenger
Ray Austin is a wholehearted heavyweight who is a tough one to boot as well, his aggression in the ring adds to the entertainment for the fight fans but his overall abilities has hindered him a time or two. In July of 1998 a twenty-seven year old Austin opened up his professional career with a losing effort to Charles Hatcher getting beat via decision.
Austin banged out fourteen consecutive victories until dropping his second defeat to journeyman Harold Sconiers via unanimous decision. Just three years after his debut Austin would face his first and only TKO defeat this far against the then once-beaten Attila Levin. That fight has been marked as his last loss on his record. Since then he has complied up a 9-0 record with four draws, most of them by credible opposition. His creditable W’s has been over the likes of Cisse Salif (KO 4), Jo-el Scott (KO 8) and former heavyweight contender Owen Beck (SD 12), a fight that Austin took on a one-week notice. His four draws has even more value to them then a handful of his wins, all from former contenders, one of whom is in title contention at this present time.
In April of 2002 on a Showtime televised event, Austin battled to a split draw with a broken hand against Lance Whitaker. His most controversial draw came against Larry Donald; Donald was just coming off the biggest win of his career against the former four-time heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield. Although it was not ruled a knockdown, Donald was on the canvas early in the fight, the two shared their moments throughout the bout but neither was convincing enough to gain the W.
In his last outing July of 2006, which was a hellacious one against Sultan Ibragimov, the two traded punch after punch and both hit the deck during the duration of the twelve grueling rounds, which resulted in a draw.
Should have been a rematch, but instead Austin gets his shot at the hard-hitting Ukrainian.
The Champion
Standing at a towering 6’6” Wladimir Klitschko has mowed down some commendable opposition during his nearly eleven years as a professional pugilist, but his chin has been rung a time or two and that always comes up to debate when he faces any heavy hitter in the division.
The 1996 Super Heavyweight Olympic Gold Medalist made his debut in the fall of ‘96 stopping his opponent in the opening round. In fact the younger Klitschko stopped all sixteen of his opponents via knockout, (except for one which was a DQ ruling in Klitschko's favor) before hearing the final bell for the first time in his career where he defeated journeyman Everett Martin with an eight round unanimous decision. Known for his heavy hands and craftsmanship style in the ring working off that thunderous jab, Klitschko put a serious hurting on a lot of the foe that have faced him across the ring.
The one thing that has plagued the thirty-year-old Ukrainian has been the size of his gas tank and his whiskers – one has ran out on occasion and the other most certainly has been clipped a time or two.
His first blemish came in December of ‘98 when Klitschko, who was hands down beating journeyman Ross Puritty, ran out of fuel in the eleventh round and was pounded out of commission for the first time in his career. After banging out sixteen consecutive W’s with all but one by knockout, Klitschko was hugely upset by the South African Corrie Sanders in March of 2003. Sanders shocking second round win earned him Wladimir’s WBO strap as well as Ring Magazine’s Upset of the Year.
Klitschko’s last L came from the hands of Lamon Brewster in April of 2004, a fight where Klitschko was laying down the law to Brewster, dropping the American for the first time in his career before being dropped himself in the fifth round, prompting referee Robert Byrd to call a halt to the bout. Although the fight was marred with controversy, the fact that Klitschko had succumb to a puncher’s power once again let the flood gates of doubt about his chin flow wide open.
Klitschko has defeated a who’s who of boxing, Axel Schulz (TKO 8), Monte Barrett (TKO 7), Ray Mercer (TKO 6), Jameel McCline (TKO 10), Chris Byrd (UD 12 in 2000, TKO 7 in 2006), got up off the canvas three times to defeat Samuel Peter (UD 12) and in his last outing put to sleep the then undefeated Calvin Brock (TKO 7).
And the pugilistic parade will proceed on!
The Fight
As stated above this fight is not what the popular vote was wanting and honestly, most people probably feel it is a gimme win for the champion who will or at least should move on to bigger and better things. And then there are others who believe Austin can actually cause an upset this Saturday, and why not, he has a punchers chance. Both stand at 6’6” with Austin giving up one inch in reach. Although Ray’s power has not changed the course of many of his top level bouts he can bang a bit, and with Klitschko being known for his intense power and lack of beard, who knows who will end up face down on the floor first.
The Outcome
Being brutally honest in this one, matching skill for skill, Klitschko has the upper hand. Power versus power, Klitschko has the ability and pretty much everything he needs in his arsenal. The only accolade that could work for Austin could be his aggression, as Klitschko does not like to be roughhoused! But…then again could his forward-charging assault work in Klitschko’s favor as well? I mean the guy can work the hook off the jab so precise it has become his trademark. I am not fully going to count out any fighter, and as I’ve stated in past writings anybody has a chance and should not be fully counted out… but the forecast for this weekend’s heavyweight match-up should be searing heat in the ring without a cloud in the sky so the Klitschko parade can march on by! The ‘Rainman’ succumbs to drought and Klitschko wins this one via sixth round TKO.
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