Wladimir Klitschko vs Lamon Brewster II; Breaking down the rematch
 By Benny Henderson Jr (April 27, 2007) Doghouse Boxing (Photo © K2 Promotions)
Coming up July 7th at Koln Arena in Cologne, Germany, as well as to be televised on HBO, the anticipated rematch between the reigning IBF & IBO heavyweight title holder Wladimir Klitschko 48-3 (43) and the IBF’s #4 contender Lamon Brewster 33-3 (29) will take place in a match up to settle the score in what has been billed as, ‘The Rematch’.
It has been a tad over three years since the two faced off at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, NV for the vacant WBO heavyweight title; a fight that had its share of thrills spills and a whole lot of controversy.
Klitschko, who was coming into the bout after losing the very same strap just one year earlier to Corrie Sanders in a second round knock out loss, was the favored fighter. Brewster who was virtually unknown at that time was looked at as nothing more than a go a head victory and a confidence builder to get Klitschko back on the wining track. But what would unfold in the five rounds of the heavyweight clash was something hellacious and bizarre.
From the sound of the bell to open up the clash to the middle of the fifth Brewster was beaten to the punch by the much more technical Klitschko. Round one Klitschko threw out fifty-five jabs and had Brewster on the tail end of most of the shots; round two was more of the same with Klitschko landing the precision jab and his killer left hook. It was not until about the first minute of round three when Brewster finally landed a solid left hand that momentarily stunned Klitschko that prompted Klitschko to hold on for dear life until gaining his wits, it was enough for Wladimir to finish up the round strong.
All though being beat to the punch by Klitschko for the first four rounds the one thing Brewster did portray was a solid beard in taking the punishment, but after absorbing the pain a quick and heavy one two combination dropped Brewster with a minute left in round four. After beating the ten count it appeared to be then end of the whole hearted Brewster who was automatically swarmed by Klitschko, but the brave Brewster made it to the end of the round all the way to the infamous fifth round that had Klitschko down and out.
As the HBO commentators chatted on how Klitschko looked tired and weakened Brewster landed a huge left hook that rocked Klitschko to the ropes which prompted referee Robert Byrd to throw out the standing eight count. Brewster went back on the assault to close out the fifth round, Klitschko hit the deck once again after the bell and barely making his way to the corner the referee took a strong look at Klitschko and called a halt to the bout, giving Brewster the shocking win and prompting the HBO staff to spew on how Klitschko was finished, then the controversy began.
Low blood sugar, to much Vaseline clogged the pores and kept out oxygen, somebody spiked Klitschko’s water bottle, there were a lot of accusations floating around, but after it was all said and done it was plain and simple, Klitschko ran out of gas and Brewster gained a legitimate win.
Brewster went on defending the WBO belt having a close call against Kali Meehan, destroying Andrew Golota in fifty-two seconds and gaining a hard fought ninth round knock out win over Luan Krasniqi before dropping the title April of last year in a fight of the year candidate against Sergei Liakhovich. Brewster not only lost the bout unanimously but lost his eyesight after suffering a detach retina in his left eye, but now after surgery is ready to go.
Klitschko, who many felt was done as a major player in the boxing biz turned everything around and has won six consecutive bouts, he unanimously defeated Samuel Peter, spanked Chris Byrd to earn the IBF strap, put to sleep former unbeaten Calvin Brock and left handed his way to an easy second round win over Ray Austin just a month back. Now the two heavy-handed heavyweights will square off once more!
What will be the difference in this go around?
Well for one Klitschko most certainly is not the same fighter he was when he faced Brewster three years back, to be completely honest he is not the same Klitschko who defeated Samuel Peter or Calvin Brock, the one thing he has back is confidence, and a confident Wladimir Klitschko can be a dangerous Klitschko. Brewster is not the same fighter either, he took a ton of punishment in the first bout, again in the Meehan bout, the Krasniqi bout and his last go around against Liakhovich. And the absorbance of the pain will take a toll on one’s body, and with the one-year layoff it is a dangerous situation to face such a tough hombre.
One thing that plays into Brewster’s favor is his power, we know he has pop, and we are also aware that has been Klitschko’s down fall, if calculations are correct a total of twelve times Wladimir has hit the deck. But one thing, you have to get to the nest to crack the egg, something that will not be an easy task for Brewster in the rematch.
The first fight Klitschko out landed Brewster by seventy-seven shots, Lamon only landed forty-three, granted a handful of them gained him the win. Klitschko is the superior talent in this match-up, but Brewster has the heart, chin and punishing power to make this a very interesting rematch.
Although I am one of the biggest Brewster backers in the sport today I fear for this fight, coming off what could of very well of been a career ending injury and stepping right into the snake pit is something I respect, but something I am not a fan of. One thing, Lamon has my props for taking on such a tough fight and not fighting an easy target, and as he said, to be the best you have to beat the best. So by putting Klitschko and Brewster in the ring together again could be a dangerous combination for either, cannot wait until…’The Rematch!’
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