Chagaev vs. Peter: Light up the Heavies
By Julian Kasdin (May 2, 2006)  
Photo © HoganPhotos.com
It seems as if everyone’s favorite activity in boxing these days is to complain about the state of the heavyweight division. We always hear how this is the weakest the division has ever been, that there is nothing good out there or on the horizon, and that heavyweight boxing should be put on the shelf and forgotten about all together. Well I am not one of those writers, and I am not ashamed to say that I actually see a very bright future for the heavyweight division; readers of my Young Guns series can attest to that fact. Following the entertaining scraps that were Lamon Brewster vs. Serguei Liakhovich and Chris Byrd vs. Wladimir Klitschko II, I figured I would look for two fighters who’s styles mesh in such a way to produce the most exciting fight. Those two fighters are Ruslan ‘White Tyson’ Chagaev and Samuel ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ Peter. Most American boxing fans know about Peter, 26-1 (22), while very few know about Chagaev, 20-0-1 (16).

As we all know Peter is a relentless come forward power puncher, who seeks to overwhelm opponents with his sheer strength and punching prowess. Peter also has a very tough beard, as the young man weathered much in the way of punishment against Wladimir Klitschko before his chin almost gave out in the 12th round of their interesting fight. Peter does not like boxers, and can be out-boxed by taller fighters who have the skill and wherewithal to clinch when necessary.

Chagaev, the lesser known of the two combatants, is another come forward fighter with a punch and a chin. He has a high activity rate and is a skilled fighter with impressive amateur credentials. He recently scored his biggest win, a close and hard fought decision victory over the huge and powerful Vladimir Virchis. Chagaev did not turn in his most impressive showing in that fight, but the word on the street is that there were several outside issues plaguing him that night. Chagaev is also a southpaw, a fact that could cause problems for Peter, but it also means more power punches will land than usual.

This fight has action written all over it as both fighters have similar builds and styles. They will probably both come forward on each other from the first minute of the first round. Leather will fly furiously fast as both men throw shots with equally bad intentions, with each shot thrown having the power to knockout fighters with lesser chins. If someone wanted to see a fight that most closely resembles the classic twelve round war between Ike Ibeabuchi and David Tua, this fight would be it. I tend to favor Chagaev in this fight for several reasons; he is the more skilled fighter with straighter and sharper punches also he has better stamina and a comparable chin. The story of this fight will most likely be a combination of two things: Chagaev’s ability to throw the straight left followed by a right hook, and Chagaev’s ability to be more active down the stretch.

I think this fight will be very exciting, especially for the first six or seven rounds. I tend to think that from round eight until the final bell Chagaev will be able to establish a pretty clear lead and win by a decent margin on the judges’ cards. Both fighters will be decently banged up, with Peter being a little worse for wear as Chagaev is the more skilled and accurate fighter who will be able to put his combinations together that much better. All in all however, this would be a fight that would go a long way towards reinvigorating the heavyweight division.
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