Raw Power-Raw Rusty

My hands are locked up together; my knees are stuck to the ground as my heart ascends to the realm of possibilities in prayer mood for our beloved Samuel Okon Peter. Later tonight Samuel Peter (30-1, 23 KO’s) as we all know will be up against Vitali “Dr.Iron Fists” Klitschko, in far away Berlin, Germany.

One fact is clear both men are respected pugilist who dominated the heavyweight class at different times. Different times? Yes!!
There was the era of Vitali Klitschko and now the era of Samuel Peter. During the era of Vitali Klitschko, he fought gallantly against Lennox Lewis and only lost because of the injury he sustained during the fight. After that encounter the Ukrainian boxer earned respect. He later fought against some boxers who in my opinion, were not as strong as he was. He also fought against reputable opponent like Danny Williams, Corrie Sanders and out of shaped Kirk Johnson. The fights were to me, meant for Klitschko to recover effectively after he lost to Lewis. They all happened in 2004.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Nightmare has been active since January 22, 2004. He has fought fourteen times and the only loss was to the younger Klitschko. He has had 106 rounds of pure boxing and that’s top class. “On March 3rd 2008, he stopped the very stoppable Oleg Maskaev in Cancun, Mexico. After an interesting six rounds in which Samuel demonstrated focus and resolve, things exploded in that round and the hard hitting Nigerian ended matters decisively with a number of cancussive shots to the Big O’s head driving him to the corner and forcing a halt to matters at the 2.56 mark”. (Ted Sares).

In addition to that, it’s clearly obvious that the Akwa Ibom born fighter has no stamina issues, his chin is not that exposed or better still not too weak. He showed that when he fought against Jameel “Big Time” McCline. For a man that weighs 250 pounds, it was a pure champion’s stuff to have come off three knock down to pull off a victory. The Nigerian Nightmare possesses the special ingredient of a great champion and he has continued to show tremendious improvement with every fight, he possesses the potential of a true heavyweight champion.

Meanwhile, the erudite Klitschko was known for his decisive style. He moves like a robot and has a strong fist. A fearless fighter, with good reach. An experienced pugilist who is trying to gain relevance at a time, I think he should retire into politics. The Ukrainian last fought in 2004, when he announced his comeback he was faced with series of injuries that ensured he stayed away from scheduled bouts. If Klitschko was up against any other boxer in the category it would have been understanding, given the caliber of fighters flaunting their stuff around.

Historically, boxers who have come off retirement to face active boxers have lost, some were ruthlessly dealt with, examples abound. Maskaev was obviously rusty as I opined back then. Sugar Ray Leonard saw hell in the hands of Hector Comacho, Ali lost to Holmes and the list goes on. Historically I can conveniently say Klitschko will lose this one but when you consider that Henry Maske came off a long retirement and defeated America’s Virgil Hill, you can’t help but be economical with predictions. It’s really close. When both men step’s out tonight, I foresee raw power up against raw rusty, you can’t pack a car for four years and think it will remain the same. Wear and tear would have taken it's turn.

I join millions of Nigerians all over the world to pray for Samuel Peter and wish him all the best.