Over the past few years the Cruiserweight division has become a show stealer. No longer is it merely the bastard division between Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight but it's now it's own, highly established and amazingly entertaining division which brings us more action pound-for-pound than almost any other division in the sport. In fact for me it's the second division in the sport right now behind the red hot Flyweight division.
One problem with the Cruiserweight division however is that over the past few years it has been European centric with very little action coming stateside. That changes a little this Friday as Poland's Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (48-2-1, 24) takes his WBC title over to Chicago to defend it against Italian veteran Giacobbe Fragomeni (31-3-2, 12). This, the third meeting between the two men, will see Fragomeni seeking to tie the scoreline between the two men which currently sees Wloadrczyk leading 1-0 with 1 fight scored a draw.
At 44 years old Fragomeni is a bit of a freak of a freak. He's been one of the top Cruiserweights on the plant from around 2006 and despite a loss to David Haye that year it was obvious that Fragomeni had the talent to one day be a world champion.
Fragomeni would later become a title holder. In 2008 he beat Rudolph Kraj by 8th round technical decision to claim the WBC title, a title he would successfully defend once, scoring a draw with Wlodarczyk in that defense. Unfortunately he reign was curtailed by Hungarian Zsolt Erdei one fight later before a Wlodarczyk rematch saw Fragomeni being stopped in 8 rounds.
Since the loss to Wlodarczyk in 2010 Fragomeni has gone 5-0-1, claiming the WBC silver title in the process with a split decision over fellow Italian veteran Silvio Branco. It's that silver title that has helped Fragomeni getting a third fight with Wlodarczyk.
A warrior at heart Fragomeni's inclusion in a bout tends to leave us with an exciting action. Not often much in terms of "sweet science" but plenty of action all the same.
Much like the challenger Wlodarczyk, a 32 year who has previously held the IBF title, is a warrior. He's slightly better technically than Fragomeni but is mainly a tough and gutsy fighter who excellent engine and sheer bloody mindedness.
One of the weaknesses of Wlodarczyk is that he is a slow starter and he can be put over. Problem with knocking him over however is that he has the uncanny ability to just get up and fight back. This is what saved him last time out when he was dropped and dominated early on by Rakhim Chakhkiev.
When he's got his engine going and everything clicks however Wlodarczyk is a monster to defeat. He's got a great work rate, fantastic punch selection, good combinations and really hurtful power. He's not going to knock world level fighters out with one shot too often but every shot looks hurtful, every shot is grinding and every shot does damage. When he lets them go they have the capability of breaking down almost anyone in the division.
It's the grinding effect of Wlodarczyk that I think will take it's effect here as he breaks down Fragomeni and stops him around round 7 or 8 with the Italian veteran looking his age for a round or two before the stoppage. Thankfully for the first 5 or 6 rounds we should get some genuinely enthralling action that will hopefully make the US audience want to see more of this generation of brilliant Cruiserweights.
Prediction-Wlodarczyk TKO8
Showing posts with label Krzysztof Wlodarczyk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Krzysztof Wlodarczyk. Show all posts
Wednesday, 4 December 2013
Wednesday, 19 June 2013
Krzysztof Wlodarczyk v Rakhim Chakhkiev
The boxing weekend kicks off a few hours early this week as Russia hosts a Cruiserweight world title bout between WBC champion Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (47-2-1, 33) and highly regarded Russian Rakhim Chakhkiev (16-0, 12).
Chakhkiev, stepping up to the world level for the first time as a professional had been tipped for professional stardom following an excellent amateur career that included an Olympic gold medal and an World Amateur Championship silver medal. Sadly his rise to the top of the paid ranks has been slower than expected due to issues with promotional outfit Universum.
Having effectively wasted a year or so of his career with poor match ups the 30 year old Chakhkiev is finally being let off the leash and being given a chance to impress fans in his native Russia (having been based in Germany for his career so far).
Hard hitting, aggressively minded and highly skilled Chakhkiev is very fun to watch and destructive to both the head and body. Defensively he's not great but with his style he rarely needs to show off great defense instead living by the adage of "his offense is his best defense" and in all honesty his body shots take that much out of opponents that they are often too busy protecting themselves than to strike back.
Although Chakhkiev has yet to go the 12 round distance he has has recorded 2 decision victories over 10 rounds and scored a 9th round stoppage testing out his stamina as much as anything else. It's his stamina over 12 rounds that is quite possible the only real question mark over the man dubbed "The Machine".
In Wlodarczyk we have a very competent champion but yet an unimpressive one. He's a fighter who at his best looks like a really good fighter but all too often looks lazy, uninterested and like he's turning up for a sparring session as opposed to a fight. Sure he wins most fights but that also has something to do with favourable judging and weak opponents.
The Polish champion has certainly faced some stiff competition in his 50 fight career including twice facing Steve Cunningham (winning a controversial one and losing one), twice defeating Francisco Palacios and twice facing Giacobbe Fragomeni (winning one and drawing one). Though those fights have been interspersed with opponents like Jason Robinson and Dominique Alexander who really do not deserve to be in the ring with a world level opponent.
Although Wlodarczyk, known as "Diablo", can be made to look lazy he is tough and does hit extremely hard. His shots seemed to hurt Cunningham and have stopped both Fragomeni and Danny Green. He's dangerous and his lethargic fighting style arguably makes him more dangerous as you never really know when he's going to put his weight behind a shot.
As well as Wlodarczyk's power he has a solid jab and can use it well to keep opponents at range. He'll need to be able to use it well to keep Chakhkiev away or else he'll be in a world of pain, especially from the devastating body attack of the Russian.
Going in to this bout Chakhkiev is a strong betting favourite. Yes he's the man stepping up but on perceived talent and a Russian crowd behind him it's hard to see him losing.
Prediction-UD12 Chakhkiev
Chakhkiev, stepping up to the world level for the first time as a professional had been tipped for professional stardom following an excellent amateur career that included an Olympic gold medal and an World Amateur Championship silver medal. Sadly his rise to the top of the paid ranks has been slower than expected due to issues with promotional outfit Universum.
Having effectively wasted a year or so of his career with poor match ups the 30 year old Chakhkiev is finally being let off the leash and being given a chance to impress fans in his native Russia (having been based in Germany for his career so far).
Hard hitting, aggressively minded and highly skilled Chakhkiev is very fun to watch and destructive to both the head and body. Defensively he's not great but with his style he rarely needs to show off great defense instead living by the adage of "his offense is his best defense" and in all honesty his body shots take that much out of opponents that they are often too busy protecting themselves than to strike back.
Although Chakhkiev has yet to go the 12 round distance he has has recorded 2 decision victories over 10 rounds and scored a 9th round stoppage testing out his stamina as much as anything else. It's his stamina over 12 rounds that is quite possible the only real question mark over the man dubbed "The Machine".
In Wlodarczyk we have a very competent champion but yet an unimpressive one. He's a fighter who at his best looks like a really good fighter but all too often looks lazy, uninterested and like he's turning up for a sparring session as opposed to a fight. Sure he wins most fights but that also has something to do with favourable judging and weak opponents.
The Polish champion has certainly faced some stiff competition in his 50 fight career including twice facing Steve Cunningham (winning a controversial one and losing one), twice defeating Francisco Palacios and twice facing Giacobbe Fragomeni (winning one and drawing one). Though those fights have been interspersed with opponents like Jason Robinson and Dominique Alexander who really do not deserve to be in the ring with a world level opponent.
Although Wlodarczyk, known as "Diablo", can be made to look lazy he is tough and does hit extremely hard. His shots seemed to hurt Cunningham and have stopped both Fragomeni and Danny Green. He's dangerous and his lethargic fighting style arguably makes him more dangerous as you never really know when he's going to put his weight behind a shot.
As well as Wlodarczyk's power he has a solid jab and can use it well to keep opponents at range. He'll need to be able to use it well to keep Chakhkiev away or else he'll be in a world of pain, especially from the devastating body attack of the Russian.
Going in to this bout Chakhkiev is a strong betting favourite. Yes he's the man stepping up but on perceived talent and a Russian crowd behind him it's hard to see him losing.
Prediction-UD12 Chakhkiev
Thursday, 20 September 2012
Krzysztof Wlodarczyk v Fransico Palacios II
The Cruiserweight has given us some great fights recently with last weekends bout between Yoan Pablo Hernandez and Troy Ross being one of the very best fights of the year. This weekend we get another Cruiserweight title treat as WBC champion Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (46-2-1, 33) makes the fourth defense of his title as he faces Puerto Rican born American based Fransico Palacios (21-1, 13). This bout, a rematch of one of last years most controversial title bouts promises a lot, though will it deliver?
With 49 bouts on his record it's somewhat easy to forget that Krzysztof Wlodarczyk is just 31 years old. It feels as if the Pole has been around for years and to be honest he has, having made his debut a little more than 12 years ago. Despite a really long career Wlodarczyk is somewhat of an unknown outside of the hardcore boxing community, despite the fact he literally fought a who's who of Cruiserweight's.
Wlodarczyk started his career with 20 straight wins and claimed both the IBF Inter-Continental Cruiserweight title and the Polish Cruiserweight before suffering a controversial technical decision loss to Pavel Melkomyan in Germany. Despite the bout being ruled a technical stoppage due to a clash of heads replays seemed to suggest that the fight ending cut was scored by a punch.
It wouldn't take long for Wlodarczyk to bounce back from his first loss and he swiftly captured the WBC Youth Cruiserweight title and soon afterwards the World Boxing Foundation Cruiserweight title. Despite these title wins it wasn't until he claimed the European Union title by stopping Ruediger May in 2005 that he really started to announce himself.
In 2007 Wlodarczyk claimed his first world title as he controversially out pointed American Steve Cunningham for the IBF Cruiserweight title, though his reign was short lived as Cunningham claimed a majority decision in a rematch just 6 months later. This wasn't to be the end of Wlodarczyk at the top level however and just 2 years later Wlodarczyk would challenge Italian Giacobbe Fragomeni for the WBC Cruiserweight title. Despite dropping Fragomeni, the judges scored the bout a draw.
Almost exactly a year after the draw between Fragomeni and Wlodarczyk the two men fought again this time Wlodarczyk would come out on top taking an 8th round TKO victory. Since then Wlodarczyk has defended his title 3 times, including a controversial decision win over Palacios and an 11th round TKO over Australian Danny Green.
Wlodarczyk's record would indicate he's probably a power puncher but in all honesty he's not a powerful hitter, especially not at world level however he is a grinder and hits hard enough that you feel his shots even if no single blow will take an opponent out. Sadly however the Pole can be frustrating to watch as he can often lose focus in bouts and give rounds away by doing nothing, a problem we saw in a number of rounds against Green last time out. At his best he's exceptional, capable of throwing hurtful shots to the head and body and using very accurate fast jabs, at his worst however he's really awful.
At 35 years old Palacios is the older man, though he hasn't had the ring years of the champion. In fact not only has Palacios only fought 22 times as a professional but he's also only been a pro since 2004. Despite his relatively short professional career Palacios has a solid amateur background and he competed at the 2003 World Amateur Championships (losing controversially to Erbol Babayev).
Since turning over to the paid ranks Palacios has adapted well and started his professional career with an impressive 20 straight wins. In those 20 fights Palacios claimed the WBA Fedelatin Cruiserweight title by impressively stopping former world title challenger Luis Andres Pineda and defended that belt once stopping Lawrence Chapman inside a round.
With his amateur background it goes with out saying that Palacios is a talented fighter and knows how to use all of the punches in book with his busy jab being a key yo many of his attacks. He's at his best however when he's able to let his hands go something he used effectively when he first faced Palacios last year, sadly however the referee repeatedly broke up the action when Palacios was getting the better of it.
With the controversial nature of the first bout, which many though Palacios had won, this bout is a long awaited rematch and one that many fans would have preferred to have seen last year however it still serves to be an intriguing bout.
Against Green, Wlodarczyk looked like he was a fighter who didn't want to fight any more, he was a man who looked to be there in body but not in mind until he felt his title was being taken from him. Against Palacios he's fighting a much better fighter than Green and one who is there to take the title back from Poland come hell or high water and one who I feel will not be denied this time around. Expect Wlodarczyk to be forced to work at a high tempo, something that will not like suit him and expect him to lose rounds as a result. Whilst the judging may be questionable I just can't see the "3 wise men" favouring Wlodarczyk quite as much as they did last time, especially after the backlash by those watching.
Prediction-Palacios SD12
With 49 bouts on his record it's somewhat easy to forget that Krzysztof Wlodarczyk is just 31 years old. It feels as if the Pole has been around for years and to be honest he has, having made his debut a little more than 12 years ago. Despite a really long career Wlodarczyk is somewhat of an unknown outside of the hardcore boxing community, despite the fact he literally fought a who's who of Cruiserweight's.
Wlodarczyk started his career with 20 straight wins and claimed both the IBF Inter-Continental Cruiserweight title and the Polish Cruiserweight before suffering a controversial technical decision loss to Pavel Melkomyan in Germany. Despite the bout being ruled a technical stoppage due to a clash of heads replays seemed to suggest that the fight ending cut was scored by a punch.
It wouldn't take long for Wlodarczyk to bounce back from his first loss and he swiftly captured the WBC Youth Cruiserweight title and soon afterwards the World Boxing Foundation Cruiserweight title. Despite these title wins it wasn't until he claimed the European Union title by stopping Ruediger May in 2005 that he really started to announce himself.
In 2007 Wlodarczyk claimed his first world title as he controversially out pointed American Steve Cunningham for the IBF Cruiserweight title, though his reign was short lived as Cunningham claimed a majority decision in a rematch just 6 months later. This wasn't to be the end of Wlodarczyk at the top level however and just 2 years later Wlodarczyk would challenge Italian Giacobbe Fragomeni for the WBC Cruiserweight title. Despite dropping Fragomeni, the judges scored the bout a draw.
Almost exactly a year after the draw between Fragomeni and Wlodarczyk the two men fought again this time Wlodarczyk would come out on top taking an 8th round TKO victory. Since then Wlodarczyk has defended his title 3 times, including a controversial decision win over Palacios and an 11th round TKO over Australian Danny Green.
Wlodarczyk's record would indicate he's probably a power puncher but in all honesty he's not a powerful hitter, especially not at world level however he is a grinder and hits hard enough that you feel his shots even if no single blow will take an opponent out. Sadly however the Pole can be frustrating to watch as he can often lose focus in bouts and give rounds away by doing nothing, a problem we saw in a number of rounds against Green last time out. At his best he's exceptional, capable of throwing hurtful shots to the head and body and using very accurate fast jabs, at his worst however he's really awful.
At 35 years old Palacios is the older man, though he hasn't had the ring years of the champion. In fact not only has Palacios only fought 22 times as a professional but he's also only been a pro since 2004. Despite his relatively short professional career Palacios has a solid amateur background and he competed at the 2003 World Amateur Championships (losing controversially to Erbol Babayev).
Since turning over to the paid ranks Palacios has adapted well and started his professional career with an impressive 20 straight wins. In those 20 fights Palacios claimed the WBA Fedelatin Cruiserweight title by impressively stopping former world title challenger Luis Andres Pineda and defended that belt once stopping Lawrence Chapman inside a round.
With his amateur background it goes with out saying that Palacios is a talented fighter and knows how to use all of the punches in book with his busy jab being a key yo many of his attacks. He's at his best however when he's able to let his hands go something he used effectively when he first faced Palacios last year, sadly however the referee repeatedly broke up the action when Palacios was getting the better of it.
With the controversial nature of the first bout, which many though Palacios had won, this bout is a long awaited rematch and one that many fans would have preferred to have seen last year however it still serves to be an intriguing bout.
Against Green, Wlodarczyk looked like he was a fighter who didn't want to fight any more, he was a man who looked to be there in body but not in mind until he felt his title was being taken from him. Against Palacios he's fighting a much better fighter than Green and one who is there to take the title back from Poland come hell or high water and one who I feel will not be denied this time around. Expect Wlodarczyk to be forced to work at a high tempo, something that will not like suit him and expect him to lose rounds as a result. Whilst the judging may be questionable I just can't see the "3 wise men" favouring Wlodarczyk quite as much as they did last time, especially after the backlash by those watching.
Prediction-Palacios SD12
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