Slow Eddie

I remember talking to Franchise a few weeks ago in an interview over at Jarry Park after Paulie Malignaggi beat Herman Ngoudjo, the Cameroonian by way of Quebec. Franchise is from Montreal (as his site name would indicate), and he roots hard for all fighters from the Great White North. When we talked about the Malignaggi/Ngoudjo bout, I could hear in his voice that special brand of disappointment that comes after you've seen a boxer leave something in the ring in a fight that he might have won if only he'd pushed his advantage just a little harder.

It's a disappointment that I feel this morning after yesterday's Alexander Povetkin/Eddie Chambers bout in Germany, which Povetkin won by a hard-earned unanimous decision. My disappointment is tempered somewhat by the very present feeling that that neither of these guys would have a chance in hell against Klitschko, a sentiment echoed in the post-fight press conference by none other than Povetkin himself, who said, "I will have to do a lot of work on myself before I fight Wladimir Klitschko." Klitschko, the current IBF champ, most likely will be Povetkin's next opponent provided that Wlad beats Sultan Ibragimov in the February 23rd heavyweight unification bout at the Garden.

On the whole, Povetkin can't come out of this victory feeling too enthused, although credit him with the heart of a lion despite the fact that the edge in true boxing talent clearly resided with his opponent last night. I had Chambers (born in Pittsburgh, fights out of Philadelphia) winning four of the first five rounds simply on the basis of his lightning-quick and clean counter-punching that lit up the Russian like a pasty, flabby Christmas tree. By the fifth round, Povetkin's left eye was rapidly closing and both eyes were purpled with bruises. I thought, sheesh, I never would have imagined it would be so easy for Eddie and I admit at that point I started fantasizing about having a Philly boy fight for the heavyweight title once again and devising strategies in my mind for how Eddie might cope with Klitschko's size. Povetkin was working much harder than Chambers to no avail and breathing in his corner in between rounds as if at any moment he might collapse and die. I really don't think I've ever seen a fighter in such bad condition as Povetkin looked in his corner throughout the entire fight.

Nevertheless, starting around the sixth, the Russian amazingly managed to find another gear, and that proved the difference the rest of the way. It was a volume victory, end of story. He outworked Chambers, was first, second and third in every exchange with a breathless output that rarely scored to great effect, but flummoxed Eddie in that "the best defense is a relentless offense" way of boxing. More than anything, he created an appearance of a complete mismatch for the judges. Come the eleventh and twelfth rounds, Povetkin was throwing 70-80 punches per frame to Chambers 15-16. It was very frustrating to watch. A few times I said out loud to the television, "son you can't win if you don't punch."

Of course, Chambers' trainer and father Eddie Sr. along with Buddy McGirt (brought in to work with Eddie for this bout) were frustrated as well, and pleaded with Eddie to step it up, but he continued to look helpless in there, unable to mount a significant charge in any of the late rounds. In his defense, I have to point out that it didn't seem to me a question of will so much as one of tactics. Povetkin was working like freaking Kassim Ouma in there, putting out an almost unprecedented punch-rate for a heavyweight fighter, and Chambers simply had no idea how to find his openings against such an onslaught.

In the end, his main problem was one that he couldn't control - he's just not big enough. He landed some great punches yesterday, head-snapping, sweat-spraying straight right hands directly on the button, five or six of them in the first four rounds that were without question the best punches of the fight. If he had some size and weight on those shots, they most likely would have turned the tide in his favor and slowed his opponent, the banderillas that prefigure the sword. But Povetkin needed not much more than a brisk headshake or two to put them in the past. After the fight, Max Kellerman suggested that Chambers' best move would be to move down to cruiserweight, a thought I admit I was having myself for most of the fight. Coming in around 208 or so just does not make you a heavyweight in this day and age, and Eddie Chambers is too talented with his hands and has too many natural boxing instincts to flounder in the sport simply for being too small.

As for Povetkin, I'm not sure what to think. It's hard to question his power based on the Chambers fight, because he never really rocked Eddie with a clean blow. A good eighty percent of his punches were blocked, and even the ones that landed seemed to be partially blocked. He moves well for a heavyweight, and his heart... what can you say about his heart? He was completely outclassed in there yesterday and willed himself to victory by punching like a featherweight on meth, a superhuman effort that literally seemed like it might kill him at times. I tip my hat to him on that score, but I can't help but think of those big right hands that Eddie landed on him early, and think about how the night might have gone if it was Klitschko landing those big right hands.