Ukrainian Vitali Klitschko defended his world heavyweight championship title according to the WBC version. On Sunday morning Kyiv time in Las Vegas, in the ring of the "Mandalay Bay" casino, Klitschko in the middle of the eighth round knocked out the Briton Danny Williams. Moreover, during the bout Williams was knocked down four times, but his last fall to the floor of the ring turned out to be the last in this duel for the boxer who defeated Tyson. The referee of the duel, Jay Nady, having started the count, carefully peered into Williams' glazed eyes and battered face and recorded Klitschko senior's victory by knockout.
The events that preceded this bout were primarily not in Williams' favor. The "Orange" revolution, which is taking place in Ukraine these days and which the Klitschko brothers supported, added even more responsibility before Vitali for the result of this fight. Secondly, with his statements before the fight, in which Williams noted that Klitschko was a coward, he motivated Vitali even more. And thirdly, Klitschko in this bout had something to lose, unlike his opponent, who in his career can boast of only one duel with a "feeble Tyson," whom he, by the way, defeated.
Already the first round could have become the last in this duel for Williams. A series of eight punches, preceded by straight rights to the head and several left uppercuts, sent the Briton to the floor of the ring. The referee started the count, but Vitali's opponent got to his feet. After 30 seconds the bell rang to end the first round, which saved Danny. Despite the fact that a few minutes earlier Williams had received at least a ton of punches to his head, he spent the second round more confidently and even once caught Vitali with a left jab.
True, in this bout Vitali Klitschko fought, probably, his most competent fight in terms of time in the ring in tactical terms. The Ukrainian did not rush at his opponent with the malice characteristic of him, but gradually "rocked" the "enemy," finding "cracks" through which he could reach Williams and reached him. In the third round Williams again had to "kiss" the ring floor. Toward the end of the three minutes, Vitali with a left uppercut sent his opponent into another knockdown, but a few seconds later the bell rang again, saving Williams. In all subsequent rounds up to the eighth, Vitali gradually broke through the Englishman's defense. In the middle of the seventh round, Vitali's right jab threw Danny's 122-kilogram mass right under the ropes, but again the "hard-headed" Williams, who moreover hit his head on the corner post of the ring as he fell, got up, despite the referee's open count.
And although already from the third round it was noticeable that Vitali was tired, he managed to finish his fight very beautifully. After 1 minute and 50 seconds of the eighth round, Vitali with a left uppercut struck Williams' chin, and then with two straight punches from the left and right hands sent his opponent to the floor of the ring again, moreover his opponent's body actually rose into the air before crashing onto the ring. However, Williams again quickly got up..., but the referee stopped the fight. Klitschko is champion!
At the moment no one has any doubts about Vitali's championship. True, ahead there will be even harder duels, since the WBA champion John Ruiz has already challenged the Ukrainian, if he defeats Williams.
It is a pity, but we never saw Klitschko in the ring in orange trunks with the inscription "Yushchenko - president." True, there is an explanation for this. According to the contract for this fight, Vitali had to enter the ring in black trunks, and Williams in white. However, Vitali attached an orange ribbon to the side of his trunks, and the entire Ukrainian's team was in caps of the revolutionary color of Ukraine. Moreover, a large number of the 12,000-seat hall where the fight took place were in orange colors, and after the victory Vitali asked the spectators of the duel for the poster "Yes! Yushchenko," which was raised above the winner's head at the moment when the cameras showed the champion's happy face to the whole world.