According to the boxers' official website, Volodymyr Klitschko will meet 29-year-old Belarusian Serhiy Liakhovich, who lives in the USA, on April 23 in Dortmund, while Vitali Klitschko will fight 32-year-old Hasim Rahman on April 30 in New York.
For the first time in their professional careers, the Ukrainian boxers could not find suitable opponents for so long. Klitschko Jr.'s opponent was supposed to be the 34-year-old IBF world champion Chris Byrd. However, the fight was hindered by Byrd's misunderstanding with promoter Don King and the insistent demands of the boxer's wife Tracey to refuse this fight.
Serhiy Liakhovich, in the opinion of Volodymyr Klitschko and the people who work with him, is perfectly suitable as a future opponent. Liakhovich showed himself excellently in his recent fights and interested the bosses of leading TV channels that broadcast boxing. In addition, unlike Byrd, he easily agreed to hold the fight in Germany.
Klitschko Jr. stated that he is carefully studying his opponent, watching video recordings of his recent fights. According to the Ukrainian boxer, this fight is very important for him, and a victory in this bout will not only be able to return him to the ranks of potential contenders for a fight for the world champion title, but will also directly lead him to a fight with Chris Byrd. "At the end of this week I am flying to Mallorca, where my training camp will be based, where I will spend five weeks of the second part of preparation for the upcoming fight," the boxer stated. Klitschko explained why Mallorca was chosen as the location for his training camp: "The thing is that in Germany it is very cold and damp, and therefore there is a great danger of catching even a slight cold, which could hinder preparation for the fight. In addition, Mallorca is only a few hours' flight from Germany, which is quite convenient, speaking of the fact that I will have to fly there for the promotion of my fight with Serhiy."
About his future opponent, Klitschko said only that, in his opinion, over the past two years Liakhovich has become more experienced and technically stronger. "I first saw Serhiy in the ring somewhere in the middle of 1999, when he was just starting his professional career. However, his recent fights have shown that he has greatly improved in technique and fighting practice. He well combines a cocktail of the Soviet-American school of boxing. I in no way want to and will not underestimate my opponent, but I will not overestimate him either," the boxer noted. "Both the one and the other are quite dangerous. For me this is a very important fight, and I will prepare for it very seriously and thoroughly. I have no right to lose."
As for Klitschko Sr., after Hasim Rahman finally rejected any possibility of a fight with him on March 6, the main contender for a fight with him became 33-year-old Monte Barrett.
However, the New York State Athletic Commission banned Monte from fighting Klitschko. In his previous fight, Barrett, having defeated 28-year-old Owen Beck, earned the right to a championship fight, but received several rather serious cuts. However, while the search for a new candidate for a fight with Vitali Klitschko was ongoing, Rahman nevertheless gave consent to a fight with the Ukrainian - promoter Don King instilled in his charge faith in victory over the Ukrainian boxer. Vitali Klitschko stated that he is glad that he can finally devote himself to preparation for the upcoming fight.