[King Kabuki]

For MMA we have Fedor and Aleks. For Boxing we have Wlad and Vitali. Vitali was the man in the heavyweight division until his retirement, and Wlad is currently probably the best bet to unify the division. And I know a lot of you guys who post here are big guys and would like to see how some of the guys who rival your size or are even bigger train themselves up to compete on the World Stage. There's none better to start with than these two:

First the younger, Dr. Wladimir training for his fight with Sam Peter (the opening is a decent story/commentary by his trainer Emmanuel Steward):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUDdbzPwsiM

And here's what that training gets him:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b6dU6W7Bvg

And now big brother Vitali:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRiemCPteyQ

Here's another (featuring commentary from Wlad):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sBs2VdEzpA

And what that training gets Vitali:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFS34Rs8lZ0

And a special treat, both brothers training together (no sound though):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWfbIfILnZk

And you guys may have seen this but as a special special treat, the HL video of the Slavic fighters:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd2i7Ej_Yx8

[deadlyshaolin]

Very, very nice post, KK. As a bigger guy myself, I appreciate the gesture. These former Soviet nations must have something special in their water.

[King Kabuki]

Well, they actually LIKE fighting and see it as a viable national Sport. Right now it's up to the younger Americans to do the same and elevate the combat Sports. Because of the love for them in Europe they get a lot of attention and have great great Amateur programs to condition these guys to be good Pros. And not just good Pros with good basic skill-sets, but Pros who can improve as they go along. Wlad was questioned about his chin, stamina, and heart. Well he withstood Sam Peter's onslaught for 12 rounds, got off the canvas 3 times, and kept fighting back. So since his losses to Brewster and Sanders he's made worlds of improvement, especially in dispatching Chris Byrd and Calvin Brock, two highly-touted Americans in impressive fashion.

[deadlyshaolin]

I was referring more to the large stature of many eastern Europeans by my "water" comment. But you're right, they do seem to take fight sport more seriously over in those parts. Plus they've got this whole former Communist do-or-die work ethic (I mean this half-jokingly) that is formidable.

[King Kabuki]

You're not wrong about their work ethic, though. Even Nikolai Valuev who is LARGELY winning only because of his size, works hard in training and secludes himself to do so. And unfortunately most American Heavyweight Contenders who were good Amateurs are now in the NFL or NBA.

[deadlyshaolin]

Originally Posted by King Kabuki

And unfortunately most American Heavyweight Contenders who were good Amateurs are now in the NFL or NBA.

Is that so? I don't know much about the boxing scene other than what I pick up from these forums... could you provide some examples?

[King Kabuki]

I'll try to find some names, I recall a couple of commentators making references but can't recall the names off the top of my head. Here's an excerpt from an article displaying American Heavyweight Calvin Brock sharing the same sentiment with another Heavyweight Sultan Ibragimov:

Where are the American heavyweights?

Brock thinks other sports have taken from the pool of American heavyweight prizefighters.

“It looks like most of the top athletes are playing football, basketball or baseball,” says Brock without hesitation. “I played football and baseball, but I never had a desire to be in a sport outside of boxing. I’ve been in boxing since I was eight-years-old.”

Ibragimov agrees with Brock and has one added suggestion for the lack of American heavyweights: the lack of a strong amateur program in the United States.

“I think the former Soviet fighters have a lot of experience from amateur school, maybe this is a point for us. Of course a lot of American heavyweights don’t have a lot of amateur experience. When I was an amateur I was a cruiserweight. I fought in Olympic games in Atlanta,” Ibragimov says. “I had 200 amateur fights maybe more. I don’t know but close to 170 or 180 wins.”

And here's a good article about the subject in general. If I can find a name or two I will:

http://www.iol.co.za/?set_id=6&click...0931677C673305

[deadlyshaolin]

Another thing (and possibly my giddiest factoid re: Vitali):

He throws a pretty mean roundhouse too.

[King Kabuki]

Proof of that:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rOfr0a1lMk