Knockout Auf Schalke
Date20 June 2009
VenueVeltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Title(s) on the lineIBF, WBO, IBO, and vacant The Ring heavyweight titles
Tale of the tape
Boxer Ukraine Wladimir Klitschko Uzbekistan Ruslan Chagaev
Nickname Dr. Steelhammer White Tyson
Hometown Kyiv, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine Andijan, Uzbekistan
Pre-fight record 52–3 25–0–1
Height 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 240+1⁄4 lb (109 kg) 224+3⁄4 lb (102 kg)
Style Orthodox Southpaw
Recognition IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight champion
Result
Klitschko defeated Chagaev by 9th round corner retirement

Wladimir Klitschko vs. Ruslan Chagaev, billed as "Knockout Auf Schalke", was a professional boxing match contested on 20 June 2009 for the IBF, WBO, IBO, and vacant The Ring heavyweight championship.[1]

Background

Chagaev had won the WBA title from Nikolay Valuev in April 2007 by a majority decision. His scheduled rematch with Valeuv was twice cancelled due a viral infection and a torn Achilles tendon both suffered by Chagaev. After the second cancellation the WBA named Chagaev their "Champion In recess." The rematch was scheduled for a third time on 30 May 2009, but Chagaev failed his medical exam.

After he had successfully unified the IBF and WBO belt with his outsided decision victory over Sultan Ibragimov in February 2008, Wladimir Klitschko had defended his titles with knockouts of Tony Thompson and former unified champion Hasim Rahman. He had agreed to face former unified cruiserweight champion David Haye in Germany on 20 June 2009, but Haye withdrew because of a back injury.[2]

Immediately after news about Haye's injury broke into public, a handful of heavyweight fighters, such as Alexander Povetkin, Chazz Witherspoon, James Toney, Odlanier Solis, Dominick Guinn and Eddie Chambers, expressed their interest in replacing Haye for the Klitschko showdown.[3] Instead, Klitschko's team started negotiations with Ruslan Chagaev, who was ranked third best heavyweight in the world by The Ring, and WBA world champion Nikolai Valuev, who was regarded as a big draw in Germany at the time. Ultimately, Klitschko reached agreements with Chagaev who agreed to step in for Haye as a last-minute replacement (Valuev's team wanted the fight to be postponed until autumn of that year).[3][4][5] Some observes believed that Chagaev was a better challenege for Klitschko than Haye, given his position in the ranking and the fact that, alongside WBO and IBF world titles, vacant The Ring world heavyweight title was also on the line.[6][7] In the pre-fight comparison, The Ring was giving Klitschko an advantage in power, speed and athletic ability, as well as experience, while also crediting Chagaev for having better defence, praising him for his fundamentals and footwork. In terms of technique, both fighters were described as of equal level.[8]

The fight

Veltins-Arena with capacity of over 61,000 seats was sold out, making the audience the biggest for boxing in Germany since 1939, when Max Schmeling knocked out Adolf Heuser in front of 70,000 people in Stuttgart.[9][10] Klitschko dominated the fight, keeping Chagaev at the end of his jab and throwing straight right hand whenever necessary. Klitschko dropped Chagaev near the end of the second round, and was gradually fighting more aggressively as the fight progressed. Chagaev's trainer Michael Timm did not allow Chagaev to come out for the tenth round, prompting the referee to wave the bout off, declaring Klitschko the winner by corner retirement (RTD).[11][9]

Aftermath

This win was significant for Klitschko because even though the WBA title was not on the line, many saw Klitschko as the rightful champion.[11][10] Immediately after this bout Chagaev would lose his "Champion In recess" status and would not fight for eleven months. Klitschko would make two defences, one against Eddie Chambers and the other one a rematch with former WBC champion Samuel Peter, before a unification bout with then WBA beltholder David Haye in July 2011.

Fight card

Confirmed bouts:[12]

Weight Class Weight vs. Method Round Time Notes
Heavyweight Unlimited Ukraine Wladimir Klitschko (c) def. Uzbekistan Ruslan Chagaev RTD 9/12 3:00 Note 1
Heavyweight Unlimited Russia Alexander Ustinov def. United Kingdom Michael Sprott UD 12/12
Heavyweight Unlimited United States Johnathon Banks def. United Kingdom Paul Butlin TKO 7/8 0:56
Middleweight 154 lb Republic of Ireland Andy Lee def. Latvia Olegs Fedotovs UD 6/6
Heavyweight Unlimited United States Cedric Boswell def. Turkey Serdar Uysal TKO 6/6

^Note 1 For WBO, IBF and vacant The Ring and lineal heavyweight titles.

Broadcasting

Country Broadcaster
 AustraliaMain Event
 CanadaTSN
 GermanyRTL
 PhilippinesSolar Sports
 RussiaChannel One
 UkraineInter
 United KingdomSky Sports
 United StatesESPN Classic

References

  1. ↑ "Wladimir Klitschko vs. Ruslan Chagaev - BoxRec". boxrec.com.
  2. ↑ Davies, Gareth A. "Wladimir Klitschko has weight advantage over Ruslan Chagaev". The Telegraph.
  3. 1 2 The Ring № 6: The circus of heavyweight proportions. 2009
  4. ↑ "Boente: Chagaev to replace hurt Haye". 5 June 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  5. ↑ "Chagaev replaces Haye for Klitschko fight". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 6 June 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  6. ↑ "Why Klitschko-Chagaev is the most important heavyweight fight in years, and why it won't be any good". 17 June 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  7. ↑ "Chagaev Vs. Klitschko: Is Ruslan A Tougher Opponent Than Haye?". 6 June 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  8. ↑ "HEAD-TO-HEAD: KLITSCHKO VS. CHAGAEV". 19 June 2009. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  9. 1 2 "KLITSCHKO HALTS CHAGAEV, WINS RING TITLE". Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  10. 1 2 "Wladimir Klitschko secures technical knockout over Ruslan Chagaev". Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  11. 1 2 "Klitschko wins by TKO, keeps heavyweight titles". ESPN.com. 2009-06-20. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  12. ↑ "BoxRec - event". boxrec.com.
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