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Chris Byrd IMO lacks serious heart. I'm not doubting that he's talented. I'm not saying he isn't a solid professional. I am saying that I feel that he lacks heart.
In this fight, he never really went for broke. After watching Wlad impose his jab and a mean 1-2 combination for nearly every round, I thought Byrd would ATTEMPT to make some adjustments. Its not that I would have been this judgemental had he tried and failed, but he didn't even try. My God, this guy who is pretty much feather-fisted tried to stand toe-to-toe with a guy much, much bigger and stronger than he is.
He used none of his trademark finesse. He just kept at his incredibly lame gameplan. After seeing that it wasn't working after the first 4 rounds, what was he thinking? He could have easily have used his speed and elusiveness to avoid much of the punishment that he took. Klitschko is a Steward trained boxer, which automatically makes him limited, as Steward is thee most overrated trainer in the game. He may have looked good against Byrd, but once he fights against someone who can bring some heavier thunder, he'll respond like Lennox Lewis and jab then clinch. I really wish there were some heavy hitters around still.
If a prime D'Amato trained Tyson or a prime Ike Ibeabuchi were still around, the heavyweight division would have something to talk about. Without that kind of firepower or flashy skill(ala Ali) the heavyweight will stay in limbo. Damn, I'd even settle for David Tua these days.
In this fight, he never really went for broke. After watching Wlad impose his jab and a mean 1-2 combination for nearly every round, I thought Byrd would ATTEMPT to make some adjustments. Its not that I would have been this judgemental had he tried and failed, but he didn't even try. My God, this guy who is pretty much feather-fisted tried to stand toe-to-toe with a guy much, much bigger and stronger than he is.
He used none of his trademark finesse. He just kept at his incredibly lame gameplan. After seeing that it wasn't working after the first 4 rounds, what was he thinking? He could have easily have used his speed and elusiveness to avoid much of the punishment that he took. Klitschko is a Steward trained boxer, which automatically makes him limited, as Steward is thee most overrated trainer in the game. He may have looked good against Byrd, but once he fights against someone who can bring some heavier thunder, he'll respond like Lennox Lewis and jab then clinch. I really wish there were some heavy hitters around still.
If a prime D'Amato trained Tyson or a prime Ike Ibeabuchi were still around, the heavyweight division would have something to talk about. Without that kind of firepower or flashy skill(ala Ali) the heavyweight will stay in limbo. Damn, I'd even settle for David Tua these days.
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