One of the
most common themes in the sport of Boxing are stories of fighters attempting to
make a comeback after a period of hiatus. Many great fighters for one reason or
another have left the ring only to attempt to make a comeback. Many will argue
that two of the most memorable and successful comebacks in the history of
Boxing were achieved by Sugar Ray Leonard and George Foreman. Both of whom were
able to beat long odds to regain their status at the top of the sport.
In the case
of Leonard, his achievement in coming back after a three-year retirement to
defeat Marvelous Marvin Hagler for the WBC Middleweight world championship in
1987 was in many ways astonishing. There are many who consider Leonard’s
accomplishment to be the greatest comeback in Boxing history. After all,
Leonard came back to fight Hagler for the Middleweight championship of the
world straight out of retirement without fighting anyone else in between. Along
with defeating a dominant Middleweight champion in Marvelous Marvin Hagler,
Leonard was able to defeat ring rust and father time. Leonard’s accomplishment
however, is more of the exception than it is the rule.
In the case
of former WBC Heavyweight world champion Oleg Maskaev, his comeback which began
in 2012 after a three-year hiatus following a first round knockout loss to
Heavyweight contender Nagy Aguilera in 2009, seems to be taking a more measured
approach. Maskaev, who has fought many top fighters of the division during the
1990s and 2000s won the Heavyweight championship in 2006 by scoring his second
knockout win over Hasim Rahman.
Maskaev may
be best known for his first knockout of Rahman in November of 1999 in a fight
where Maskaev knocked Rahman out with a solid right hand that sent him through
the ropes and out of the ring to the floor. A knockout which has been featured
in many highlight reels in the years since.
Maskaev would
go on to lose the WBC title to Sam Peter in 2008. In that fight Peter’s power
was too much for Maskaev and he was stopped in six rounds. Following the loss
to Nagy Aguilera in 2009, some assumed that Maskaev was at the end of his
career. Maskaev returned to the ring in
December of 2012 scoring a third round knockout of former world title
challenger Owen Beck.
The second
fight on the comeback trail came in May of this year scoring a ten round
unanimous decision over veteran contender Jason Gavern. Although Maskaev did
suffer a knockdown at the hands of Gavern in the ninth round of that fight, it
was the first time that Maskaev had gone ten rounds since defeating Okello Peter by twelve round unanimous
decision in defense of his Heavyweight title in 2006. Despite the opinions of
some contending that Gavern should have won that fight, it was nevertheless an
important step for the former champion in terms of working off ring rust.
The most
recent outing for Maskaev came on November 4th in Russia against
veteran Danny Williams. Williams, best known for scoring an upset knockout
victory over former Heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in 2004 came in as a
substitution for journeyman contender Corey Sanders who defeated Maskaev in
2002 by eighth round knockout.
The former
British and Commonwealth Heavyweight champion Williams came into this fight
having lost his last eight fights, losing four by knockout. Truth be told, I
was not expecting to see two Heavyweights at their peak squaring off against
one another in this fight. Instead, I was looking forward to seeing how the
forty-four-year-old Maskaev would look in only his third fight since resuming
his career. For the forty-year-old Williams this fight was a chance to
revitalize his career against another former world champion.
Although the
fight often resembled a sparring session rather than a contest, Maskaev did
what he had to do and earned a workman like unanimous decision. Some may be
tempted to criticize this fight, but one should view this fight in the sense of
Maskaev continuing to build his comeback.
As I watched
this fight some thoughts came to mind. Thoughts of hearing some criticism about
this fight and the lack of excitement. It is important to remember however,
that not all comebacks begin on a marquee stage. George Foreman after all came
back after a ten-year retirement in 1987 and fought several fighters that most
would not recognize. As Foreman continued to stay active however, those fights
at the beginning stages of his comeback against lesser known opposition really
served as the building blocks that eventually led to Foreman becoming a major
player once again in the Heavyweight division culminating with his come from behind
knockout victory over Michael Moorer in 1994 to regain the Heavyweight
championship.
Maskaev’s
victory over Danny Williams probably will not do much in the short-term for
him. In the long-term however, if Maskaev continues to fight and continues to
win the early fights in his comeback could very well lead to something down the
line.
It is also
worth remembering that the Heavyweight division does not have as much marquee
value as it did when Foreman was at the beginning stages of his comeback. The
division continues to be ruled by two brothers who this observer has often
referred to as “The Two Headed Heavyweight Championship Monster” known as the
Klitschko brothers. Although there appears to be no signs of either of the
brothers diminishing in terms of their Boxing skills, the division always looks
for fighters with name recognition value and the Heavyweight division could be
heading toward a period of transition of sorts as Vitali Klitschko seems to be
nearing retirement as he sets his sights on running for the Presidency of
Ukraine.
Some will
debate over just how much name recognition value Oleg Maskaev has in the
current landscape of the Heavyweight division. Maskaev is however, a former
world champion and one should never rule out the possibility of a potential
title shot if Maskaev continues to stay active and more specifically continues
to win. Will Oleg Maskaev reenter in the Heavyweight championship picture? Only
time will tell.
“And That’s
The Boxing Truth.”
The Boxing
Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.
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