WBA heavyweight champion in recess Ruslan “White Tyson” Chagaev has all of his boxing ducks, so to speak, lined up in a row but first he has to get past unbeaten #10 rated Carl Davis Drumond in the 12-round main event February 7, headlining “The Champion Returns” in Rostock, Germany. “[After defeating Drumond], I will show who the real champ is by beating Valuev for the second time,” Chagaev said from his training camp in Hamburg. “Then I want to unify all of the belts. I want to fight the Klitschkos. I respect them for what they’ve reached in the heavyweight division, but I know them very well and I can beat them. 2009 will be my year.”
Regarding Drumond, Chagaev stated, “It’s been one year since my last fight (win by 12-round decision against 21-1 Matt Skelton), so I am very motivated for this fight. From now on I want to have fight after fight; I can’t wait for the next tasks. First, I will beat Drumond. He is a strong man and I must be careful. But he wants to knock me out? That’s a joke, isn’t it? Nobody can knock me out. Sorry, Carl. This fight will be a big surprise for you.”
“The Champion Returns” card, presented by Universum Boxing-Promotion, will broadcast three 12-round bouts. Integrated Sports is distributing it in the United States for live viewing at 2 PM/ET – 11 AM/PT on cable pay-per-view via iN Demand and TVN for a suggested retail price of only $24.95. A same day replay will be shown at 9 PM/ET – 6 PM/ET. The event will also be available in Canada on TSN. Hall of Fame announcer Col. Bob Sheridan will handle blow-by-blow duties and Benny Ricardo, former NFL placekicker, will serve as color commentator.
2000 Uzbekistan Olympian Chagaev (24-0-1, 17 KOs), captured the WBA crown on April 14, 2007 by 12-round decision against Nikolai Valuev (46-0). However, an Achilles tendon injury prevented Chagaev from defending his title last year against Valuev and the WBA regulated Ruslan to its “Champion in Recess.”
WBA #10 rated Drumond (26-0, 20 KOs), promoted by Warriors Seminole Boxing, is a boxing mystery outside of fan in his native Costa Rica. His most notable win to date was in 2007, when he won a 10-round decision against former world champion Kelvin Davis.
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WBA light welterweight champion Andreas Kotelnik defends his title belt versus unbeaten Argentinean knockout artist Marcos Rene “El Chino” Maidana, the WBA #1 contender, in the 12-round co-feature. Styles make fights and Kotelnik-Maidana shapes-up as a potential classic featuring a pure boxer, Kotelnik (30-2-1, 13 KOs), against a dangerous power puncher, Maidana (25-0, 24 KOs).
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Undefeated Russian heavyweight Denis Boytsov (23-0, 18 KOs), fighting out of Germany, meets Puerto Rican veteran Israel “King Kong” Garcia (19-2, 11 KOs) in a 12-round bout for the WBA Intercontinental title. The 22-year-old Boytsov, rated #11 by the WBA, is the latest prospect in a long line of Russian heavyweight contenders.
