Big men show: Wladimir Klitschko vs Tyson Fury preview and prediction

Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson Fury's combined weight was 493 pounds during the weigh-in.

On fight night, they could weigh more than 500 pounds for their heavyweight championship clash at the Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany, Saturday night.

The stats

There were times Klitschko's fight had been with challengers heavier than him. But most of the time, the 6’6” reigning heavyweight champ from Ukraine, had the height and reach advantage on those challengers. Then Klitschko (64-3, 53 KOs) would capitalize on those advantages and win.

Klitschko uses his 81" reach as a jab that earned him the “Dr. Steel Hammer” moniker to keep an opponent at bay and also busting the opponent's nose at the same time. He also uses his height to lean on shorter opponents during clinched -- if an opponent manages to close the gap.

Against Tyson Fury, Klitschko doesn’t have the above advantages.  Fury (24-0, 18 KOs) has the three inches height advantages at 6’9” over Klitschko at 6’6”. But the champion has the obvious ring experience having 67 total bouts to Fury’s 24. On the flip side, Fury is the younger fighter at 27 years old, while Klitschko is 12 years senior at 39.

The fight

In the early rounds, I think Klitschko will start slow as usual. Although if Fury forces the action early, the tempo might be changed, I expect Klitschko to clinch a little bit more if the younger Fury engages early and choose to fight from inside.

The battle of jabs

In the third, Fury will use his legs effectively and throw more jabs to counter Klitschko’s heavy jabs.

But the champion adjusts in the fourth round, blasting Fury with his signature one-two combo as Fury launches his attacks.

In the middle rounds, Fury continues to land some jabs from outside. He will use angles with his footwork, but also take harder shots from the champion, who steps up the gas and shifts to a higher gear.

In the seventh, it is obvious that Klitschko's ring experience and power took over. He’s landing the harder shots that showed its damaging effect on the challenger.

In the ninth, Klitchsko’s power finally ends the challenger's bid for the world heavyweight championship. The champion lands a textbook one-two combo spot on the button that sends Fury hard to the canvass. Klitschko TKO9.