10-25-2016, 10:46 AM
Training injury further stalls Wladimir Klitschko's messing return to action
Wladimir Klitschko's struggles to return to the boxing ring continue with an injury complicating his promotional problems.
Former world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko has reportedly injured a calf muscle, ruling him out of a December showdown with either Anthony Joshua or Lucas Browne.
The injury adds further confusion to boxing's glamour division.
Klitschko has been in heavy negotiations with Joshua about a world title fight, hoping to add the vacant WBA belt to Joshua's IBF for the spoils of a fight scheduled for December 10 in Manchester.
But with delays over the WBA sanctioning a fight for a belt freed up by Tyson Fury's sidelining, Klitschko has also been in talks with Australian Browne about a fight in Hamburg on the same date.
That is now academic with ESPN reporting that Klitschko will have to wait until early next year before re-entering the competitive ring.
"The specific nature of the injury is unclear, but one source said it was a calf injury," ESPN's report said.
Interest will centre on how Klitschko sorts out his future in 2017. He hasn't fought since losing his titles to Fury last November and has had two rematches with Fury cancelled.
The immediate interest will now fall on how Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn reacts to this development.
It is understand he is eyeing fellow Brit David Price as a likely opponent for Joshua's world title defence.
Any hopes Hearn had of calling up New Zealander Joseph Parker, the IBF's mandatory challenger, disappeared when the Kiwi decided to go down the WBO route for a world title, getting a title fight against Mexico's Andy Ruiz sanctioned.
That fight is scheduled for Auckland on December 10 although financial difficulties covering the promotion could see it switched to the United States.
- Stuff
Wladimir Klitschko's struggles to return to the boxing ring continue with an injury complicating his promotional problems.
Former world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko has reportedly injured a calf muscle, ruling him out of a December showdown with either Anthony Joshua or Lucas Browne.
The injury adds further confusion to boxing's glamour division.
Klitschko has been in heavy negotiations with Joshua about a world title fight, hoping to add the vacant WBA belt to Joshua's IBF for the spoils of a fight scheduled for December 10 in Manchester.
But with delays over the WBA sanctioning a fight for a belt freed up by Tyson Fury's sidelining, Klitschko has also been in talks with Australian Browne about a fight in Hamburg on the same date.
That is now academic with ESPN reporting that Klitschko will have to wait until early next year before re-entering the competitive ring.
"The specific nature of the injury is unclear, but one source said it was a calf injury," ESPN's report said.
Interest will centre on how Klitschko sorts out his future in 2017. He hasn't fought since losing his titles to Fury last November and has had two rematches with Fury cancelled.
The immediate interest will now fall on how Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn reacts to this development.
It is understand he is eyeing fellow Brit David Price as a likely opponent for Joshua's world title defence.
Any hopes Hearn had of calling up New Zealander Joseph Parker, the IBF's mandatory challenger, disappeared when the Kiwi decided to go down the WBO route for a world title, getting a title fight against Mexico's Andy Ruiz sanctioned.
That fight is scheduled for Auckland on December 10 although financial difficulties covering the promotion could see it switched to the United States.
- Stuff