Less than two years. Maybe late 2010, but 2009 isn't over yet and he can still make a lot of noise this year and earn a shot by next year.
Boytsov would beat him any time now, but I don't think Valuev's through being milked yet. We'll probably see him vs Ruiz this year, and that's about it.
Denis would probably UD him 12-0 right now. Let Denis take his title, and then make Arreola - Boytsov in a Wlad eliminator. :smoke
I think it'd be at least 2-3 years before that fight happened...it's got superfight potential (especially since both fighters are well known in Germany), and there's no chance they're going to make the fight prematurely. The next big agenda is getting the WBA strap once they're ready to put Valuev out to pasture, and then having Boytsov build up some more momentum with a few defenses. In the meantime, there's going to be 2 key fights for Wlad: Povetkin, Haye, and 2 other likely defenses vs Arreola and the Dimitrenko-Chambers winner. I have no inside information on this, I'm just trying to think like a promotor and that path seems to make the most sense for all parties involved.
It could be a while. Valuev is protected, and the Klitschkos are up to their eyeballs in mandatories. I can't imagine Universum is in a hurry to see him get his ass kicked either. Even in the Universum stable, Dimitrenko is in line ahead of him, and there are a lot of things he could still work on.
Yep-! Less that two years!:good Boytsov is one of the handful of fighters who has the talent and the firepower to be a threat to Wlad.