Artur Asilbekovich Beterbiev vs Oleksandr Sergeevich Gvozdyk next Friday!

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OLEKSANDR GVOZDYK IS HOPING TO LAY DOWN THE LAW ON ARTUR BETERBIEV THIS FRIDAY

PHILADELPHIA, PA — Oleksandr Gvozdyk is wearing a black, long-sleeved sweat proof undershirt, and grey running shorts, accompanied by his trainer, Hall of Famer Teddy Atlas, who’s decked in a grey Oakland Raiders’ t-shirt. The tandem is sitting on a sofa in a posh center-city Philadelphia apartment complex, a few weeks away from Gvozdyk’s WBC title defense against undefeated IBF light heavy beltholder Artur Beterbiev.

Gvozdyk and Atlas are relaxed. They exude confidence. Both are in a loquacious mood. They know the challenge ahead. They know Beterbiev (14-0, 14 knockouts) has a history against Gvozdyk (17-0, 14 KOs) when they meet this Friday in a WBC/IBF light heavyweight unification fight at Temple University’s Liacouras Center on ESPN (10 p.m. ET). Gvozdyk and Atlas don’t care.

This version of Gvozdyk is far better than the previous one, when he was beaten by Beterbiev as an amateur a decade ago.

There is something else you begin to notice about this version of Gvozdyk, whose name Gvozd actually means “nail” in Russian, hence his nickname, “The Nail.” You sense Gvozdyk is misplaced. He speaks and writes in three different languages (English, Russian and Ukrainian). His bright, blue eyes hardly miss a thing, and when Atlas speaks, Gvozdyk has a natural inclination to lean in and absorb. It’s easy to place Gvozdyk somewhere other than where he is—like in a courtroom dressed in a blue suit, white shirt and black silk tie, defending someone other than defending himself in a boxing ring.

Maybe it’s because Gvozdyk possesses a law degree. He graduated from the Ukrainian National Law Academy in 2014.

It makes sense.

“I don’t know about (taking the bar exam in California), because I have a successful boxing career here, but what can happen after boxing, I don’t know,” Gvozdyk said. “Of course, if I stay in the United States, will my Ukrainian law degree apply here in the U.S. and in California, where I live? Do I need to go back to school and study again?

“I don’t know. We’ll see. When I went to the university, I didn’t think I would be a pro boxer. I would like to think I have plenty of my career ahead of me.”

Atlas grins, as Gvozdyk, 32, reveals this unknown not many in the boxing world are aware of.

“Alex allows his great intelligence to be an advantage to him,” Atlas says. “Dumb is getting in the ring and not being prepared. That’s never going to be the case with Alex. With him, what helps is his understanding of what you’re teaching him and his intellect in believing what I’m teaching he trusts and believes.

“You have to be able to put your mind around the things that you’re being taught. How can they perform if they don’t understand what you’re teaching them? Cus (D’Amato, the legendary Hall of Fame trainer who Atlas worked under for many years) always used to tell me, ‘Listen, as a teacher, your responsibility is to show them and convince them that what you’re teaching them will help them and make them better.’

“Who doesn’t want to be helped? Some people are more capable under pressure than others. That’s where Alex excels. You have to think properly under pressure. When there is no cloud that comes over you of fear; that oppressive feeling that comes over you when you’re in a difficult place can be paralyzing. It does paralyze some people. It’s because they don’t use their thought process. It doesn’t mean that they’re incapable, it just means under those conditions, they don’t have the capacity to think the way that you wish they would think.

“They don’t have the capacity to get to those places of thought. Alex has both. It’s why he’s a world champion. He knows right from wrong, and he has the capacity and wherewithal to take knowledge and use it under stress. Cus used to say, ‘Your knowledge isn’t enough.’ I asked, ‘What do you mean?’ Cus would say, ‘What good is the knowledge if only you know it?’ I’m lucky enough to have someone like Alex to recognize and accept what I’m giving him.”

Those conditions Atlas spoke about could not have manifested more than in the 10th round of Gvozdyk’s memorable 11th-round stoppage over Adonis Stevenson in December 2018. Gvozdyk took a heavy left from Stevenson with about 1:30 left in the 10th that rattled “The Nail,” who stumbled back into the ropes. Gvozdyk retreated for the last 90 seconds of the round, though was able to gather himself and rebound for the 11th.


Gvozdyk brutally ended the fight against Stevenson in the 11th round.

Gvozdyk is like a sponge. He has the innate ability to slow things down in his head, control his breathing and not panic. It’s a special weapon when someone as powerful as Stevenson, or someone like Beterbiev, is closing in looking to finish. Atlas said that was one of the compelling elements that drew him to Gvozdyk. His victory over Stevenson, a brutal, granite-punching southpaw, told Atlas even more about the 2012 Ukrainian Olympic light heavyweight bronze medalist.

“I try to think in the ring, and I guess it helps,” Gvozdyk said. “I’m blessed to have the right information to absorb. Teddy gives me clean water to drink.”

Gvozdyk, the father of three, ranging in age of 10, 5 and 3, moved from the Ukraine to Oxnard, California, in 2014, which was one of his conditions in signing with Top Rank. For this fight on Friday, Daria, Gvozdyk’s wife, and the three children will stay home, which is now Camarillo, California. Gvozdyk likes it that way. Daria tends to get a little too nervous each time her husband steps into the ring.

Gvozdyk is well aware of Beterbiev. They fought in 2009 as amateurs. Beterbiev, Gvozdyk admits, got the better of him that day—but that comes with a caveat.

“He’s a tough puncher,” Gvozdyk said of Beterbiev. “I lost, but it was in 2009. I am different that who I was then. I’m not looking at revenge or something, no. I understand what I supposed to face and I know what to expect. I don’t really consider that a fight. They just put me in there against someone who had more experience (at the time) than I had.

“He’s strong and will come forward. He’s beatable. It will depend on how ready he will be, and how much focused I will be. I will be focused this time. I wasn’t ready for someone like him the last time. I am now.”

Not many may be willing to argue that point with Gvozdyk in a ring or a courtroom.

 

Teddy Atlas: Best I've Trained

BEST JAB
MICHAEL MOORER: First of all, he was coming from the wrong direction, the southpaw direction, which has less people prepared to deal with that direction, especially heavyweights, back then, 25 years ago. It was coming from the lefty position and it was very accurate and was hard. He didn’t always use it enough but it won him a title from (Evander) Holyfield, so that’s enough from me. You win a title against Holyfield, primarily because of your jab, guess what? I’m gonna say you have a pretty good jab.

BEST DEFENSE
WILFRED BENITEZ: He was definitely the best defensive fighter. This was a guy who slipped punches in his sleep. That was his thing; that was his identity. That was his strength; he was a great counterpuncher and his defense created his offense and it allowed him to be a three-division champion. He was a great defensive fighter and the best I worked with.

BEST FOOTWORK
OLEKSANDR GVOZDYK: His legs allowed him to basically keep a tremendous puncher like (Adonis) Stevenson off balance all night long, allowed him to win the light heavyweight title in the first fight we were (in) together. His ability to keep out of danger, Stevenson, a southpaw, is one of the greatest punchers I’ve ever seen. To be able to follow that very definitive fight plan, mentally shows you where (Gvozdyk) was, to keep that type of concentration, in that kind of environment, that should be applauded. He had to keep angles and never stay in one place too long and he was able to execute that and his legs were a big part of him becoming the light heavyweight champion of the world.

BEST HAND SPEED
TIM BRADLEY: I’m going to say Timothy Bradley. I don’t know if people realized how fast his hands were; they were very fast. Benitez had fast hands but his greatest strength but his ability to land clean and accurately because his defense put him in that position. He may have given you the perception that his hands were faster because he was so clever and ghost-like. When it came down to really calculating speed, you have to have something to gauge it against, so if you gauge it against one of the fastest hands maybe in the history of the sport, a guy named Manny Pacquiao, and you had an opportunity to gauge Bradley’s handspeed against somebody of that level of speed then you can get a better feel and he was very close and that’s pretty damn good if you can be close in that company with the speed of a Pacquiao. For me I have to have something grounded to base things on, something that’s relative and that’s pretty real to see that his hands matched up close to Pacquiao’s.

SMARTEST
GVOZDYK: I’m gonna say Gvozdyk is maybe the smartest fighter I’ve worked with in such a short period of time to make such an immense statement. I understand some people may say it’s ’cause I’m with him now but trust me; I try to care about the accuracy of things I say. Gvozdyk in that way but if you’re talking an in-ring I.Q. and an innate intelligence, I have to say Benitez. That guy started when he was six years old. God-given talent but also what allows that God-given talent to be used to the level it’s used and the way it’s used. That’s developed by great instincts, great experience, teaching and also an innate instinct.

STRONGEST
KALLIE KNOETZE: He was a South African cop; he was like a rugby player. He had that physique, natural strength, not from weights, just big-boned. You can feel his bulk. He’s grounded into the floor when you push against him. He was a strong mass because of where he came from and his genetics. Knoetze was a man. Tyson was 12. Tyson was extremely strong. (Knoetze) had man strength, like a piece of concrete sitting on the floor that was hard to move.

BEST CHIN
TYSON: Tyson had a tremendous chin and he had a helluva neck for shock absorbers. His neck was close to 20 inches. If you trace his career, he didn’t disappear straight away. He took those shots. What wasn’t strong was his will; that’s what cracked. His will cracked before his chin. He absorbed those punches and he took big punches before he got knocked out. He showed a chin to handle those punches at a very high level. His will wasn’t nearly as strong as his chin.

BEST PUNCHER
TYSON: That’s pretty easy. Anyone who could be knocking out men when he’s 12, 13 years old is a pretty damn good puncher. He learned the technique to make you miss and catch you clean but power’s power and punchers are born not made. Tyson’s maybe one of the best punchers in history. When you’re developing a guy who’s 12 years old and you can’t put him in with kids to spar because there are none and so you’re hiring sparring partners and they’re men and he’s hurting them and knocking them out.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
BENITEZ: It’s got to be Benitez. Boxing is about hitting and not getting hit, Benitez was doing it at the highest level since he was 17 and when beat Cervantes. Benitez was the guy.

BEST OVERALL
BENITEZ: Sometimes you go to the Academy Awards and one movie wins all the awards. What are you gonna do? That would be Benitez. Anyone who could beat Roberto Duran, amongst many other great fighters, that’s a pretty good resume. I would say Benitez overall was the package. He was a special fighter.

 

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