Can Ruslan Chagaev be considered a possible great heavyweight?

hell no.
and he should change his alias, he ain't no 'white tyson'.:-(

 

he seems to be a solid guy who just edged out Virchis,Valuev,Ruiz and beat Skelton but did nothing to excite. Ruslin has showd some power in the past but not as of late and Heavyweights need power. He may need another old pro n his corner but he has beenoff for a while. In the meantime he keeps winning, close but he is not fighting bums

 

That's a possibility.
Or if Ibragimov beats Wlad he'll obviously be confident of taking on the other champs too.

 

Doubtful. Outside of Wlad Klitschko I don't think ANY of the guys around today has the potential to be an ATG.

 

Isnt being called the white Tyson a bit like being called the black Elvis Presley?

Nobody called Mike Tyson the black Jack Dempsey or the black Rocky Marciano.

 

Like his razor-thin decisions over legends such as Wladimir Virchis, an old John Ruiz and Nicolai Valuev, which represent all three of his prior steps up to a world-class level? Most any heavyweight with a large portion of his career is obviously a possible great, but a likely one Chagaev is not.

 

Have you seen Chagaev-Ruiz or Chagaev-Valuev?

 

On Cons you missed:

1. VERY FAT - looked at least 30lbs over weight
2. Poor stamina
3. Arguably lost to Skeleton. I missed the first 3 rounds but Skeleton outworked him from rounds 4-10 although Chagaev landed the better shots, Skeleton outlanded him in a big way and it was a really shitty fight. Danny Williams beat Skeleton far more emphatically than Chagaev
4. Immobile - he may be able to move at times but hes too out of shape to take advantage
5. Not particularly strong
6. Average Power

Bottom line - Great? No

 

ha ha. Sorry, you're a great and knowledgeable poster but that is a ludacris statement. Wlad is the only elite boxer at hw. The rest are far, far behind or unproven.

i have seen his last 4 fights a couple of times. chagaev has a great left but he has been exposed as a one-dimensional fighter who lacks a power right hand and jab. he never leads with his right effectively and must land his left first to do damage. his lazy jab can be countered with a quick left hook all day long. all one has to do is move to the left to neutralize his offense.

people love to nitpick wlad's opposition so let me do the same here. yes, ruiz, valuev, virchis are solid wins and he just pointed skelton. Personally, i thought the virchis fight could have gone either way. But do u notice any similarities about the people he beat. They are all slow and low-skilled hws. Virchis is the only one with power and none of them throw decent combinations. How will he adapt to Wlad's stalking style and combination punching?

he let a handpicked opponent take him the distance in a sloppy and uninspired performance. people can say skelton has an ugly style but chagaev had chances to take him out but didn't let his hands go enough. he let skelton spoil his offense.

i dont understand how anyone can see chagaev beating wlad. how can he get to the chin? if he won't walk down skelton who basically bullied the white tyson around the ring for 9 rounds, u think he's going to pressure klit. he's got no jab or right. klit just moves to his left and jabs his face off til the cumulative damage stops him in 7.

So i basically have come up w/these conclusions about him:

positives: very smart, high guard, good footwork, above average handspeed, good power, great left throwing it from different angles over the top or looping it, at least a decent chin although hasn't gotten hit with combinations (virchis had him buzzed a couple of times on single shots)

negatives: he has to land his left first to be effective. non-existent power right hand. has a lazy jab. must be set to land effectively and doesn't like being backed up. doesn't throw a lot of combinations. slows down late. his top cometition have been identical: slow and not highly skilled fighters. does just enough to win.

he deserves to be #2 or 3 right now based on holding a belt and competition depth. right now, I'd favor wlad, sultan and povetkin over him w/o pause.

his alias is more embarrassing than flattering :yep So I guess that's a resounding NO to the original question. i don't see much upside either. He can be a Ruiz or Byrd type beltholder maybe a smidge better. A solid hw. nothing more, nothing less.

 

i doubt Kohl will let that happen or will try to prevent it. I heard the klits and kohl had a bad falling out. Wlad would maul Chagaev. Terrible style matchup for the White Tyson atsch

 

No, he will not be a great heavyweight. Chagaev has the tools to become a decent champion worth remembering from this era, but not the tools to be considered one of the greats.

 

as always, a very fair and good assessment.

but that avatar has got to go :yep Oleg UD

 

I don't know.

Only 25 pro fights by the age of 30.

Most of his recent wins were split or majority decisions in bore fests, including a close win over a shot John Ruiz.

I'd say he's good, but calling him great is getting a bit carried away at this point.

 

Haven't seen his fight with Skelton so I cant comment much on it, people seem down on him but people here are very fair weathered. Up until now I thought Chagaev was a good heavyweight but nothing special. He looks solid on film but nothing jumps out at you and makes you say thats a great fighter.

He has a couple nice wins and is undefeated so thats a plus. If he could beat Wlad than that would skyrocket his credibility but it won't happen. Chagaev will be looked back on as a solid heavyweight with some nice wins but not great at all. I'd actually be surprised if he still has his belt a year from now.