Do you feel that Wlad's power..

Very true, but to add one of the critics I have against Wlad (and many boxers for that matter) is his lack of counter punching ability. What I mean is to actually be able for example slip a jab and counter with a solid right hand to chin, or slip a right cross and come with the left hook. It's not something he's never done before, but lately many boxing fights have become range fights instead of being able to stay in the puching range once in a while with the intensions of taking advantages of the openings. Wlad has decided to just move backwards and attack only when he is using his jab, when I think he should try and set up his opponents better.

 

Although he does have a great step back and counter move that he used against Rahman... I think it was the 5th round and a few other times in the fight, Hasim threw a big overhand right and Wlad took a half step back to avoid the punch then threw a very good one two... He wasn't presented with that many counter punching oppurtunities in this fight especially when Rahman laid on the ropes no throwing

 

His power isn't underrated, I just think he doesn't want to fully commit to a full on punch incase he gets caught by a counter as well as wasting energy. All I see from Wlad is that he jabs his opponent round upon round untill they are gone, then he starts throwing the bigger punches which is fair enough because it works for him. However I would like to see him commit more.

 

Yes Wlad is a good fighter and he does counter punch but it's the range fighting thing that I really think limits the counter punching opportunities he could exploit. But one can't really be too harsh on him, after all it's no easy feet to come back from devastating knock out losses to become the heavyweight to beat.

 

I agree with the range issue, it's almost as if he and his brother were taught to counter in that way only... I'm actually thinking about starting a campaign to have Wlad's Jab counted as a power punch...

Compubox lists power punches as anything but a Jab but when your Jab knocks Hasim Rahmen back into a corner from the center of the ring that's a power shot...:good

 

Exactly, Wlad rarely gets to counter punch because nobody gives him the opportunity. Everyone goes into hands up defense mode and runs away from him. I almost started to laugh when Rahman tried the rope a dope move on Wlad. Even with his guard up, Wlad was till connecting at will with his jab. I actually enjoyed the way Wlad paced himself during that round and just focused on keeping up the hurt without going for the KO and gassing himself. I honestly don't see anything wrong with a boxer using strategy to win a fight. As for his power, It's simply off the charts. I think Lennox was the last guy who had power in his range. And Lennox frequently threw punches with his whole body behind them. Looking at the gif files of the Wlad KO's, you can clearly see he's not really throwing his body weight into the punches. I believe the reason for this is that Wlad is extremely top heavy. His shoulders, arms and lats are absolutely massive, but from the waist down, he appears to be a normal human. I think he can't throw everything into his punches because it effects his balance and he knows that. Lennox was just as big as Wlad, but the weight distribution was more centered. Lennox had large legs and thick trunk like mid section. Wlad is built like a giant Evander Holyfield. I think Vitali's lack of upper body bulk, is the primary reason he has never gone down, because he's not as top heavy, and for that reason, can afford to put more force into his punches. I've always said that if Wlad had the legs to match his upper body, he'd be around 260 instead of 245.