Wlad Vs. peak Zhang (whatever that means)

Wlad was slept by Sanders and never avenged the rematch.
Tony Thompson with a gammy leg outlanded WK on power punches , jabs and total punches according to compubox. Wlad can't be getting like that from Big Bang. Stoppage loss in 5.

https://cdn.prod.www.spiegel.de/ima...669_w520_r1.440922190201729_fpx34.7_fpy50.jpg

 

There was actually a thread a few days ago how Wlad might be a barely top 10 contender in today's era a few days ago.

 

Zhang is overrated as hell, giant asian southpaw with KO power, i shouldn't be suprised the hype got this far

Wlad decision or late KO. Kabayel is about to do a job on Zhilei

 

Wlad had great footwork for a man his size. He'd just stay on the outside and cruise to a comfortable win.

 

Parker had to survive 2 knockdowns and he has a better chin than Wladimir.

 

Wlad is going to get tagged hard at some point….Zhang wins by KO/TKO.

 

Parker was knocked out badly by Joyce a few fights earlier so his chin might not be where it was earlier in his career. Wlad is defensively better than Parker so it probably wouldn’t matter anyway.

 

Peak Zhang would beat Wlad. Peak Zhang is dangerous for all 12 rounds, not just 6. Parker fought old Zhang, but even old Zhang is dangerous.

I feel like any landed left hand would send Wlad into a panic. Zhang is more powerful than Sanders and he’s not slow. He’s got good hand speed.

Wladimir fought 3 southpaws in his career. Small Byrd, mediocre Tony Thompson and Sanders. We all saw what happened with Samders.

 

He fought more southpaws than that.

 

Wlad is a better fighter P4P, but it would probably be a repeat of the Sanders fight. He would get caught and go to sleep. A lot of Wlad's strategy relies on clinching, but I don't think he would be able to avoid Zhang's shots or out-hustle him in a clench. He would probably get clocked early, or exhaust himself running and clenching and get caught.

 

Okay, he did fought Ibrgimov and Chagaev, but neither brings the danger like Zhang and Sanders.

 

Well Dubois will answer this question for us I won't say anything until that fight as I'm sure Parker's chin will be tested in that fight.

 

It's definitely hard to say. Zhang should be too slow for Wlad on paper, but then we see Peter clipping Wlad multiple times. And slow Thompson hung in there a long time just by being big and weird.

Zhang is also a strange fighter who seems very dangerous but ducked everyone for ten years in his prime. So how good is he actually?

If I had to pick I'd say Wlad is very careful and eventually bombs him out in the second half. But because of that Peter fight, I can't rule out Zhang just walking through some punishment, timing him and getting the KO. Then Vitali getting in the ring and threatening Zhang like the class act he is.

 

What is 'peak' Zhang? He lost (won in my opinion) against the deadly dull Hrgovic, a close fight definitely.. he beat a shot to pieces Wilder, he beat Joe Joyce, a fighter many including myself overrated after his destruction of Joe Parker....who beat Zhang...where is this peak Zhang? The best version of Zhang if we are honest has a slightly better gas tank than this one but still runs out of engine second half. Yes he carries his power, but other than the sneaky counter, he's slow as molasses and turns like an oil tanker. The very best Zhang is a heavy handed fighter with a lot of flaws. Now, Wlad...are we picking the Wlad that got beaten as peak Wlad...or are we picking the one that dominated a division for a decade or so, beautiful footwork, accurate puncher. Monotonous in his investment in safety/defence and possessing huge power. A tired Zhang has noplace to hide against peak Wlad. Levels.

 

Zhang is dangerous against any boxer. That includes peak Wlad.

However, let's be serious for a moment. If Zhang was that good he'd have dominated the current era instead of his current performances. Wlad was way lighter on his feet, with a superb distance control and jab. Zhang is fast but not nearly as fast as Sanders for the folks pointing to that episode as 'proof' of anything. Wlad has better defence than anybody Zhang ever fought.

I'd expect a match where the first four rounds were interesting before Zhang's batteries started to run flat and Wlad asserted his usual control over the match. He'd peck and prod away until such time as Zhang was ripe to be put away. Probably a late KO win for Wlad.

Could Zhang land a nuke and wipe Wlad out?

Sure.

But anybody with sense would bet on Klitschko.