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Byrd: If Not Volodymyr, Then Vitaliy

International Boxing heavyweight champion Chris Byrd said in an interview at http://www.boxingtalk.net that Volodymyr Klychko [in the West, the Ukrainian boxing brothers are known as Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko — Transl.] whom he is supposed to take on in Germany, doesn’t deserve it and that Monte Barrett should be the one, since he recently “fought and beat the undefeated Owen Beck; not only did he beat him, he stopped him...what has Wladimir done lately to earn that shot? Monte’s fighting the right kind of guys that put him in a position to become number one. I respect a guy like that, because he’s taking on all comers to get his shot. That’s how I had to get mine. I had to go through David Tua. In my opinion, he deserves the chance more.”

Commenting on the Klychko team, Byrd added: “I guess they feel he beat me the first time, maybe he can scrounge up enough confidence to beat me again. But that’s where they’re making a mistake. I’d have to blow him out this time. I’m not playing around anymore. But like I said, in my opinion, Monte deserves the shot more.”

Byrd refused to specify how much he would be paid for the match with Klychko, Jr., but noted that “it’s going to take a lot more than they offered us so far.” He stressed that he would rather take on Vitaliy, as beating him would allow him (Byrd) to rightfully become the world’s top heavyweight: “Everyone knows that I’ll fight anybody and all of the boxing experts rank me and Vitali one and two. I want the people to know who the best is, and the best way for that to happen is for the two best heavyweights in the world to fight. I feel like I should go for revenge against Wladimir after Vitali comes for revenge against me! In the first fight with Vitali, he quit. How could he not want to avenge that? I guess he just doesn’t want to fight me, and it’s funny how his brother seems more confident fighting me than Vitali does now. And I guess now they want the fight to go to Germany because Wladimir’s last couple of fights, here in the U.S., have made him pretty much worthless to the American public.”

Well, he has a point there, but the reader should remember that Vitaliy Klychko lost the bout to Byrd because of an injured shoulder, not because he was a coward. Besides, most experts place Klychko, Sr. and Hasim Rahman in the division for the first two months, and say that Rahman will be the Ukrainian athlete’s next rival.

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