Klitschko Stops Gomez in 9

Andrew Fruman recaps last night's heavyweight bout between Vitali Klitschko and Juan Carlos Gomez.

Too big and too strong. That was the story in Stuttgart, Saturday night, as Vitali Klitschko made it a perfect two for two on the comeback trail with a 9th round TKO victory over southpaw Juan Carlos Gomez. It was an awkward messy encounter, featuring plenty of clinches, a few head clashes, a point deduction and and a bit of blood spilled on both sides.

Making the most of his size edge, Klitsckho had things his own way for most of the contest. Gomez was always looking to land his left hand, but the bigger man did a good job of moving to his left and controlling the distance with his jab. He consistently kept Gomez on the outside, and the former cruiser-weight star, never looked comfortable trying to force his way in.

Gradually, Klitschko's steady stream of heavy jabs, along with the occasional stinging right hand took their toll, and by the 5th round, Gomez was looking tired and discouraged. His face puffy, with blood dripping from a cut around his right eye, Gomez battled on, but was largely ineffective even when he did manage to get close.

A hard right hand dropped Gomez in the 7th, and towards the end of the 8th, the badly fading fighter appeared to almost turn his back to avoid more punishment. He seemed to think better of it at the last second, and the bout continued, although referee Daniel Van de Wiele would have been well within his rights to stop it.

Nobody could have blamed Gomez if he had decided to remain on his stool for the 9th, but he chose to keep fighting. After another knockdown, and with Gomez on the verge of being sent to the canvas yet again, the bout was halted at 1:48 of the round.

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Vitali Klitschko vs Juan Carlos Gomez Predictions

Tomorrow night in Stuttgart, Germany, Vitali Klitscko (249) will be making his second appearance in the ring since his return from an almost four year lay-off. Southpaw Juan Carlos Gomez (230 1/2) should provide the big man with a stiffer test than Samuel Peter did back in October, but can the former Cuban amateur star pull the upset?

Here's what The Boxing Bulletin writers have to say...

Gomez has the skills to be competitive with Vitali, I just question his conditioning at this stage. How long has it been since a fighter moved to heavyweight without overdoing it? Holyfield? There are other stylistic issues that make this a tough task for the former cruiserweight champ. One is the height of Klitschko. It's hard to find the range against someone who really knows how to fight tall, and I just think Gomez prefers to fight guys his size, who will come to him. The one thing I think he has going for him is the way he controls the pace of fights. In Big Brother he has an opponent who also likes to work rather slowly, so it's possible that he steals a few rounds, or more. I see a very slow fight where Vitali's heavier blows decide it, either by late TKO or decision. I do think he'll be the stronger fighter if it goes late. - Lee Payton

Gomez will cause some trouble early. It's just difficult for me to see him outboxing Vitali with that long jab. Klitschko is 37 years old and Peter was what amounted to be a tune up, so you can't rule anything out. But I'm going to take Vitali by mid round stoppage. - Mark Lyons

Had Gomez weighed in around 210-215, I just might have believed he was capable of pulling off the upset. But at 230 1/2, it sounds like we'll be seeing the same overweight, uninspired looking fighter from his most recent outings, and nothing I saw in those performances made me think he's capable of beating Vitali. I'm going with the big guy by 9-3 type scores. - Andrew Fruman

Gomez' southpaw stance, size, and quickness will give Vitali Klitschko some trouble. I expect an even fight through 8, but Gomez' stamina will start to falter and Vitali should win the fight down the stretch, probably by knockout within the last two rounds. Vitali will have to be more responsible defensively than he was against Sam Peter, who didn't have the speed to touch him. I'll say Klitschko by TKO 12. - Michael Nelson

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