Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images
Wladimir Klitschko (63-3, 53 KOs) retained his supremacy over the Heavyweight division with a unanimous decision win over Bryant Jennings (19-0, 10 KOs) at the Madison Square Garden in New York, NY.
Klitschko, 39, stalked Jennings for much of the earlier rounds as Jennings used his athleticism to move around the ring to try to figure out his much larger opponent.
Klitschko used his signature long jab to create openings for his right hand and left hooks. The Ukrainian champion dominated easily until the later rounds when Jennings began landing punches of his own.
Jennings, a 30-year-old native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, had his moments during the later rounds and prevented Klitschko from landing his right hand consistently, but he did not have the power or the skill to stop Klitschko from controlling the fight.
“My right hand is okay. Bryant didn’t give me the chance to throw the right hand as much as I wanted,” said Klitschko, before crediting Jennings’ footwork and its ability to keep him off balance.
Also, to his credit, Jennings had the chin to withstand the powerful right hands Klitschko actually landed, but a chin alone does not win a fight.
Klitschko won with scores of 116-111, 116-111, and 118-109.
Despite the loss, Jennings improves his status as he did much better than many expected.
As for Klitschko, he doesn’t feel a rematch is warranted, but he does feel obligated to fight some of his mandatory challengers.
There remains, however, another Heavyweight champion: WBC title-holder Deontay Wilder.
Whether that fight will actually happen, however, remains unclear.
[slideshow_deploy id=’39266′] Photos by Marilyn Paulino/RBRBoxing
