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| Date | April 10, 2004 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Title(s) on the line | WBO Heavyweight Championship | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Result | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brewster defeated Klitschko via fifth-round TKO | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wladimir Klitschko vs. Lamon Brewster was a professional boxing match contested on April 10 2004, at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, for the WBO Heavyweight Championship. [1]
After his shock knockout defeat at the hands of Corrie Sanders, Klitschko first brought in new trainer Freddie Roach to assist lead trainer Fritz Sdunek for his quick knockouts of Fabio Eduardo Moli and Danell Nicholson. Following these fights Roach left the Klitschko camp to make way for new lead trainer Emanuel Steward who had become available after the retirement of WBC & Lineal champion Lennox Lewis.
Brewster was on a five-fight win streak (all by TKO) since his 2000 defeats against Clifford Etienne & Charles Shufford, he was previously set to challenge newly crowned WBO title holder Corrie Sanders, who declined the fight in favour of a bout with Vitali Klitschko for the vacant WBC belt. [2] He was then set to face David Tua for the vacant belt in February 2004 before Tua unexpectedly pulled out. [3] In the midst of this, in October 2003, his veteran trainer Bill Slayton died at the age of 81. [4] After a press conference before the fight Brewster was seen in tears after talking about Slayton's death, in sullen anger punching the microphone off its mount and on to the floor, leading to comparisons with Buster Douglas whose mother passed away in the build-up to his title bout with Mike Tyson. [5]
Just before the main event Cory Spinks defended his Undisputed welterweight championship against former Light welterweight champion Zab Judah. After a competitive bout in which both fighters where knocked down late, Spinks won a Unanimous Decision with scores of 116–111, 114–112 & 114–112. [6]
The first four rounds were dominated by Klitschko, who knocked Brewster down in the fourth with a right hand and appeared to be close to stopping the American but he made it through the round. In the fifth round Klitschko appeared somewhat fatigued and, with less than a minute left in the round, Brewster caught him with a pair of left hooks that sent him into ropes which referee Robert Byrd ruled a knockdown. Brewster then dominated the remainder of the round before Klitschko hit the canvas shortly after the bell had sounded to end the round. After making it back to his feet Klitschko attempted to return to his corner but Byrd waved the fight off, giving Brewster a TKO victory and the WBO belt. Throughout the fight, Klitschko landed 39% of his punches, while Brewster landed just 27%.
Shortly after the fight Klitschko was rushed into hospital. An examination showed Klitschko's blood sugar level almost two times higher than the permissible norm. According to members of Klitschko's team, the doctor told them that Klitschko had been "inches away" from falling into diabetic coma, and that with blood sugar level that high, Klitschko would've been incapable of handling a single proper training session. [7] [8] [9] [10] After returning from the examination to the hotel, he fell ill with nausea, followed by physical weakness. [11] On 12 April, he arrived in Las Vegas and provided blood and urine samples for an independent examination, which was supposed to be done by Donald Katlin, who specialized in such cases. The examination showed no signs of anabolic steroids in his blood, but Katlin suggested that Klitschko could have been poisoned with Haloperidol. The drug has no taste or smell and causes mental disorders, which are accompanied by impaired coordination, a weakening reaction and overall physical weakness. [12] [ failed verification ] [13] Following the results, Klitschko demanded the tests taken by the Medical Center of South Nevada and the Nevada Quest Diagnostics to be passed on to Dr. Robert Wow for further research, but the A sample had already been disposed of, while the B sample, which was supposed to be stored for years, disappeared. [7] [11] [14] Dr. Margaret Goodman, the chairwoman of the Nevada State Athletic Commission's medical advisory board and Nevada's chief ringside physician, was in the ring and attending to Klitschko seconds after the referee stopped the fight. Her initial diagnosis of a Grade 3 concussion was confirmed at the hospital after further tests. Goodman was skeptical of the theory that Klitschko had been drugged. [14]
As a result of the circumstances that surrounded the fight, FBI started an investigation. [15] Judd Bernstein, the lawyer representing Klitschko, suggested that he was a victim of an ongoing fight fixing in Las Vegas (which also included fraudulent medical reports), which was investigated by FBI at the time. [16] Bernstein, along with some other journalists, pointed out that in the last 48 hours before the beginning of the fight, the betting odds in favor of Klitschko rapidly dropped from 11-to-1 to 3.5-to-1. [17] [18] [8] [19] According to journalist Keith Teixeira, a group of approximately 40 people associated with Brewster's manager Sam Simon bet from $50,000 to $100,000 on Brewster's victory. [20] [15] Members of Klitschko's team also pointed out that shortly before the fight, a security camera recorded a moment when two people entered Klitschko's booth and were there for four minutes. These people had badges, but weren't members of Wladimir's team. [8] [21] Wladimir's brother Vitali claimed that during registration of the boxer and his team, the card that belonged to Emmanuel Steward's assistant had already been registered on someone else, and that such card would allow its owner to enter any sporting hall in the building. [17] [7]
After the fight, Wladimir's cutman Joe Souza was fired. During the fight, Souza used vaseline on Wladimir's face but also body, which had never been done in any of Klitschko's previous fights. As a replacement, the team hired Jacob "Stitch" Duran. [7] [22] [9]
Brewster made his first defence five months later against Kali Meehan.
The two boxers fought a rematch in 2007 with Brewster's corner asking the fight to be stopped at the end of the sixth round, and throughout the rest of his long career Klitschko used this loss as a driving force, saying in an interview with ESPN's Dan Rafael: "I will be thankful to Lamon until my grave. It's something that changed my life. I'm not sure what I would have become had I won. That fight changed my life for the good." [23]
Confirmed bouts: [24]
| Country | Broadcaster |
|---|---|
 Germany | ZDF |
 Hungary | RTL Klub |
 United States | HBO |
Cornelius Johannes Sanders was a South African professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2008. He won the WBO heavyweight title in 2003 after knocking out Wladimir Klitschko in two rounds, which was considered one of the biggest upsets in heavyweight boxing history; The Ring magazine named it the Upset of the Year. In 2004, having vacated the WBO title, Sanders faced Wladimir's brother Vitali Klitschko in an unsuccessful challenge for the vacant WBC and Ring heavyweight titles. He also held the WBU heavyweight title from 1997 until 2000 and the South Africa national heavyweight title in 1991.
Hasim Sharif Rahman is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1994 to 2014. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion, having held the unified WBC, IBF, IBO and lineal titles in 2001; and the WBC title again from 2005 to 2006. He was ranked as a top 10 heavyweight by BoxRec from 2000 to 2007, and reached his highest ranking of world No.6 in 2000.
Wladimir Klitschko is a Ukrainian former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2017. He held the world heavyweight championship twice, including the unified WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, and Ring magazine titles. A strategic and intelligent boxer, Klitschko is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight champions of all time. He was known for his exceptional knockout power, using a strong jab, straight right hand and left hook, quick hand speed, great physical strength which he employed when clinching opponents, as well as athletic footwork and mobility, unusual for boxers of his size.
Vitalii Volodymyrovych Klychko, known as Vitali Klitschko, is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer. He serves as mayor of Kyiv, and is also head of the Kyiv City State Administration, having held both offices since June 2014. Klitschko is a former leader of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc, and is a former member of the Ukrainian Parliament. He became actively involved in Ukrainian politics in 2005 and combined this with his professional boxing career until his retirement from the sport in 2013. He holds a Doctoral Degree (Ph.D.) from Kyiv University's Physical Science Department.
Lamon Tajuan Brewster is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2010. He held the WBO heavyweight title from 2004 to 2006, and is best known for scoring an upset knockout victory over Wladimir Klitschko to win the vacant title. He was ranked as the world's No.8 heavyweight by BoxRec at the conclusion of 2004. As an amateur, Brewster won the U.S. national championships in 1995, and a silver medal at that year's Pan American Games, both in the heavyweight division. Following his retirement from the sport in 2011, he became an entrepreneur and founded a consulting business.
Alexander Viktorovych "Sascha" Dimitrenko is a Ukrainian-born German former professional boxer who competed from 2001 to 2019, and held the European heavyweight title from 2010 to 2011.
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Sultan-Ahmed Magomedsalihovich Ibragimov is a Russian former professional boxer. He competed from 2002 to 2008, and held the WBO world heavyweight title from 2007 to 2008. He was ranked by The Ring as the world's sixth best active heavyweight at the conclusion of 2007 and 2008. As an amateur he won silver medals at the 2000 Olympics and 2000 European Championships, and bronze at the 2001 World Championships, all in the heavyweight division.
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Vitali Klitschko and Wladimir Klitschko, known as the Klitschko Brothers, are Ukrainian former professional boxers. During their peak years between 2004 and 2015, they were considered the dominant world heavyweight champions of their era, and among the most successful champions in boxing history. In 2011, they entered the Guinness World Records book as the pair of brothers with most world heavyweight title fight wins. In the years following the retirement of heavyweight titlist Lennox Lewis in 2004, the Klitschko brothers would eventually accumulate all four major world heavyweight titles. Known for their exceptionally large physiques, speed, and punching power, they each developed a style that utilized their athleticism and arm reach to break down opponents.
EliseLeapai is a Samoan Australian former professional boxer. His career highlight was a fight against Wladimir Klitschko in 2014, for the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, The Ring magazine and lineal heavyweight titles.
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Chris Byrd vs. Wladimir Klitschko II, billed as "Revenge Is The Name Of The Game", was a professional boxing match contested on 22 April 2006 for the IBF and vacant IBO heavyweight championship.
Wladimir Klitschko vs. Sultan Ibragimov, billed as "The Unification", was a professional boxing match contested on 23 February 2008 for the IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight championship.
Chris Byrd vs. Wladimir Klitschko, billed as Die Rache des Bruders, was a professional boxing match contested on 14 October 2000 for the WBO Heavyweight Championship.
Wladimir Klitschko vs. Corrie Sanders, billed as The Next Big Thing was a professional boxing match contested on 8 March 2003 for the WBO Heavyweight Championship.
Wladimir Klitschko vs. Lamon Brewster II, was a professional boxing match contested on 7 July 2007 for the IBF Heavyweight Championship.
Lamon Brewster vs. Siarhei Liakhovich, was a professional boxing match contested on 1 April 2006 for the WBO Heavyweight Championship.
