Before fans are treated to the light heavyweight showdown between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Jean Pascal, they will get to enjoy the heavyweight battle between Vyacheslav “Czar” Glazkov and Steve “USS” Cunningham for the mandatory position in the IBF.
Glazkov is an Olympic bronze medalist who is undefeated in his professional career and Cunningham is a former two-time cruiserweight world champion looking to get a title shot in the heavyweight division. Both are technical boxers with great defensive skills who are willing to mix it up. Below is the scouting report for this exciting match-up:
Category | Vyacheslav “The Czar” Glazkov | Steve “USS” Cunningham |
| Age | 30 | 38 |
| Record | 19-0-1 (12 KOs) | 28-6 (13 KOs) |
| Strength | Glazkov is a very active fighter who is consistently in the ring. He has solid defensive skills and a good chin. He physically breaks down his opponents, and he is not afraid to engage with anyone. | Cunningham is a veteran who has much more professional experience than his younger opponent; he is also a former two-time cruiserweight world champion. He is coming off of major wins over hard hitters and undefeated fighters: Amir Mansour and Natu Visinia. |
| Weakness | “The Czar” has a tendency to be a slow starter, which almost got him into trouble in a close decision win against Derric Rossy. | Steve lacks significant power for a heavyweight; since 2010 he has only recorded two knockout wins, and has only recorded 13 knockouts in his 28 career victories. |
| Experience | Glazkov had an impressive amateur career, earning a bronze medal in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. His recent and tough wins over veteran Derric Rossy and then-#2 ranked heavyweight contender Tomasz Adamek have helped prepare him well for this big stage. | Cunningham will have the advantage here as he is a former cruiserweight champ and three of his past five fights have been against former or currently ranked heavyweight contenders. (Tomasz Adamek, Tyson Fury and Amir Mansour) |
| Power | Although he does not possess that one-punch power, Glazkov will have an advantage here. He has the ability to physically break his opponent down throughout the fight. | Although he did record a stoppage win in his previous bout, Steve is not known for his knockout power. He is more of a boxer and will need to be cautious when exchanging punches with the younger and more powerful Glazkov. |
| Speed | Although Glazkov is a natural heavyweight, he is still somewhat small for the division. He moves around the ring very well.
| Steve is small for a heavyweight, which enables him to move around the ring well. He may need to keep a safe distance from the hard-hitting Ukrainian. He also possesses great hand speed and a quick jab that he must utilize to win this fight. |
| Endurance | Glazkov will be at a slight disadvantage here; he has only been 12 rounds on one occasion. However, he tends to be a slow starter so the additional rounds may help. | Cunningham may have the advantage here as he has gone a full 12 rounds on nine separate occasions during his career. |
| Accuracy | Glazkov is a very accurate puncher, much like his opponent, he picks his shots well and is a solid technical fighter. | Cunningham is a good technical boxer who picks his shots wisely and does not waste many punches. |
| Defense | Glazkov is a very effective defensive fighter who does a good job of shielding himself when dealing with his opponent’s onslaught. | Steve moves around the ring well and often, making it difficult for any big heavyweight to cut the ring off and land their significant shots. |
| Chin | In the past year, Glazkov has shown that he has a solid chin. He took a lot of big shots against Derric Rossy, and was able to weather the storm and box his way to a decision win. | Steve has only been knocked out once in his career by the #4 WBO heavyweight contender Tyson Fury. He was also knocked down twice against Amir Mansour, but he was able to rise to the occasion and defeat the previously ranked heavyweight in what some believe was the fight of the year for 2014. |
| Style | Glazkov is a defensive-minded fighter who will not hesitate to engage with his opponents if necessary. | Steve is a technical boxer who has no problem trading shots. |
| Crowd Support | Glazkov has been in big fights throughout the past three years. It is safe to say that he has built a fan base and they may be in attendance for this bout. | Steve may have a slight advantage here; he has never fought in Canada but has been in many big fights during his career and has a fan friendly style. |
| Intangibles | Glazkov has no problem facing opposition with more experience than him. He could have taken an easier road to a title shot, but instead has been willing to face a long list of veterans and current or former ranked contenders. Cunningham will be his 13th consecutive opponent who is older and more experienced. | Steve will face his third undefeated heavyweight opponent in a row when he squares off against the IBF #2 heavyweight contender Vyacheslav Glazkov. |
| The Match-up: |
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