World Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Klitschko will defend his titles on April 25th against Bryant Jennings. The fight will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Seven years after his first unification fight, Wladimir Klitschko finally fights in the US again.
This puts an immediate end to any speculation of a quick fight against Deontay Wilder, or lord help us all, a mockery of a match against Shannon Briggs. Meanwhile, Tyson Fury has his place in line after Jennings, as long as he defeats Christian Hammer, which means that Wilder is in the back of the line but will also have a free schedule to do as he pleases in the interim.
The 30 year old Bryant “By-By” Jennings from Philadelphia is 6ft 3in, and surprisingly has an almost 3 inch longer reach than Wladimir Klitschko. Jennings has an outstanding record: 19 wins, 10 by KO and no defeats. In his last two fights he won against the undefeated Mike Perez and Artur Szpilka. Jennings is a former US heavyweight champion and ranked very high in all world boxing organizations.
For years Wladimir Klitschko has been the undisputed No 1 in the heavyweight division. He has won the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. In his last fight Klitschko knocked out the undefeated mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev. The clash with Jennings will be Klitschko’s 27th Heavyweight World Championship fight. His professional record is currently 63 wins, with 54 KOs and only three defeats. Wladimir Klitschko has been world champion for the second time since 2006 and is now second to the legendary Joe Louis, the longest reigning world champion in heavyweight history.
Wladimir Klitschko
“I do have great respect for Bryant Jennings and his achievements. He has good movement in the ring and good technique.
“I know this will be a tough challenge. I am extremely happy to fight in New York again. I had my first unification fight here and a lot of great heavyweight matches have taken place at Madison Square Garden.
“It will definitely be a great fight night and I will do everything for it from my side.”
Bernd Bönte, CEO of the Klitschko Management Group (KMG): “For the fourth time Wladimir will be boxing in the world’s most famous arena. It’s always something special to promote at Madison Square Garden, where legends such as Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield stood inside the ring. We are looking forward to another exciting fight and a great event.”
Tom Loeffler, Managing Director of K2 Promotions: “Wladimir has proven to be the most dominant heavyweight champion in recent history and we are looking forward to another great performance on April 25.”
Peter Nelson, vice president programming of HBO Sports: “Heavyweight is boxing’s supreme glamour division, and its champion could not be a better ambassador to the sport in a career heading toward historic landmark achievements. Bryant Jennings has an opportunity to halt those ambitions and become America’s first unified heavyweight champion in more than 13 years, challenging for the crown in the media capital of the world. HBO is thrilled to present the event live on our flagship World Championship Boxing series.”
In the US, Klitschko vs. Jennings will be broadcast live und exclusively on HBO and in Germany on RTL.
