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CHAMBERS DELIVERS!
"Fast" Eddie Chambers spent his 4th of July not only making the USA proud, he single-handedly resurrected American hopes of again being a player in the heavyweight title picture. With his 12-round decision over Ukraine's Alexander "Sasha" Dimitrenko, Chambers earned a mandatory shot against heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko. Even more, he scored the biggest and best victory of his career. But to do it, he had to make a second trip to Germany and face another bigger, undefeated Eastern European foe. He also had to correct a mistake he made in his first such opportunity. There was a time when being matched against a big European was an easy assignment - a setup even - for an American boxer. But such is not the case in 2009. These days, Eastern Europeans, especially Ukrainians & Russians, are the cream of the crop among big men, and the American's are the underdogs. Chambers had been there before. In January 2008, he faced Alexander Povetkin in an eliminator for Klitschko's IBF title. After zooming through the first four rounds, he quietly let the rest of the bout slip through his hands. A disappointed Chambers lost for the first time and failed to land his title shot. He came in a bit heavy and did not fight with urgency after round five. But Eddie's second trip to Germany was a much different story. Chambers came in much lighter than he's been lately (208.25 lbs), and it helped him to speed his way through the fight with the 6 inches taller and 45 pounds heavier Alexander Dimitrenko. But it wasn't just speed and a good defense that Chambers brought. He fought smart and hard and pressed the action. Chambers whacked Dimitrenko with a left hook in round ten that dislodged the Ukrainian's mouth piece and dropped him on the seat of his pants. Earlier, Fast Eddie doubled Dimitrenko over with a body shot that counted as the first knockdown. With his textbook performance, it seemed there should be no question about the outcome. However, as is often the case, the scoring provided a surprise when one judge called the fight even at 113-113, even after Chambers dominated the action. Luckily, the other two officials saw Eddie winning comfortably (116-111) and by a landslide (117-109). With his big win, Eddie Chambers is now in line for a world title fight against the best heavyweight in the division. And although he'll certainly go into the fight as an underdog, he very well may be a real hope to bring the crown back to the United States - and to Philly. [See Video Highlights at UNIVERSUM web site: VIDEO] |
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