After
his tremendous victory against Chris Arreola, WBC Champion Vitali
Klitschko steps into the ring again in 2009. His opponent will be Kevin
Johnson at PostFinance-Arena in Bern, Switzerland, on December 12th.
Bernd Bönte, Managing Director of the Klitschko Management Group:
“Vitali`s performance against Chris Arreola in Los Angeles showed his
extra class. With Kevin Johnson, Vitali will again face a very strong
contender. Johnson is undefeated, self-conscious and knows what a great
chance this will be for him. The PostFinance-Arena in Bern is a
fantastic venue and the right arena for a huge title fight.”
Vitali Klitschko will defend his title for the 3rd time in 2009. In
March, “Dr. Ironfist” won against Juan Carlos Gomez by technical KO in
round 9 and last month he knocked out Chris Arreola in round 10 in Los
Angeles.
Vitali Klitschko: “I am in an excellent shape and had a perfect
preparation and fight in Los Angeles. I can hardly wait to step into
the ring again. Kevin Johnson is very dangerous. He already had 23
fights as a pro and is undefeated. He is technically much better than
my last opponent Arreola. I know I can`t underestimate Johnson but I
have no doubt to keep the WBC belt.” The 38-year-old Klitschko has a
professional record of 38 wins (37 KOs) and 2 defeats due to injury.
The 30-year-old Kevin Johnson, alias “The Kingpin”, measures 1,91 m
(6.3 ft) and lives in Atlanta, USA. In May, Johnson won against Devin
Vargas, who has been undefeated until then, as well as against former
WBA World Heavyweight Champion Bruce Seldon. Johnson is ranked as
number 6 of both WBC and WBA and has a professional record of 22 wins
(9 KOs) and 1 draw.
Kevin Johnson: “I’ve been working hard for this chance and I will
definitely take it. On December 12th, there will finally be an American
heavyweight champion again. I am sorry for ruining Klitschko’s
Christmas holidays.”
In Germany, Switzerland and Austria, the fight at PostFinance-Arena in
Bern will be broadcast live and exclusively on RTL. Ticket sale will
start on October 24
1. Ukraine Wladimir Klitschko
2. Russia Nikolay Valuev
3. USA Mike Tyson
4. Ukraine Vitaly Klitschko
5. Uzbekistan Ruslan Chagaev
6. Russia Oleg Maskaev
7. Nigeria Samuel Peter
8. USA Roy Jones
9. Russia Sultan Ibragimov
10.United Kingdom David Haye
