Who is Vladimir Virchis? A piece of info...

[Odo]

Virchis' name has been mentioned in quite a lot of threads here on esb,but sorrowly a lot of our fellow American posters have never seen him fight.Therefore I decided to create this thread in order to provide some info about this very interesting heavy weight from the Klitschko's native country,Ukraine. Virchis(23-1) is a huge heavy weight(6,4-1,93 cm) whose best weapon is without a doubt his murderous firepower.He can end a fight any time. He is probably one of the biggest banger among the present heavy weights,and a threat to any rival including all present top guns. He is a relatively slow fighter who tends to stalk and corner his foe in order to land one of his powerful punches.He has a quite leaky defence,but a decent chin.He for sure isnt the most skilled or fastest fighter out there,but due to his impressive firepower none of his of opponents has dared to duke it out with him so far. His stamina is okay,but nothing special,and so is his jab. He lost to Ruslan Chagaev by majority point decision-his only official loss.A lot of ring observers had him ahead on points against Chagaev after 11 very lame rounds and one exciting one. Chagaev and Virchis are stable mates,and they also seem to be friends.Therefore they didnt go for each other for 11 rounds. Virchis twice defeated Italian olympian medalist Paolo Vidoz(who stopped Calvin Brook,and Sam Peter at the olmypics)-the biggest and best known skalp in his collection. He also beat decent fighters like Michael Sprott,Taras Bidenko(who gave hell to Valuev-in his 4th pro fight [Only registered and activated users can see links]),Julius Francis,Balu Zaur,olympian Chaanoune,and Cliff Couser(who knocked out Monte Berrett a few days ago). Virchis ' encounter with very promising heavy weight talent Taras Bidenko was one of the most exciting,entertaining ,and dramatic heavy weight fights which could be seen within the last couple of years. Behind on points Virchis knocked his Ukranian compatriot out in the very last round of their encounter. Virchis vs Serin:[Only registered and activated users can see links] Adnan Serin(17-6) is a German based journeyman who made the water quite hot for Danny Williams when they met in the ring. He lost quite controversially to Konstantin Onofrei(who beat Wlad at the amateurs) and Rene Monse(who almost knocked Luan Krasniqui out a few years ago).

[NBT]

Taras Bidenko(who gave hell to Valuev-in his 4th pro fight [url][Only registered and activated users can see links]),
:roll: I just wish people would stop claiming Bidenko "gave hell" to Valuev or anything like that based on like 3 seconds in this video clip. You should ask yourself why it is so short .. if he "gave him hell" there should be more highlight material. I don't see anything like that, it's not hard to land on Valuev, he has good chin and Bidenko is a light hitter so nothing unusual there. I doubt ANYONE here has seen this fight in full length. So would you please stop fabricating rumours, Odo?

btw It's a total waste of time trying to hype Virchis. :yep

[Odo]

:roll: I just wish people would stop claiming Bidenko "gave hell" to Valuev or anything like that based on like 3 seconds in this video clip. You should ask yourself why it is so short .. if he "gave him hell" there should be more highlight material. I don't see anything like that, it's not hard to land on Valuev, he has good chin and Bidenko is a light hitter so nothing unusual there. I doubt ANYONE here has seen this fight in full length. So would you please stop fabricating rumours, Odo?

btw It's a total waste of time trying to hype Virchis. :yep

Hehe! Why a waste of time? Virchis is virtually totally unknown outside the circle of us hardcore fans.Even most of our fellow american posters have never heard of him.
I like this big fellow from neighboring Ukraine.He deserves bigger paycheckes,media attention,and a bit of hype IMO.
He was paid to be another victim for the then rising shooting star Taras Bidenko.His career seemed to be over,and according to the news at that time Virchis hinted that he would retire after his encounter with his much younger compatriot.What a surprise to Kohl and most box fans when Virchis knocked Bidenko out!
And you are trying to tell me that it is a waste of time to hype Virchis a bit?
No,I dont think so,my friend!
Lots of powerful people read this webisite-not only us hardcore fans.This forum on esb is the best out there,and all those promoters,matchmakers,managers,trainers,fighters,and so on do have a look at this forum now and then.


As for Bidenko vs Valuev the giant from leningrad once stated that his fight with Bidenko could have gone either way.
As for Bidenko he has repeated again and again that he should have won that fight in south corea.
Ring reports seem to confirm his statement.

[unitas]

virchis is a throwback to the era of the great white hope. he fights like he just came off the farm or out of the mining camp.

no skill..........all brawn. good size, great strength and chin........one punch power to boot!!!

a real fun fighter.........and a title threat. i give him a great shot at beating ibragimov. and if he lands vs wladdy, its good night.

and guess what: the guy is a real life farmer!!!

[Armo_Ruski]

i would rather see wlad take on virchis, rather then a 50 yr old sanders or that gomez dude.

[giggigreto]

I love Virchis, and I would like to see him against klitschko, that would be tough and a KO is going to come :D

[Odo]

Odo, I respect your opinion as I do always but Virchis is a limited fighter and I do not think he will get far. He will never be a real top 10 fighter.

Of course he is a very limited fighter.Have never claimed that he is a very skilled fighter.Hey,but neither is Peter,and he is among the top 10 of all important box mags or internet sites.
Peter is as limited as Virchis,and I for my part think that Virchis has the upper hand in firepower.
Rightly matched,Virchis for sure can win a world title.
As long as you dont match him with a fast mover like Ibragimov or the undisputed number 1 at the big boys' league Virchis can beat anyone in front of him.
I dont know and cant understand why people here on esb tend to overrate American or American based fighters and underrate fighters from countries of the former soviet union.
Belarus beat the mighty American amateur squad quite convincingly when they met each other last time.Most American fighters have padded records anyway!
A very average heavy like Briggs gets a title shot-there are quite a lot of Briggs out there in the countries of the former soviet union.A lot of them doent turn pro due to a bunch of different reasons,and the pro fighters from there dont get a title shot that easily.
Who do you think would be the winner of Briggs vs Virchis,or Peter vs Virchis?
A fighter like Gaidarbekov who schooled and stopped the American Lacy in his last amateur fight didnt turn pro,but his American counterpart did.
Do you think that Lacy is that known worldwide due to his outstanding skills?
He couldnt hold a candle to Gaidarbekov,and there are a handful of fighters in countries of former soviet union who could beat the shit out of that American.However,Lacy is American which means that careful matchmaking and the feeding of a few no-hopers makes him easily a recognisable name out there.
He even got a shot at Joe's title who exposed his limitations quite brutally.
The right passport makes a huge difference in the paid ranks.
At the amateurs Americans cant hold a candle to their Ukranian,Russian ,or Cuban counterparts.
American fighters are totally overrated IMO.

[NBT]

Odo, there are few people here on the European board that overrate American fighters and underrate Europeans but you simply often hype fighters with the same old catchphrases ("teak tough", "makes the water hot", etc.) that are simply not that good. :yep

[Odo]

Odo, there are few people here on the European board that overrate American fighters and underrate Europeans but you simply often hype fighters with the same old catchphrases ("teak tough", "makes the water hot", etc.) that are simply not that good. :yep


There has to be a counterweight,dont you think so ?:hey

[Armo_Ruski]

makes the water hot catchphrase is hilarious :lol:

[Flurry]

Its a question of who you match him against. Dont match him against fast elusive fighters with quick hands cos they ll make him look extremely bad, guaranteed. He probably should have lost a decision to sprott as well, btw. On another note, I was attending his fight against Chagaev and tell yer Chagaev won the match fair and square, was 3 to 4 rounds up on my card and I was surprised when hearing it got ruled a MD, but then I had expected a gruelling in your face thriller and what I got instead was a pretty lame affair.

Virchis should only be matched against slow and stationary people and if so can provide us with some power packed entertaining showings that include a rather high probablity to have one or both of them hit the canvas, but match him against akinwande and the likes and hed have to tie up Henrys legs before he could think of connecting on him

[Deslizer]

His stamina is okay,but nothing specialNnnnno.
Hsi stamina isn't good, he is usually out of gas in the last quarter of a fight.

[Mendoza]

Nnnnno.
Hsi stamina isn't good, he is usually out of gas in the last quarter of a fight.

I wonder if Virchis acts like he’s tired to fool his opponent in the ring. Fighters can not afford to be lured into relaxation vs Virchis.

[Alcaldemb]

What are the chances of Virchis vs Peter for the interim WBC title? If that fight happens I take Virchis.

[Odo]

Teras Bidenko had him in his pocket for a long time untill he landed taht powerfullpunch. That's a credit for Virchis but don't forget he was close to get defeated widly on points.
I am not a huge Peterfan but he has fought better competition imo than Virchis who can do nice at Europeanlevel but lacks technique and speed at worldclass level. I think he would have problems against a lot of european guys. I even think he would lose against the dino's who are left from the eighties and nineties. McCall and Holyfield for example are better even at this stage of their careers.
I can see Virchis struggle against bclass Europeans as Harrison, Williams, Skelton. Anyone with a trustworthy chin and speed can give him trouble.

To tell you the truth,onemangang,I am unable to make head or tail of your post!
European level? What did you mean by saying that Virchis "can do nice at european level"?
The best heavies on the damned planet stem from europe.Thats why I dont really get it why you dont use American level as a derogatory term instead.
I totally disagree with you on your statement that McCall(who looked horrible against Gomez) or Hollyfield(are you kidding? that old geezer is barely able to beat a no-hoper like Savarese) are better than Virchis.
The huge Ukranian would beat both Americans IMO.
You can see Virchis struggle against -as you put it-b class european based fighters like Williams,Harrison,or Skeleton.
Who knows? You may be right in saying this.I for my part can also see Sam Peter struggle against a lot of "b" fighters.
"Anyone with a trustworthy chin and speed can give him trouble" I quite agree with you,but why the hell do you think that your abovementioned heavies like Willaims,Skeleton,or Harrison possess those qualities.
Peter has fought better competition than Virchis.I very much doubt this,but I wouldnt argue the toss about it.
Peter had two very lame fights against that fat dwarf Toney who barely managed to win a split decision against journeyman Batchelder in his last outing to a ring.Dimitrenko stopped that mediocre American journeyman in his last outing to a ring.
Very limited Croation Jovo Pudar went the full route with that overhyped American based African.Do you really think that Virchis would have gone the full route with that light punching Croation heavy?
A lot of Americans are quite sold on Sam because they havent seen fighters like Dimitrenko,Bidenko,Virchis,Povetkin,Valuev,and so on.
If Sam Peter were based here in europe people wouldnt even bother to talk about him.He would be a second Attila Levin,or Richel Hersisia.
Sam Peter is totally overrated,and will be exposed by old but still capable Oleg Maskaev.
The African is tailor made for Virchis.Would be a dream match for the huge Ukranian.I dont think that Sam would be able to go the full distance with Virchis.Styles make fights.

[Alcaldemb]

Odo is right, Sam is taylor made for Virchis. Sam looked good against a badly faded Toney, the only real improvement we saw was the jab. His power is no better and he is the smaller man. Virchis, while slow, has as good or better power and as good of a chin, he also has better punch selection. Peter's defense is very very open, Vladimir at least knows the bring his arms together to block punches. I think he busts Peter up on way to stoppage.

[Alcaldemb]

A real top 10 fighter is there to stay!!

I wouldn't really go with The Ring. Their rankings are very biased, especially towards promoters, managers and networks they are friends with.

[Odo]

I wouldn't really go with The Ring. Their rankings are very biased, especially towards promoters, managers and networks they are friends with.

The Ring is a unbelievably biased box mag! Very frequently it is enough to be American and have a padded fight record to be ranked ahead of non American fighters.
Arriola nr.10 at heavy weight,eh! Makes me laugh!

[unitas]

The Ring is a unbelievably biased box mag! Very frequently it is enough to be American and have a padded fight record to be ranked ahead of non American fighters.
Arriola nr.10 at heavy weight,eh! Makes me laugh!

ranking arriola at 10 is a cry for help:lol:

[unitas]

oh and one more thing: Virchis ko3 arriola.

[Bummy Davis]

He reminds me of the younger version of George Foreman, wide puncher but power,he can be outboxed, a little slow but I would like to see him fight atop guy, let him fight Peter if Maskaev pulls out

[Alcaldemb]

He reminds me of the younger version of George Foreman, wide puncher but power,he can be outboxed, a little slow but I would like to see him fight atop guy, let him fight Peter if Maskaev pulls out

This seems increasingly possible. Now how does one think Peter responds to fighting someone with a solid chin and better power who is bigger and stronger. Virchis has already fought a much better Peter in Chagaev.

[Flurry]

I wouldnt compare chagaev to peter, Chagaev is much more of a technical fighter than Peter, he s got good movement, reflexes, timing, a good jab, a snapping and accurate straight left and he has punch variety. He didnt become amateur world champ for nothing

Virchis vs Peter, now that would be a fight Id love to see :deal

[Flurry]

To tell you the truth,onemangang,I am unable to make head or tail of your post!
European level? What did you mean by saying that Virchis "can do nice at european level"?
The best heavies on the damned planet stem from europe.Thats why I dont really get it why you dont use American level as a derogatory term instead.
I totally disagree with you on your statement that McCall(who looked horrible against Gomez) or Hollyfield(are you kidding? that old geezer is barely able to beat a no-hoper like Savarese) are better than Virchis.
The huge Ukranian would beat both Americans IMO.
You can see Virchis struggle against -as you put it-b class european based fighters like Williams,Harrison,or Skeleton.
Who knows? You may be right in saying this.I for my part can also see Sam Peter struggle against a lot of "b" fighters.
"Anyone with a trustworthy chin and speed can give him trouble" I quite agree with you,but why the hell do you think that your abovementioned heavies like Willaims,Skeleton,or Harrison possess those qualities.
Peter has fought better competition than Virchis.I very much doubt this,but I wouldnt argue the toss about it.
Peter had two very lame fights against that fat dwarf Toney who barely managed to win a split decision against journeyman Batchelder in his last outing to a ring.Dimitrenko stopped that mediocre American journeyman in his last outing to a ring.
Very limited Croation Jovo Pudar went the full route with that overhyped American based African.Do you really think that Virchis would have gone the full route with that light punching Croation heavy?
A lot of Americans are quite sold on Sam because they havent seen fighters like Dimitrenko,Bidenko,Virchis,Povetkin,Valuev,and so on.
If Sam Peter were based here in europe people wouldnt even bother to talk about him.He would be a second Attila Levin,or Richel Hersisia.
Sam Peter is totally overrated,and will be exposed by old but still capable Oleg Maskaev.
The African is tailor made for Virchis.Would be a dream match for the huge Ukranian.I dont think that Sam would be able to go the full distance with Virchis.Styles make fights.


Wow, you tell them mate :yep you re on a roll, go tell them

Btw very nice wording there, "whaddya mean "only European level", all top heavies on this planet are european fighters nowadays, the denigrating term should actually be "Ohh, he´s no true world beater, actually, he´s just a sort of American level heavy" :rofl :rofl

Who would have thought only a few years ago we ´d be able to make a statement like this

[Odo]

Wow, you tell them mate :yep you re on a roll, go tell them

Btw very nice wording there, "whaddya mean "only European level", all top heavies on this planet are european fighters nowadays, the denigrating term should actually be "Ohh, he´s no true world beater, actually, he´s just a sort of American level heavy" :rofl :rofl

Who would have thought only a few years ago we ´d be able to make a statement like this


:lol:Yep! Sam Peter can be competitive against the best American fighters,but can hardly hold a candle to most top european heavies.He is just "sort of American level "heavy.

[Alcaldemb]

I wouldnt compare chagaev to peter, Chagaev is much more of a technical fighter than Peter, he s got good movement, reflexes, timing, a good jab, a snapping and accurate straight left and he has punch variety. He didnt become amateur world champ for nothing

Virchis vs Peter, now that would be a fight Id love to see :deal

Merry I didn't compare. Chagaev has similar power, chin, strength and other physical attributes to Peter, he is just much more skilled and that is what I meant. Virchis has already seen someone with Peter's physical attributes.

[Alcaldemb]

:lol:Yep! Sam Peter can be competitive against the best American fighters,but can hardly hold a candle to most top european heavies.He is just "sort of American level "heavy.

Yeah if Valuev, Chagaev or Virchis were to fight that American level heavy many people would ave their bubbles burst :lol:

[Flurry]

:lol:Yep! Sam Peter can be competitive against the best American fighters,but can hardly hold a candle to most top european heavies.He is just "sort of American level "heavy.

:D I think I could get accustomed to that terminology. Incidentally, Peter isnt even an American, hes just american based.

[Flurry]

Merry I didn't compare. Chagaev has similar power, chin, strength and other physical attributes to Peter, he is just much more skilled and that is what I meant. Virchis has already seen someone with Peter's physical attributes.

right, thats true and well put

[Odo]

:D I think I could get accustomed to that terminology. Incidentally, Peter isnt even an American, hes just american based.

You are right,merry.Sam is African! If he werent American based but european based those posters who think that highly of Peter wouldnt even bother to waste a few words about him .
Sam Peter would probably be a second Attila Levin,or another Richel Hersisia.
I always have a good laugh when reading that some americans consider him to be the number 2 behind Wlad and call him the biggest banger out there!
That fat dwarf Toney wouldnt have gone more than 5 rounds against Virchis IMO.