Former World Champion Wladimir Klitschko admitted that boxing was not his great love at least at the beginning of his career and that he regarded the sport more as a means to an end. He also reckoned with the boxing world.
“I didn’t love boxing,” he said in an interview with t-online.de. But he had realized that boxing was a way for him to travel: “I was in a kind of cage in the Soviet Union. Travelling was impossible, except when you were a politician – or an athlete. My brother Vitali had already travelled a lot through kickboxing and I realized: sport, boxing, is my way out of this cage.”
And he continues: “I took on the role of a professional boxer. I’m not a born fighter.” However, this attitude has changed in the course of his career – thanks to trainer legend Emanuel Steward. “He taught me the love of boxing because he showed me it was about more than just hitting.”
Klitschko also took the opportunity to criticize boxing as such. “Boxing needs to become more transparent. The most important factors are being trampled underfoot: The athletes and the fans. If I look at it this way: injuries, deaths – the boys are in pieces. Where are the managers and promoters? They are there as long as the success is there and they deserve it. But you won’t see them later.”
Klitschko fought a total of 69 professional fights, of which he won 64 (54 by knockout). After defeats against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, he ended his active career in 2017.