I’m like Everest – I’m still standing
WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO insists he’s just like Mount Everest – conquered but still standing.
Klitschko will face the human wrecking ball that is Anthony Joshua at Wembley on April 29.
The Ukrainian former world heavyweight king knows he is being questioned after Tyson Fury left him looking powerless in November 2015.
But Klitschko, 41, said: “This may sound arrogant but for a parallel take Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world.
“You can climb it. You can get to the top and say, ‘I conquered Everest!’
“But Mount Everest is still there. Is it defeated? No, it’s still there.
“It was 27 years ago when I started and I’m still here. I have guys who have conquered me at certain periods in my 68 fights.
“Four made it to the top RICKY BURNS insists he is happy to ignore his birthday this week as he’d fed up being reminded of his age.
The three-weight world champion turns 34 tomorrow but the only number he is concerned about is adding to his win statistics when he faces Namibian hard man Julius Indongo in their super lightweight unification showdown at the Hydro on Saturday.
Burns might be classed as a veteran but he doesn’t see himself that way. In fact, anyone suggesting he’s approaching the twilight of his glittering career is in danger of taking a swift jab on the chin.
The Coatbridge ace is one of the game’s good guys but admitted he’s grumpy this week. It not the birthday on the horizon that has darkened his mood though.
He is just desperate to step between the ropes and do what he enjoys. The other stuff around the fight he could do without – including cake and candles.
Burns bristled at the mention of the milestone and said: “People keep mentioning my age. They’re talking about it in the lead up to this week.
“I turn 34 on Thursday but don’t worry about it, I’ve got a good few years left in me yet.
“I’m clicking in the gym and I’ve never felt fitter. I’ve trained as hard as ever. Everything in training has gone well and I’ve had some great southpaw sparring.
“I’ve not even thought about my birthday. That can wait.”
If Burns sounded tetchy, it’s because he is. A pubic workout at the St Enoch Centre was a thrill for fight fans but it’s not something that interests this quiet assassin who has had to scrap for every bit of glory.
The champion would rather do his work out of the
At this point I just want to get in there and take care of business
RICKY BURNS
spotlight in the gym and do his entertaining on fight night.
Burns said: “I’m like a bear with a sore head at this stage before a fight.
“I’ve done the hard part, got the weight sorted, now I just can’t wait to get into the ring.
“All of the stuff around the fight is just a distraction. It’s 12 weeks of focus and at this point I just want to get in there and take care of business.”
It might be business but Burns doesn’t see it as show business and he’s not one for poring over old fights or studying up on the history of the sport. He’d rather bust a gut in training and then stick on a boxset to unwind.
Burns leaves it to others to talk about the mark he has made on British boxing – even if it’s becoming increasingly harder for him to avoid seeing himself fighting when he’s at home.
He said: “I don’t really watch boxing. I know it sounds funny but I’m not really a big boxing fan. I love fighting. I watch the big fights obviously but I’m not one for looking back at old fights and stuff.
“When I was growing up I used to watch Prince Naseem Hamed and these kind of guys. He was brilliant but these days I just concentrate on myself.
“I don’t think about my legacy. Everyone else talks about it and no one believes me when I say it but I view it as just another fight.
“Seriously. I know it’s a big deal. It’s a unification fight but I don’t look at everything around it. I just concentrate on the fight. I only watch my old fights now and again but my wife Amanda has been putting them on for my son Leon recently to show him what I’ve done.
“Hopefully there will be another one for him to watch from Saturday.”
Burns will have his work cut out to add to his showreel.
Indongo was an unknown who took the boxing world by storm when he smashed Russian powerhouse Eduard Troyanovsky inside 40 seconds to win the IBF and IBO crowns that are on the line this weekend, along with the