Rather obscure despite his size and title belt, Valuev retained the WBA heavyweight championship Saturday night when he stopped Monte Barrett in the 11th round to remain undefeated. The largest heavyweight champion ever, the 7-foot, 328-pound Valuev (45-0, 33 knockouts) knocked down Barrett twice in the 11th, and the fight was stopped 2:12 into the round after a left jab left the challenger glassy-eyed and staggering against the ropes.
“This victory wasn’t easy,” Valuev said. “Monte really tried hard. I knew after the fourth or fifth round I would win.”
Valuev floored Barrett in the eighth and pounced on the challenger in the 11th after he tripped. Barrett (31-5) quickly found himself back on the canvas after being knocked down, but got up. Valuev continued the barrage, and the fight ended when trainer James Ali Basheer jumped into the ring. Now, the champion is within four wins of Rocky Marciano.
After winning the belt on a disputed decision over John Ruiz in Berlin last December, Valuev stopped Jamaican challenger Owen Beck in the third round in Hanover, Germany, in June. The longest reigning heavyweight champion, he was fighting for just the third time in the United States and making his first appearance in the country in more than five years. So he considered this an introduction.
The champion landed 186, while Barrett connected on 127 (29 percent).