On June 21st of last year, Vitali Klitschko stepped into the ring at the Staples Center in Los Angeles to face World Boxing Council (WBC) heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis. The lumbering Ukranian was a last-minute replacement for Lewis' scheduled opponent, Kirk Johnson, forced to pull out of the fight because of a training injury. The crowd and most boxing experts anticipated a quick knockout for Lewis, the quick and powerful champion with 41 victories under his belt including 32 knockouts.

A confident Klitschko had other ideas. He immediately battered the champion with a combination of vicious jabs and thundering right crosses. Lewis was clearly in trouble until a deep cut opened under the challenger's left eyebrow. On the advice of the ringside physician who was concerned about potential and permanent damage to Klitschko's eye, the fight was abruptly halted at the end of six rounds. Klitschko, ahead on the scorecards of all three judges, was frustrated. Lewis was dazed and relieved.

For those who thought that Klitschko's performance against Lewis might have been a fluke, he took down Kirk Johnson last December in the second round, thus establishing himself as the WBC's number one contender. Suddenly, the Soviet-born fighter was a boxing media darling, a marquee figure in a heavyweight division short on superstars. Now, just as everyone was anticipating an ultimate Lewis/Klitschko rematch, Lewis has announced his retirement. Klitschko won't get the revenge he wanted, but he will get a second shot at the title on April 24, this time against Corrie Sanders.

At 6'8" and 245 pounds, Klitschko may be a giant, but he is certainly no brute. His correct title is Dr. Vitali Klitschko as he and his brother Wladimir, also a heavyweight contender, both hold PhD's in sports science and philosophy. In addition to boxing, the pugilist can hold forth on such topics as politics, classical music and chess. Accompanied by two translators, Klitschko recently chatted with Playboy.com in the four languages he speaks most frequently -- Russian, Ukrainian, German and English. The wide-ranging conversation touched on topics from Mike Tyson's animalistic tendencies to Klitschko's hatred of all that "Great White Hope" hype.