Heavyweight champ Klitschko says hand will be 'fine'

	Wladimir Klitschko avenged a fifth-round TKO loss to Lamon Brewster in 2004. Patrik Stollarz/AFP/Getty Images

By Chris Mannix, SI.com

NEW YORK -- IBF and IBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko refuted a report Sunday that he suffered a broken hand during his win over Lamon Brewster.

In the aftermath of the fight, which saw Klitschko assault an overmatched Brewster with a devastating array of jabs until Brewster quit on his stool before the seventh round, Klitschko's assistant trainer Jamen Ali Bashir told The Associated Press that Klitschko had a broken middle finger.

"What are they saying about my hand over there?" asked Klitschko in a telephone interview from Germany. "It's not broken. It's not a big issue. There is some damage but it's not that serious. Sometimes when you fight your hand swells up. In a couple of weeks I'll be fine. It's my health and people like to talk about it a lot."

Over the last two years the 31-year old Klitschko has become a benevolent version of Ivan Drago. Brewster became the fourth consecutive American opponent Klitschko has stopped, with each fight ending in seven rounds or less.

Former four-time heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield told SI.com last week that he would like a shot at Klitschko, who says he will consider Holyfield for his next fight, but he is also eyeing the unification fight between WBO champion Sultan Ibragimov and WBA champ Ruslan Chagaev that will take place in October.

"We need one champion," said Klitschko.