Vitali Klitschko compiled a 45-2 record with 41 knockouts. His first defeat came against Chris Byrd in April 2000 when a shoulder injury forced him to quit after nine rounds despite leading on the scorecards.
Seven months later, Wladimir handled the problem his older brother couldn’t finish. He dropped Byrd twice and defeated him by a wide 12-round decision.
The roles were reversed after one of the biggest shocks of Wladimir’s career.
Corrie Sanders overwhelmed Wladimir in two rounds in March 2003, dropping him four times and taking his WBO heavyweight title. Thirteen months later, Vitali fought Sanders for the vacant WBC belt and stopped the South African in eight rounds.
Vitali’s most famous defeat was considerably different. He was leading Lennox Lewis 58-56 on all three scorecards after six rounds in their violent June 2003 fight when severe cuts around his left eye forced the stoppage. Lewis never fought again, leaving one of boxing’s biggest unanswered questions behind.
Vitali later became the WBC division’s dominant champion. His victories included Samuel Peter, Chris Arreola, Shannon Briggs, Tomasz Adamek and Derek Chisora. He finished his career in September 2012 by stopping Manuel Charr.
Wladimir’s reign was longer.
After early knockout defeats against Ross Puritty, Sanders and Lamon Brewster, he rebuilt his career under trainer Emanuel Steward. Wladimir stopped Byrd in their second fight in 2006 to win the IBF title and remained heavyweight champion for the next nine years.
He defeated Sultan Ibragimov, Ruslan Chagaev, David Haye, Alexander Povetkin, Kubrat Pulev and Bryant Jennings before Tyson Fury outpointed him in Düsseldorf in November 2015.
Wladimir returned for one final fight against Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium in April 2017. At 41, he dropped Joshua in the sixth round before being stopped in the 11th of a classic title fight. He retired with a 64-5 record and 53 knockouts.
Their styles and personalities were different. Vitali was the more awkward, aggressive fighter and possessed an exceptional chin. Wladimir became the more technically disciplined boxer under Steward, controlling opponents with his jab, right hand and clinching.
The question boxing never answered was which Klitschko was actually better.
They made sure it stayed that way.
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