Earlier today, Vitali Klitscko vacated his WBC belt and was made champion emeritus as he leaves the boxing ring for the political arena.

Indeed the heavyweight boxer faces a more arduous battle than anything he has faced in the ring.

A central figure in the opposition protests against the current regime in Ukraine, Klitschko is a member of the county's parliament and announced his candidacy for the 2015 Ukrainian presidential elections.

Tonight, we were joined by ESPN boxing correspondent Dan Rafael to discuss the path for the former champion.

"His future out of the ring is certainly involved in the political situation in the Ukraine where he is a presidential candidate in 2015. He is the leader of the UDAR opposition party which is growing in popularity. That's where his future is at the moment," said Rafael, who confirmed that Klitsckho's status as champion emeritus grants him exemptions from fighting elimination fights if he decides to return to boxing - in short he would get first shot at the WBC champion.

"He calls the Ukrainian government the most corrupt government in the world. He speaks as someone who has grown up in the Ukraine but also spent many years living in Germany and the United States where his children were born and he knows how good it can be in a freer country. What he wants to do is to help reform the government and bring it close to a more western standard and link the Ukraine's political and economic future to the European Union rather than to Russia and the Putin government. He is a towering figure in that movement."