CANCUN, Mexico - When Samuel Peter stepped onto the polished marble in his upscale hotel's lobby late Saturday night, he looked more like a vacationing millionaire than the heavyweight champion of the world.

His crisp linen shirt and shorts couldn't fool the dozens of people who slowly realized they were drinking tequila next to the man who knocked out Oleg Maskaev to win the WBC title two hours earlier. Spring-breaking students, gleeful retirees and a handful of jubilant Nigerian fans crowded Peter, demanding pictures, autographs and handshakes.

Peter filled all the requests and sat down to eat at the lobby bar — but a television above his head soon showed replays of his sixth-round victory, leading to cheers and more backslapping.

It's good to be the king of the Mayan Riviera, even if a heavyweight title doesn't have nearly the same royal sheen it carried in the days of Louis, Marciano, Ali or even Tyson.

"Oh, thank you, thank you," Peter said with a smile before the umpteenth hug from a stranger.

Even before beating Maskaev into submission in a bullfighting ring, Peter carried the aura of someone to watch in a sport that still hungers for a dominant, charismatic heavyweight champion. In addition to Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Roy Jones Jr., several past greats traveled to Cancun to see Peter's coronation, including Larry Holmes, Gerry Cooney, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran and Julio Cesar Chavez.

Peter, Nigerian-born and Las Vegas-based, already has the boundless bravado he'll need to become the division's first unified champ since Lennox Lewis retired in 2004. Whether he has the skill and stamina will be determined in the coming months when he takes on the Klitschko brothers, who currently stand in front of almost every door Peter hopes to knock down.

"(The) Klitschkos are very good fighters, but for right now, I'm the best heavyweight in the world," Peter said. "I will fight them any time, anywhere. I'll beat both of them on the same night. First the older one, and then the other one."

Two hours earlier, Peter (30-1, 23 KOs) was still dripping wet from the exertion of his hard-charging performance at Plaza de Toros when he called out both Wladimir Klitschko, the IBF and WBO champion generally considered the division's dominant player, and older brother Vitali Klitschko, the WBC emeritus champion who hasn't fought in 3 1/2 years.

The WBC says Vitali is entitled to the first crack at Peter, and both Klitschkos have said he intends to take it.

"Samuel respects the WBC, and if they tell us we have to fight Vitali, we are ready to begin negotiations tomorrow," said Dino Duva, Peter's promoter. "We will do whatever the WBC says. Samuel will honor it, but our goal long-term is to unify the titles."

That goal is shared by Wladimir Klitschko, who was responsible for the only defeat of Peter's career in September 2005. Peter knocked down Klitschko three times, but couldn't disagree with the unanimous decision against him.

"I didn't take that fight serious," Peter said with a shrug. "I didn't really take boxing serious, but now, with the big-money fights coming up, I take it serious. ... He doesn't need the IBF (title). He needs this one. He's going to come for this, and he'll get stopped."

A rematch would be the biggest heavyweight fight in several years, and it can't happen quickly enough for Peter, who got $1.4 million to beat Maskaev.

"I'm going to get it, because I'm going to beat his brother," Peter said.

Slideshow   The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos

Peter wasn't always impressive in the 2 1/2 years since his defeat, but he seems more mature and disciplined now. Though Maskaev (34-6) was knocked out for the sixth time in his checkered career, he's a smart fighter who simply couldn't stay out of trouble against Peter, who bulled forward for several key exchanges that weakened his 39-year-old opponent.

"I will be back," Maskaev said. "My team and I will talk, and we'll get a few fights together. I can't blame anybody. It was all my fault. My trainer did a good job training me, and I failed."

Maskaev enjoyed his unlikely 19-month reign as champion, but Peter has a chance to do something special with the belt.

"I could fight again tomorrow," Peter said. "I'm ready for anyone."