Dillian Whyte gets his revenge on Alexander Povetkin!
After four rounds of hectic action, Dillan “The Body Snatcher” Whyte (28-2, 19 KO’s) claimed a satisfying knockout win. With this victory over Alexander “Sasha” Povetkin (36-3-1, 25 KO’s) he has secured the interim WBC heavyweight title. Aside from merely being another conquest, this win was doubly sweet for the revenge factor.
Last year Povetkin and Whyte went head-to-head for the first time. That fight was a back-and-forth slugfest that did not disappoint the fans at all. Vexingly, after putting Povetkin down on the canvas twice in the fourth, Whyte was concussed himself in the fifth. A beautiful left upper cut left the Body Snatcher splayed out spread eagle by the ropes. After watching his head dribble off the mat the ref didn’t bother with a count and near immediately waved the contest off.
SWEET COLD REVENGE
The grudge match got off to a wild start right from the beginning. Whyte was able to land a quick short right hand square on Povetkin’s jaw bone. Technically the Russian ate the punch well but the Body Snatcher pursued with a series of heavy blows. None of the over hand rights and lefts connected or landed flush. Although, Povetkin stumbled and slid across the ring like he was wearing church socks on a polished marble floor. Despite his seeming vulnerability, Sasha gathered himself and finished the round without further mishap.
The second was a fairly even round. Povetkin remained stabilized and fought a good bounce-back round. The Russian also started landing a looping over hand right on the back of Whyte’s head. The placement was largely due to the Body Snatcher dropping his head down.
In the third period, Whyte socked Povetkin in the face with a powerful right hook. To his credit the Russian took it like a champ, but he was still driven back and buzzed by it.
Naturally Whyte came out aggressively to begin the fourth. Yet the end was soon to come. With roughly 45 seconds to go, the Body Snatcher caught Povetkin rushing in with a crisp right hook. The Russian didn’t buckle but was put into retreat. Moments later Whyte measured Sasha with a probing jab then clobbered him with a straight right in the mouth. The punch instantly jellied the Russian’s legs who stumbled to his right. Whyte quickly reloaded and threw the straight right again. This time it struck the neck an knocked the Russian veteran further off balance. A final left hook would put him down!
Hurt, Povetkin made it to his feet but got caught in the ropes trying to straighten himself. Seeing his legs were still soft as microwaved honey buns, the referee quickly called the match off. Truly it was academic because as the fight was stopped by the ref as Sasha’s corner threw the towel in.
Now that he resumed his position as the WBC heavyweight mandatory challenger, Whyte will make it his business to get his title shot. Presently, WBC heavyweight champion Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury has his own fish to fry. If everything goes as planned Fury will face three-belt unified champion Anthony “AJ” Joshua next. The Body Snatcher will be an eager witness to that showdown seeing as how he will try his best to fight the winner next.
By: Bakari Simpson
