Once is happenstance, twice is a coincidence, so would it occur again? Perennial contender ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฌ๐งDillian “Bodysnatcher” Whyte (28-2-0, 19KO) emphatically made sure that wasn’t the case, reversing his fortune by knocking out Gold-Medalist/top contender
๐ท๐บAlexander “Sasha” Povetkin (36-3-1, 25KO
) by way of 4th round TKO to get his WBC “Interim” World Heavyweight Title back for future plans.
The ๐ชจRumble on the Rock (as it was dubbed coming in) got off to a sloppy start, with both boxers overzealous to land the big shot, and Povetkin’s balance was especially off to start. The round was won by the big Brit, due to his range attack, and landing the long counter right hand.
Much of the same ensued in the second round, and a welt began to surface around Povetkin’s left eye. By this point in the fight, Whyte was doing a better job boxing than he did the first time around, although periodically he had sloppy sequences customary to him.
Midway through round 3, Dillian landed a strong overhand right that shocked the powerful Russian to his boots, and he staggered once again by the same follow up punch. At the end of the round, Whyte also got his attention with a straighter right hand. Throughout the fight, the jab was the key, from Dillian, and Alex had no defense for it.
For whatever reason, the Russian Vityaz couldn’t get his punches off, his normal defensive acumen wasn’t there, and his aforementioned balance was all over the place – quite frankly, the 41 year old after all this time FINALLY began to start looking his age. Dillian in the 4th round landed a long right hand while Povetkin’s back was to the ropes, and he was badly hurt. Coming off of the ropes, Whyte swooped in to end the night with a sweeping killer left hook. Down while in terrible shape, he swayed, with very heavy struggle back up to his feet, but
Referee Victor Loughlin accurately noted that none of his faculties were in order, and called the fight.
Dillian Whyte got his revenge, and he got his WBC “Interim” World Heavyweight Title back in the process, putting him right back to no-mans-land, in his ongoing pursuit to fight for the WBC World Heavyweight Crown (
๐ฌ๐งTyson Fury has it, but with talks of a potential fight with
๐ฌ๐งAnthony Joshua, who knows who will have the belt by that time)…the main thing is Dillian is back in the race, and adds another credible win to his populated resume. He definitely doesn’t qualify to be the best fighter in the division, but certainly in terms of resume comparison, he ranks comparatively well against the rest of the lot.