Povetkin against the Russian thunderstorm and the most important fight in Joshua's career: what is interesting about the boxing evening in Saudi Arabia

Rise of Povetkin

As part of the boxing evening in Ediriya, Russian boxer Alexander Povetkin will continue a series of performances abroad. For the fourth consecutive time, he will hold a duel outside of Russia and will try to extend the winning streak. This time, his rival will be the talented heavyweight Michael Hunter, who owns the WBA Inter-Continental belt.

Towards the end of his career, Povetkin decided to remind himself to foreign promoters again and for the last year and a half has been fighting exclusively abroad. During this time, he managed to prevail over David Price, suffer a heavy defeat from Joshua, but return. In the battle with Huey Fury, he proved that even at the age of 40 he is able to compete with younger opponents on equal terms and pose a danger to top boxers of the planet.

In this regard, for Povetkin, the upcoming battle is not just an opportunity to earn money before retiring, but also a chance to fight for the third time for the title. Currently, he is in sixth place in the ranking of the World Boxing Association (WBA), and if successful, is able to rise to at least fifth place. At the moment, it is occupied by Louis Ortiz, one and a half weeks ago lost to Deontay Wilder.

Alexander himself does everything in his power to achieve the goal. So, a year and a half ago, he was not afraid of change and made his first appearance in the UK in his career, and now he went to Saudi Arabia. In addition, the Russian does not give up heavy challenges, agreeing to battle with much younger and more hungry opponents. This applies to both Fury Jr. and Hunter.

The 31-year-old American made his heavyweight debut only in April 2018, but already managed to become one of the fastest growing representatives of the category. So, in his asset six victories appear, two of which were won over Russian athletes. So, in November last year, he easily dealt with Alexander Ustinov and won the WBA International belt, and 10 months later he got the better of Sergey Kuzmin. The fight took place at the Madison Square Garden arena in New York and lasted all 12 rounds, and the judges unanimously sided with Michael.

Thus, for Hunter, the fight with Povetkin will be the second in the last two months and the third in May. The fact that an athlete is ready to enter the ring so often speaks of his incredible endurance and determination. Indeed, on average, breaks between fights among boxers are about three to four months.

It is worth noting that Povetkin’s last fight was on August 31, therefore, his rest will be a little more than Hunter’s. Given that Alexander is nine years older, this could play a trick on him. It is unclear whether the Russian will be able to properly recover or repeat the fate of Sergei Kovalev.

Perhaps the current situation in the heavy division is an additional motivation for Povetkin. According to the head of the Boxing World promotion company Andrei Ryabinsky, this fight will become an eliminator for the WBA world title, which will most likely allow the winner to qualify for the belt in the near future. It is possible that Alexander’s team hopes to beat Ruiz for him. According to the representative of the athlete, he is a much more convenient opponent for him than Joshua.

One of the main reasons can be considered the difference in size between the Mexican and the British. Povetkin always experienced problems in battles with high opponents, which was perfectly shown by his duel with Vladimir Klitschko and the same Joshua. Against a less tall athlete, he could look more preferable and have a much greater chance of success.

In addition, you can not hesitate, and due to the age of the Russian citizen. Heavyweights are famous for their longevity, but no one is immune from sharp drops in shape. Currently, Povetkin feels great and this moment should not be missed.

A moment of truth for Joshua

The hopes of the Russians can only be crossed out by the Briton himself. On December 7, he will hold one of the most important fights in his career, and defeat can not only put an end to it, but also morally break the athlete. The second consecutive failure in a duel with Ruiz risks becoming a blow for Joshua, from which he will not be able to recover.

Over the past years, Anthony was considered the golden boy of boxing and until July 1, 2019, he fully corresponded to this status. He owned three heavyweight belts, had the gold of the Olympics in London, and was considered the most talented heavyweight of his generation. In addition, it was he who interrupted the nine-year reign of Wladimir Klitschko, who until then had not yielded in 22 battles in a row.

It is noteworthy that the Ukrainian had a chance to send a vis-a-vis on the floor. But, if Klitschko failed to knock out Joshua, then Ruiz finished the job. In the seventh round, he twice knocked the champion down and toppled him from the throne.

This failure seriously affected Joshua. According to him, for about three weeks he constantly thought and analyzed the fiasco, and in preparation for the rematch he seriously revised the preparation methodology. After the first fight, many criticized him for his excessive muscularity, as a result of which the Briton decided to significantly reduce weight. Thanks to this, he hoped to become more maneuverable and gain the upper hand not due to power, but thanks to technology.

The ultimate concentration of Joshua is understandable. The second defeat in a row will not only seriously hinder his career and drop him in the ratings, but also hit the fighter’s self-esteem. According to Tyson Fury, two losses in a row by knockout will mean the end of his career for Anthony, because he is unlikely to want to return to the ring after such a shock.

In this regard, in anticipation of a rematch, it is Joshua who is experiencing increased pressure, while Ruiz feels quite comfortable. He already entered his name in history as the first Mexican heavyweight champion and managed to earn money. According to media reports, for the first battle he received about $ 7 million, and the fee for the second fight will be about $ 13 million.

Ruiz has already jumped above his head and created a real sensation. Even in case of failure, he will remain in the heavy weight elite and will get a chance to improve his well-being, and in the future, and again beat for the belt. Nevertheless, the success in the first battle instilled in him the confidence that it could very well help him to shock the whole world again.

However, it is worth recognizing that in terms of talent and opportunities Ruiz is significantly inferior to Joshua. The reason for the loss in the first battle was the serious tactical mistakes of the Briton, the imperfect form and the colossal underestimation of the opponent. It is difficult to imagine that such a smart boxer as Anthony will step on the same rake twice, and therefore his success seems more logical.

The sudden replacement of the opponent three weeks before the fight and not the most impressive form of the Mexican played a cruel joke with him and became the cause of a crushing failure. But Joshua, by all appearance, demonstrates that he made conclusions from the current situation and does not intend to make such mistakes in Saudi Arabia.