It was a case of sweet revenge tonight in Gibraltar, as Dillian Whyte hammered Alexander Povetkin to a fourth-round stoppage defeat. Whyte landed a huge right hand to the head of Povetkin, then another, and then he sent the Russian to the canvas with a hard left hook to the head. The towel came flying in and the fight was over. Time was 2:39 of the fourth round, and Whyte is now 28-2(19). Povetkin falls to 36-3-1(25).
Whyte, showing no signs of being gun-shy or overly cautious, instead came out fast at the opening bell. A right hand to the top of Povetkin’s head sent the older man into the ropes, Povetkin’s legs looking unsteady. Whyte soon landed another right, this shot a clean blow. Whyte was wild as he looked for the quick stoppage and there were moments when a Whyte fan must have had their heart in their mouth. Whyte was a little reckless, taking chances. But overall, the fight proved to be a one-sided affair, with Whyte’s power shots landing again and again. Povetkin, his face reddening, his left cheek swelling up noticeably, was unable to make Whyte pay when “The Body Snatcher” was wild with his shots and there was no repeat of last August’s fight.
Whyte looked extremely powerful tonight, with both hands. “No-one can take that power,” Whyte declared after picking up what he says might have been the best KO he has scored in his career. So who next for Whyte, now the interim WBC heavyweight champ once again? Eddie Hearn, who stated how Whyte “manhandled Povetkin from the start,” said he would like to see Whyte fight again in the summer. Once again, Hearn mentioned Deontay Wilder’s name, saying yet again how he would very much like to see that fight get over the line. Hearn also said Whyte may have his next fight in the US, adding how the main goal is for Whyte to get a world title shot. Most importantly, Hearn said, Whyte will be kept busy and active.
His over-eagerness and wildness aside, Whyte looked great tonight. There were no nerves, no ill effects from the nasty KO he suffered last year, and Whyte was naturally thrilled with his revenge win. The addition of Harold “The Shadow” Knight, former long-time co-trainer of the great Lennox Lewis, does seem to have added something to Whyte. In fact, Whyte seemed to be paying more attention to Knight when he was in the corner, this in comparison to his head coach. “Absolutely Dillian can become heavyweight champion,” Knight said after the fight. “I wouldn’t have accepted this assignment (of training Whyte) if not.”
So can Whyte become world champion? Will Whyte fight Wilder? The future is exciting for the British warrior who suffered such a bad fall last summer. As for Povetkin, beaten for just the third time in his long career, it will be interesting to see if he announces his retirement in the coming weeks. There is no real need for a Whyte-Povetkin III, even if the two men are even at 1-1. Whyte fought with sheer aggression, combined with some smarts tonight. Whyte paid tribute to the late, great Marvelous Marvin Hagler, with the former middleweight king’s name emblazoned on his robe tonight.
It was a one-sided fight, but it was exciting stuff while it lasted.
