Bruce LudlowAlexander Povetkin: Now a Viable Contender
November 1st 2007 03:44
Povetkin is now waiting for the winner of the Chambers-Brock fight to complete the IBF tournament. He is also a couple of steps closer in challenging the #1 Heavyweight and IBF Champion Wladimir Klitschko. But as a contender in the Heavyweights, it is interesting to see how will he match up with the other big men.
Based from what I saw in his fight against Byrd, he seems to have problems with boxers who are skillful. His defense was not that good since he was repeatedly tagged with jabs and he has a bad time defending his lower body when Byrd punches him downstairs but his will and great infighting will definitely give him victories. He may not have that single KO punch power like Shannon Briggs, Klitschko, Maskaev, Brewster or Virchis have but he still hits hard enough. He now has 11 KOs in 14 fights and all his stoppage wins were from accumulation of hard punches. He also moves quick and has a decent footwork inside the ring. Povetkin also needs to burn some of his fat away because he kind of chubby and he got tired during the late rounds in his victory against Chris Byrd.
It is good to see him stepping up in challenge to face a tough fighter like Chris Byrd. He should still be fighting prospects like JD Chapman, Kevin Johnson, Chirs Arreola, or Travis Walker in my opinion because I don't know if he can handle the top contenders and champions in the Heavyweights this early in his career.
I don't think he is ready to fight Klitschko or the other champions yet. Wladimir Klitschko would have a field day prepping his face with that hard jab of his. I don't know how Povetkin will deal with Wlad's clinching when he moves in close. The fight would be over if he catches Klitschko's very hard right straight or left hook with his face. He needs to have better head movement if he wants to have a good fight versus Wladimir.
He would match up really well with Sultan Ibragimov (WBO Champ) if he ever gets to fight him. Ibragimov boxes well like Byrd but he is faster and punches hard. Povetkin's hands might be full in dealing with Ibragimov's hit and run tactic and speed. This would be a very entertaining fight, pitting two skilled Russians. I think Povetkin has chance in beating the WBO Champion since he was wobbled by an aging Holyfield and dropped by a slow Ray Austin.
If he fights Ruslan Chagaev (WBA), there is a good chance that Povetkin might lose on points or by a late TKO. Chagaev is a very skilled boxer and is also a hard puncher. He beat John Ruiz and the giant Nikolai Valuev by utilizing his speed and boxing skills in those fights. Povetkin might get countered by Chagaev and there is a big chance that he will get dominated because of Chagaev's style. The same goes if he fights WBC Champion Oleg Maskaev. Maskaev is a very hard puncher and is capable of stopping anyone early in the fight plus he is also a skilled boxer but he moves a slow.
He might have problems fighting big contenders like Shannon Briggs, Sergei Lyakhovic, Vladimir Virchis, Sam Peter, Tony Thompson but he has enough guts and skill to give everyone a hard time. I think Povetkin can be a formidable title challenger in the future.
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