Earlier this afternoon WBA World Heavyweight Champion Alexander Povetkin (26-0, 18 KO) kept his unblemished record in tact and retained his belt while handing challenger Andrzej Wawrzyk (27-1, 13 KO) the first loss of his career.
Povetkin went to work in front of his hometown fans and outworked the Polish fighter through the first three rounds of the fight, dropping him three times leading up to the stoppage. Going into this bout there was some talk about Wawrzyk being a dangerous opponent who may derail Povetkin from battling heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko to unify their belts, but Povetkin went out and did what he had to do.
Almost immediately following Povetkin’s win did promoters announce that a date was set for the heavyweight showdown against Klitschko to take place. The fight is currently scheduled to take place October 5 of this year in Moscow.
Wladimir Klitschko (60-3, 51 KO) made easy work of Francisco Pianeta earlier this month, stopping the Italian fighter in the sixth round of the one-sided fight. He has dismissed of countless heavyweight challengers and former champions into securing himself as the current IBO/WBO/WBA/IBF champion, and has not suffered a defeat since 2004.
Povetkin has been asking for this fight against Klitschko, and much like others who have battled ‘Dr. Steelhammer’, is confident he has the recipe for success against the towering Ukrainian.
October 5 Alexander will face the toughest test of his career when he vies for the unified heavyweight titles in front of his Russian fans.