Alexander Povetkin – Mike Perez tomorrow night in Moscow, Russia

By Boxing News - 05/21/2015 - Comments

povetkin123By Allan Fox: Tomorrow night, #1 WBC Alexander Povetkin (28-1, 20 KOs) will be facing #2 WBC Mike Perez (21-1-1, 13 KOs) on May 22nd in a World Boxing Council heavyweight title eliminator bout at the Luzhniki, in Moscow, Russia.

The winner of the Povetkin vs. Perez clash will be the WBC mandatory challenger for WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder. The 35-year-old Povetkin has to be seen as the favorite in this fight because he’s looked better in his last couple of fights, and he’s done better than Perez.

Povetkin has wins over Manuel Charr and Carlos Takam in his last two bouts. In contrast, the 29-year-old Perez has a controversial 10 round draw against Carlos Takam in January 2014, followed by a 12 round split decision loss to Bryant Jennings and then a 2nd round stoppage over Darnell Wilson.

Both Poevkin and Perez are considered small heavyweights. They’re going to have problems when they step it up against Wilder unless they can cut off the ring on him and try and get to his chin. Povetkin didn’t do a very good job of accomplishing that task in his 12 round decision loss to Wladimir Klitschko in 2013.

Povetkin was at the mercy of the taller 6’6” Wladimir, and each time he tried to come in close, he was tied up in a clinch. Povetkin’s lack of height and reach was a limiting factor for him in the fight. But against the 6’1” Perez, Povetkin should have no problems getting his shots off.

This fight will come down to which of the two has the better stamina and skills. Both are equal in punching power and size. Povetkin, 6’2”, is just a little bit taller than Perez, but both guys have pretty much the same reach.

Perez is going to need to fight a lot better than he did against Takam and Jennings for him to beat Povetkin. I’m not sure if he can do it though because he’s facing a really highly skilled fighter, and Povetkin will have the hometown advantage with the bout taking place in Moscow, Russia.

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In other action on the card, former world title challengers Alex Leapai takes on Manuel Charr. This should be a good fight. Both guys can punch a little, but both of them are lacking in hand speed. Undefeated cruiserweight Dmitry “The Russian Hammer” Kudryashov (17-0, 17 KOs) fights Vikapita Meroro (28-4, 14 KOs). This will be a little test for the 29-year-old Kudryashov, who is coming off of a 1st round knockout win over Francisco Palacios last April. Kudryashov needs to get a world title shot because he’s getting up there in age. WBC cruiserweight champion Grigory Drozd (39-1, 27 KOs) faces Lukas Janik (28-2, 15 KOs).



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