Alexander Povetkin looked bad even before start of fight

By Boxing News - 03/28/2021 - Comments

By Charles Brun: Questions circulated on social media today about whether Alexander Povetkin’s training team knew something wasn’t right with him last Saturday with his rematch with Dillian Whyte.

What did Povetkin’s training team know about him to make them throw in the towel so quickly after he was dropped in the fourth round by Whyte?

They didn’t throw in the towel last year in his first fight with Dillian after being dropped twice, which hint that they knew Povetkin wasn’t right.

With Povetkin’s history of coming back after being hurt, it seems highly unusual that his trainer would throw in the towel right away last night.

There’s a belief by some that the COVID 19 that Povetkin (36-3-1, 25 KOs) suffered late last year hit him harder than expected, leaving him depleted after his recovery.  To say that Povetkin didn’t look at 100% against Whyte is an understatement. He appeared to be running at 25% capacity.

Image: Alexander Povetkin looked bad even before start of fight

Povetkin’s physique lacked the toned look that he had for the first fight with Dillian Whyte in August 2020, and his legs weren’t under him from round one last night.

Whatever problems that Povetkin had last night were likely there during training camp; it’s difficult to believe his team didn’t spot them.

Just watching Povetkin workout with his trainer before the fight last night, he didn’t look good. His speed wasn’t there and didn’t show the same power and energy he’d had in the past.

Also, Povetkin’s body looked flabby, as if he hadn’t trained hard enough to get in top shape. He isn’t an Andy Ruiz Jr type of guy that would blow off training sessions so he can eat and party with his friends.

Povetkin has always been a dedicated fighter, a guy that works hard to prepare for his fights.

The way that Povetkin looked against Dillian, it’s easy to believe that he wasn’t fully back from his COVID 19.

Although Povetkin had the virus out of his system, obviously, he looked depleted like someone that had gone through hell, leaving him just an empty shell afterward.

The way Povetkin fought against Dillian didn’t look like it was age-related. It looked more like Povetkin wasn’t there after recovering from his COVID.

With the way that this virus wipes people out sometimes for a long, long time involving many months, it’s hard to imagine it not doing the same thing to Povetkin, given the way he looked.

The obvious question is, did Povetkin come back too soon from the COVID? Would Povetkin have been better off if he’d waited until August or September to fight Whyte?

Image: Alexander Povetkin looked bad even before start of fight

If Povetkin was still fighting the COVID as of December, that means he had to jump straight into training camp after recovering. That had to have been a daunting task for Povetkin, and it’s difficult to believe that he was able to train with the same intensity as he did for his previous fight with Whyte.

There was no energy in Povetkin’s shots, his balance wasn’t there, and he looked considerably older than the fighter that had beaten Whyte a year ago.

It’s unclear how Povetkin’s team couldn’t have noticed how feeble he was. Did they notice and hope for the best? Again, that might explain why the towel was thrown in so quickly by Povetkin’s training team in the fourth when he was knocked down.

Povetkin looked like he shouldn’t have been out there against Whyte, as he had nothing at all. You hate to take credit away from Dillian, but you can’t give him any kudos for his win over Povetkin, given how he looked and fought.

He looked so bad that even a bottom feeder type of heavyweights like Zhang Zhilei or Hughie Fury would have destroyed him last night.