Anthony Joshua vs Alexander Povetkin

Unified WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua retained his titles by stopping Alexander Povetkin in the seventh round before a crowd of about 80,000 at Wembley Stadium in London on September 22, 2018. The end came 1 minute 59 seconds after Joshua endured a difficult opening and then steadily took command of the contest. Povetkin, a former WBA title-holder and 2004 Olympic super-heavyweight champion, had been beaten only once in 35 professional contests, by Wladimir Klitschko on points, and entered as one of Joshua's most experienced challengers.

Povetkin began quickly and made immediate use of his shorter stature by slipping inside Joshua’s jab and attacking with hooks and overhand rights. Late in the first round, he caught the champion with a sharp combination, including an uppercut and left hook, which disturbed Joshua’s balance and left him with a bloodied nose. Povetkin was again the more aggressive man in the second, stepping into range in bursts and making Joshua uncomfortable whenever the champion allowed him to get beneath the longer arms. Joshua, who weighed about 245 pounds against Povetkin’s 222, was clearly the bigger man but, for the opening six minutes, had not yet found a safe way of imposing that advantage.

From the third round, Joshua began making better use of his reach. Instead of waiting for Povetkin’s rushes, he started jabbing more regularly to both head and body and kept the Russian at the end of straight punches. The body jab was particularly useful. Povetkin remained dangerous when he could close the distance, especially with the left hook, but he was increasingly being forced to cross more ground before punching. Joshua appeared calmer in the fourth, where his straighter work began to leave marks on the challenger, including a cut above Povetkin’s left eye. The pattern of the contest was changing. Povetkin could still score with the heavier-looking single blows, but Joshua was beginning to dictate where the exchanges took place.

Povetkin made another effort in the fifth and was rewarded on all three official cards, but the amount of movement required to get past Joshua’s jab was beginning to tell. He had always been an accomplished pressure fighter, but at 39 he was being asked to repeatedly leap into punching range against a younger man four inches taller and more than 20 pounds heavier. Joshua continued concentrating on the body and gradually reduced the challenger’s speed. By the sixth, Povetkin was still dangerous enough to land in exchanges, and one judge gave him the round, but Joshua’s control was becoming firmer. A short right hand from the champion found the target at close range, and Povetkin absorbed it well, though he was no longer entering with the same freshness he had shown at the start.

The official scoring after six rounds showed Joshua ahead, though the contest had by no means been one-sided. Carlos Sucre had the champion leading 59-55, while Matteo Montella and Jean-Robert Laine each had it 58-56. Sucre gave Joshua the first four rounds and the sixth; Montella awarded Povetkin the second and fifth, while Laine gave the challenger the fifth and sixth. The cards reflected the contrast between Joshua’s steadier work and Povetkin’s more eye-catching power attacks. CompuBox later recorded Joshua as having landed 90 of 256 punches, with 53 jabs among them, while Povetkin landed 47 of 181. Povetkin actually held an advantage in power punches landed, 43 to 37, but Joshua’s jab and body work had gradually altered the balance of the fight.

The decisive change came in the seventh. Joshua, by then settled and punching with greater confidence, found Povetkin with a hard straight right which visibly stunned him. He followed with the left and then drove home a left hook and right hand as the Russian’s defence broke down. Povetkin fell heavily and partly through the ropes. He managed to rise, but his legs were unsteady, and Joshua moved directly to finish matters. Another series of hard punches sent Povetkin backwards once more, and referee Steve Gray intervened at 1:59 without allowing the challenger to absorb further punishment. Povetkin had never previously been stopped in a professional contest.

The victory took Joshua’s record to 22 wins from 22 contests, 21 of them inside the distance, and represented the first defence of the WBO championship he had taken from Joseph Parker six months earlier, as well as further successful defences of his WBA, IBF and IBO belts. It was not an effortless performance. Povetkin had exposed Joshua’s vulnerability to a shorter fighter capable of changing levels and punching over the jab, and for two rounds the champion looked distinctly uncomfortable. Joshua’s response, however, was methodical. He increased the use of the jab, attacked the body, forced Povetkin to expend energy entering range and waited until the older man’s speed had declined before committing fully to the finish. The result was a more complete victory than the early exchanges had suggested and confirmed that Joshua could adjust during a difficult heavyweight championship contest rather than depending solely upon size and punching power.

I thought this was one of Anthony Joshua’s better wins because Povetkin made him solve problems rather than simply letting him impose his size. People forget how accomplished Povetkin was. Olympic gold medallist, former world champion, only beaten by Wladimir Klitschko, and still ranked among the best heavyweights around. He wasn’t coming to Wembley to make up the numbers.

The first couple of rounds showed exactly why he was dangerous. Povetkin was getting underneath Joshua’s jab, changing levels and coming over the top with the right hand and left hook. He bloodied Joshua’s nose and had him looking uncomfortable. That wasn’t Joshua being poor; that was a shorter, experienced heavyweight knowing how to get inside on a taller man.

What impressed me was that Joshua didn’t lose his head. He started jabbing to the body, stopped giving Povetkin easy entries and made him work harder every time he wanted to close the gap. By the fifth and sixth rounds, Povetkin was still dangerous, but he was beginning to look more ragged and was having to reach for his punches.

Then Joshua got him properly in the seventh. The right hand hurt Povetkin, the follow-up put him down, and once he got up, Joshua finished the job. Povetkin had never been stopped before.

For me, that’s what made the win impressive. Joshua had a difficult start, made the adjustment and broke down a very good heavyweight rather than just blasting through him.