Povetkin vs Whyte 2 confirmed
Cold War confirmed between Russian Vityaz and Brixton Body Snatcher
WBC Interim World heavyweight champion Alexander Povetkin (36-2-1, 25KOs) will defend his title in a rematch with Dillian Whyte (27-2, 18KOs) on March 6 in the UK.
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed the date during his participation in DAZN's “The Ak & Barak Show”.
The rematch between Povetkin and Whyte was scheduled for late November at first, but Povetkin tested positive for COVID-19 and the fight had to be postponed.
The initial plan was for Matchroom to reschedule Povetkin vs Whyte 2 for January 30, but the 41-year-old Russian 'Vityaz' had an extensive recovery process to endure due to his battle with coronavirus.
“I have rested well, I have spent time with my family, soon I will return to my training camp and prepare as thoroughly, as I did for the first fight. As I said before the first fight and also after, Dillian Whyte is a strong boxer. I’ll be ready to step into the ring. I hope it’s another great fight for the fans,” said former WBA World champion Povetkin, trained by Ivan Kirpa.
Ex-British champion Whyte said, “I’m happy to get the rematch. As soon as I got out of the ring, I was looking for confirmation of the rematch. I can’t wait to get back in the ring and take back what’s mine. There will be no major adjustments, but I just need to be more turned in and not get distracted. I’m going to win and knock him out. I’m going to even the score and the only way to do it is by knocking him out.”
The fight, promoted by Matchroom Boxing, will be broadcast on DAZN.
In their first meeting, in the final week of Matchroom's 'Fight Camp' series during the summer of 2020, the WBC #1 began brightly by decking the Russian visitor twice in the fourth round, but the 2004 Olympic gold medallist came back strong in the fifth stanza to land a hellacious uppercut that put the 32-year-old Londoner to sleep in an instant.
The rematch was confirmed the very next day, as a wounded Whyte instantly called for it the moment he left the ring.
The World Boxing Council confirmed previously that the winner of the rematch will be awarded the WBC Diamond belt, and they also assured that if Dillian Whyte prevails, he will be ratified as the official challenger to face their champion Tyson Fury. However, this was ruled when Fury was arranging the trilogy fight with Deontay Wilder, which has since expired, so the rule will possibly be revisited by the organisation in their next rulings.
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