The results are in from Friday night Russia. In the show’s main event which I was finally able to watch today, Alexander Povetkin fought his way to a wide and clear unanimous decision against a disinterested seeming Christian Hammer in a pretty disappointing fight.
I didn’t think Christian Hammer (22-5, 12 KOs) stood much of a chance of beating Alexander Povetkin (33-1, 23 KOs), but I expected him to try to win. I was wrong. Despite being the considerably thicker man in there, the Romanian fringe contender chose to hold or retreat almost exclusively throughout the fight. Povetkin did what he could to pepper Hammer with shots and did particularly well with his left hooks at times, but it was impossible for the Russian to get much going against an opponent focused only on making sure a fight didn’t break out. Hammer lost a point for holding in the seventh and rightfully so. This was a shut out as Christian Hammer never tried to win a round.
The fight was an official WBA final eliminator and this makes Alexander Povetkin the mandatory challenger for Anthony Joshua’s WBA heavyweight title. That is an interesting fight. Though, with Povetkin turning 39 soon, it is less interesting as time goes on. Of course, as is obligated anytime we discuss the top Russian heavyweight, there is Povektin’s inability to pass a drug test that could thwart that mandated heavyweight title fight as well. The repeat offender had two high profile fights canceled recently due to his failures, one of which was supposed to be a title shot against Deontay Wilder in at home in Russia.
Alexander Povetkin has not been in any of Eddie Hearn’s stated plans for his cash cow named Anthony Joshua in 2018, but an ordered fight by the WBA could throw a wrench in all that.
