Povetkin
Unanimous Decisions Chambers
January 27, 2008
by Hal Clarke
Bout of January 26, 2008.
Russia's Alexander "The
White Lion" Povetkin, the decorated 2004 Olympic super heavyweight
gold medalist, outworked The United States' "Fast" Eddie
Chambers to earn a unanimous decision last night in a heavyweight
title eliminator at the Tempodrom in Berlin, Germany. It was a
fight defined by Povetkin's never-say-die, windmill punching and
Chambers' lackadaisical melancholy, yielding a fight that was
a bit dissapointing, a bit exciting, and a good example of two
good fighters working their way up the heavyweight ranks.
The first half of the bout was
dictated by Povetkin's aggressive work rate and Chambers' precision
counter punching. Povetkin and Chambers stood toe to toe but it
was Chambers who landed cleanly, doubling the amount of landed
punches even as Povetkin threw twice as many. Lumbering around
the ring hitting mostly gloves and elbows, Povetkin nevertheless
wooed the judges with his work rate even as his face showed that
clean, accurate punching can certainly carve up even the heartiest
lion.
The second half of the fight
found Povetkin continuing his work rate with Chambers falling
deeper and deeper into his shell, throwing less and less with
each passing round. Chambers' trainer, Buddy McGirt, could be
heard urging his charge to let his hands go but Chambers, an excellent
defensive fighter with extremely fast hands, never followed the
advice. The result: a hard-earned Povetkin unanimous decision
that proved the man has heart and skill, but would surely have
his hands full with an accurate punching heavyweight who is willing
to throw.
The bout, an IBF title eliminator,
sets Povetkin up for a future bout with the winner of the Wlad
Klitschko/Sultan Ibragimov heavyweight unification match. In our
opinion, whoever of the two he faces, it will be a long night
for the hearty Povetkin.
With the win, Povetkin moves
to 15-0 (11 KOs) while Chambers falls to 30-1 (16 KOs).
Here is the official scoring
of the fight:
119-109, 117-111, 116-112
(all for Povetkin)
My Scoring of the Fight:
| Round |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
Total |
| Povetkin |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
115 |
| Chambers |
10 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
113 |
Quote of the night from
Povetkin's Trainer:
"Remember to duck."
(referring to the strategy Povetkin should employ after getting
his face consistently smashed the first several rounds).
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