SportsRatings: Boxing/MMA

#5 Dillian Whyte vs. #6 Alexander Povetkin live round-by-round scoring

Note: We'll see how this goes, watching DAZN with very spotty internet today.

Dillian Whyte (27-1) risks his near-perpetual upcoming title shot by taking on the still-dangerous Alex Povetkin (35-2-1) in Brentwood, UK today.

This fight is a throwback to the 1970s when top 10 heavyweights clashed seemingly all the time.

Whyte is #5 and Povetkin #6 in our current top 100:

-3 Yr	-1 Yr	-6 mo	July Rank	Aug Rank	Fighter	Rating	Rated Record	July results; •August schedule
1	1	2	1	1	TYSON FURY	53.78	18-0-1
2	4	1	2	2	ANTHONY JOSHUA	45.94	16-1-0
5	3	3	3	3	DEONTAY WILDER	29.00	18-1-1
25	2	4	4	4	ANDY RUIZ JR	27.32	13-2-0	--last rated win -13 months.
18	5	5	5	5	DILLIAN WHYTE	24.92	13-1-0	•8/22 vs. #6 ALEX POVETKIN
3	6	6	6	6	ALEX POVETKIN	22.52	29-2-1	•8/22 vs. #5 DILLIAN WHYTE

A win by Whyte would move him past Andy Ruiz and even Deontay Wilder and into the #3 position behind the only man to beat him, #2 Anthony Joshua.

A win for Povetkin means he moves back into the top 5 where he's spent almost all of the last 10 years. He'd move up to #4.

The consequences for Whyte include falling to around #10 in our rankings, but more importantly it puts his long-awaited title shot in doubt. For Povetkin, he'd fall outside the top 10 to around #12, and it probably means his career as a serious contender would be over; he turns 41 next week.

The fight is about to start.

• Round 1: Careful start from both fighters. Whyte's reach advantage is clear with his jab, and he looks a lot bigger. Body shots from Povetkin. 1-2 from Whyte and return from Povetkin but both cover up pretty well. Almost a head-clash and tie-up near the end. Body shot at end from Whyte. Not enough there to decide a fight on so as I often do I give round one a draw; I suspect judging might tip to Whyte though. 10-10
• Round 2: Good body counter from Whyte. Another one to the gut. Povetkin with a good hook on exchange. Fairly tactical so far while both stand in front of each other. Povetkin trying to establish jab but range isn't there. Povetkin whiffs on hook, and over the top, then connects and tries to get out before the counter. Another close round, I was ready to go with Whyte but couldn't convince myself that the announcers aren't being biased. Another punt. 20-20
• Round 3: Whyte return shot causes Povetkin to stumble. He comes back with combo. Good infighting. Whyte very cool, letting Povetkin come to him and countering well to the body. Whyte is in better range for jabs, and defends well when Povetkin comes inside. More body shots, maybe a bit low from Whyte but he takes the round. 10-9 Whyte 30-29.
• Round 4: Huge return shot from Whyte, Povetkin shrugs it off and continues but falls after another one, takes the 8 count. Povetkin looked tired but determined after 1 minute in. His body shot is a bit low mabye but no complaints from Whyte. Already a freebie round for Whyte but Povetkin soldiers on, maybe hoping for a later round 2nd wind that he has had throughout his career. A counter uppercut sends Povetkin to the floor for a 2nd time. Now it's a hard road for Povetkin. Whyte 10-7; 40-36.
• Round 5: Povetkin counter left uppercut KNOCKS DILLIAN WHYTE COMPLETELY OUT.

Holy shit. That was insane. Povetkin's eulogy was being written by all observers, and he comes back with this. Whyte is OUT.

I was just writing that Povetkin was still moving well and trying to stay busy despite the huge hole he was digging for himself, and that his problem was that he was leaving himself open. Well, that was true, he was leaving himself open, but that's how you find those perfect shots.

High risk, high reward.

Unbelievable KO win for Alexander Povetkin, and he will be back in our top 5 come September 1st. Dillian Whyte unfortunately won't get his title shot after waiting 3 years. He'll stay in the top ten but he'll need to claw his way back up in the pecking order.

 

Ryan Bader vs. Vadim Nemkov: For the Light Heavyweight title?

With Jon Jones dramatically abdicating his UFC Light Heavyweight belt, where does that leave the division? And how do Ryan Bader and Vadim Nemkov, fighting tonight in Bellator 244, figure into it?

Our take reflects the rules of our Rating System: Bader vs. Nemkov is potentially a title fight, or at least an interim title fight, but not at this moment.

Here's our current top 5 in the Light Heavyweight division:

July Rank	Aug Rank	Fighter	WC	Rating	Rated Record	Org	July results; •August schedule
1	1	Jon Jones	LH	82.44	20-1-0	UFC
2	2	Ryan Bader	LH	50.09	21-5-0	Bell	•8/21 vs. #4 Vadim Nemkov
3	3	Jan Blachowicz	LH	36.25	20-6-0	UFC
4	4	Vadim Nemkov	LH	29.73	6-2-0	Bell	•8/21 vs. #2 Ryan Bader
5	5	Phil Davis	LH	27.07	16-5-0	Bell

Jones is #1 of course, but Bader is #2, and far ahead of #3 Jan Blachowicz, the highest-ranked contender in the UFC. Nemkov is at #4 followed by Phil Davis, also currently in Bellator. That gives Bellator 3 of the top 5, thought that's pretty much it for the promotion at 205. There's quality there, but not much depth.

With Jones gone the winner of tonight's bout will be the highest-ranked Light Heavyweight. The thing is, Jones isn't leaving our Light Heavyweight rankings any time soon.

We don't remove fighters when they "retire" or give up a belt. We'd only remove Jones when he fights in a different weight class. So Bader or Nemkov won't be our Light Heavyweight title holder until Bones makes his long-expected move to Heavyweight—and only when he actually fights. We don't move a champion until the actual bout occurs, unlike Bader, who we moved in the month prior to his return to Light Heavyweight.

So tonight's fight won't be for the title right away, but the winner might be the title holder at some point this year. If not, then the winner will receive the Interim belt in February if Jones doesn't fight by then. That would mean Jon Jones has been inactive for a year and no longer holds the belt despite being ranked #1; the #2 fighter would be the interim champ.

In other words, the winner between Bader and Nemkov will be either the champion or interim champion on February 8, 2021, unless Jon Jones fights again at Light Heavyweight before that time.

In the UFC, #3 Jan Blachowicz is pitted again Dominick Reyes for the UFC belt, but neither would have the points that tonight's winner will. Reyes is ranked only #17 in our list, and victory would move him up to #3, behind Jones and the Bader-Nemkov winner. Blachowicz holds his #3 position with a win.

Of course, if Jones decides to remain at Light Heavyweight and fight again, he would remain champ. Unless he loses, and in that case the guy who beat him would be the champion. Jones has way too many points for any Bellator fighter to surpass him, so only Jones' inactivity or his move to another weight class leaves an opening.