by James Slater: 33-year-old Taurus “The Bull” Sykes has been confirmed as the July opponent for unbeaten heavyweight contender Alexander Povetkin of Russia. The fight will take place in Chekhov, Russia on July the 19th and the bout will be the undefeated 28-year-old’s final ring action before his scheduled world title shot against IBF and WBO king Wladimir Klitschko..
We knew, back when it was announced he was going to engage in one further fight before getting the title shot he’d earned with his win over Eddie Chambers, that Povetkin was not going to face anyone too dangerous. With a huge fight with Klitschko in his future, why would he? But in facing Sykes, Povetkin is not exactly boxing a creampuff, either. No, Sykes is not a puncher by any stretch, but he does have a decent record and he is experienced – having been in with a number of world class fighters. Yes, he’s lost to all of them, but aside from his July 2005 2nd round stoppage loss to Samuel Peter, Sykes has proven to be pretty durable. In his last fight, just over a year ago, “The Bull” took former champ Hasim “The Rock” Rahman the distance. He should, then, be capable of taking Povetkin a few rounds.
Currently 25-4-1(7), Sykes has only suffered one other stoppage loss aside from the one to “The Nigerian Nightmare.” TKO’d in four rounds by Derek Bryant in 2006, Sykes has won one bout and lost the decision to Rahman since. The 33-year-old has one good win to his name in his points victory over the always dangerous Friday “The 13th” Ahunanya. It’s possible, going by this form anyway, that Sykes will at least give Povetkin a reasonable argument in July.
Barring a huge upset, however, the 28-year-old who is now 15-0(11) will of course get his win and go on to face Klitschko (assuming Tony Thompson has not scored his own upset on July 12th!) later this year. Many people are excited about Povetkin, and why not? He is aggressive, can really fight and is powerful and strong. Some fans go even further and claim the Russian talent is the future of the heavyweight division. And it must be said, his upcoming clash with Klitschko is a very intriguing match-up indeed.
Look for Povetkin to first get a number of good, sharpness enhancing, rounds under his belt against Sykes next month. Povetkin to win, with no slip-ups, in around five or six rounds.