12 rounds Me thinks Thomas wins the majority of his rounds with his jab and while Povetkin has moments of landing combos, he doesn't land enough to win.
Only prime Mike Tyson dropped Thomas, and that was following a relentless 15-punch combination. Povetkin isn't knocking down Thomas, let alone stopping him.
Close One. Povetkin sd Povetkin was active as hell and Thomas tends to be a little lazy in throwing and he has a dubious stamina even in his prime, as happened with Coetzee and Berbick in the last rounds.
Povetkin takes away the jab very well, and other than the jab, what does Thomas have? It’s not like he has anything to keep Povetkin honest so Povetkin gets stuck on the outside, which is often a reason why fighters end up stuck on the end of the jab, the fear of what might come behind it, but Povetkin could afford to be more aggressive and force the action and once he’s got past the jab, Thomas has nothing for him.
Thomas had a potent right hand and had 34 stoppages in 43 wins. So I disagree Thomas has nothing to keep Povetkin honest.
I always felt Pinky was a bit stiff, leaning on that jab for everything and not having much of a Plan B. Sasha had a higher ring IQ and was more versatile. I think he closes the distance and sweeps the latter rounds for a decision.
Thomas sometimes had a good right hand- ask Mike Weaver- but not always. I kind of always felt that he was naturally left handed, but he didn't have a notable left hook.