But regardless im not saying Whyte will win it. I actually think he's going to get KO'd. Whyte could win it if he continues to fight behind a jab and break povekin down like he did in the early rounds but he got too confident and let povetkin get too close. But he's arrogant probably even with his new Lennox Lewis training team.
Whyte is mentally unable to stick to a jab and move safety first strategy. He lacks the discipline. I am not sure it’s arrogance. But I do agree he can’t execute the gameplan required to win a safety first UD or not get caught with something big. If you look at his last 5 performances you won’t find one where he doesn’t get tired and sloppy, and let it all hang out. He gets drawn into gun slinging often in fights too. He couldn’t even do it against a low level operator in Wach. Povetkin even at his age is far superior technically and in ambition than Wach. Povetkin will catch Whyte again with something big again and that changes the fight. Whether it results in a KO or goes the distance who knows?
Povetkin still has high ring IQ so he'll probably know how to slow the pace down to his own tempo to preserve his gas tank. If he does that he can offset Whyte's rhytm and make him hesitant coming by by countering him.
I can't imagine either of them have had great training, with both coming back from serious medical situations. 90% chance it ends early but I could see a Zhang/Forrest situation where both are so exhausted from early action neither can land the knockout blow.
- Povetkin is shot to pieces, was spent after 3 rounds last time, and has had covid19 badly in the meantime. - Whyte is chinny and can be sparked out at any time, even against a spent/shot zombie. - therefore, the only way this goes the distance is if they don't really show up and just waltz their way through a dull 12 rounds.
Everybody says Whyte won every single round before the fifth round, but that's not true. He won only the 4th round in my opinion. Povetkin beat Whyte black and blue in first 4 rounds, he was dropping heavy bombs on him but was caught twice while doing so. Eventually in the 5th round he blasted Whyte with that thunderous one-hitter-quitter and unplugged him. The beating Whyte took in the first 4 rounds combined with that uppercut finished him off. I don't think that Whyte will have the confidence nor bravery to apply "maximum violence" on Povetkin on March 27th. Povetkin will probably knock him out again between rounds 8 - 10.
Whyte says he will go for knockout. So I guess he'll last about 7 rounds at best. That type of power that Povetkin can produce, is something Whyte couldn't do, unless it was on accumulation on a tired broken down opponent. So I don't see a different outcome unless he changes his game plan. He won't because he doesn't have that discipline.
What do they say about rematches? They usually go the same way but quicker, and this one has it written all over it. Povetkin to KO him again.
