What a shame! WBA Heavyweight Champion Alexander Povetkin will not be able to defend his title on July 14 in Hamburg. The fight night at the Alsterdorfer Sporthalle has been called off due to an injury sustained by the challenger Hasim Rahman. The number one WBA ranked heavyweight needed an operation to remove a cyst on his right hand and therefore is not able to fight Povetkin. To find a fitting replacement for a Heavyweight title shot in such a short space of time is unrealistic.
“I am very disappointed,“ said Alexander Povetkin after hearing of the cancellation. “The preparations were going really well. I am in great shape. Obviously I wanted to show that inside of the ring and do a good job.”
Jack Culcay and Edmund Gerber who were also scheduled to step into the ring on July 14, would have liked to fight in Hamburg. Chris Meyer, Managing Director of Sauerland Event: “All of us were looking forward to the event. But it is our responsibility to deliver world class boxing to the spectators inside the arena and the audience at home in front of their TVs. Therefore, after hearing from the injury of Alexander’s opponent, we had to cancel the whole show.”
If Hasim Rahman will remain the mandatory challenger of the WBA, lies in the hands of the association.
Tickets bought for the event can be returned at the place of purchase.
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
