Alexander Povetkin knocked out Mike Perez in the first round in Moscow on Friday night to move closer to a heavyweight title fight. The Russian won inside the distance for the 21st time in 30 professional fights, finishing the elimination bout in 91 seconds.

He is now the mandatory challenger to the winner of the fight between WBC champion Deontay Wilder and Eric Molina who meet on June 13.

The 35-year-old Povetkin, the 2004 Olympic Games heavyweight champion, improved his professional record to 29-1 and again showed the power that makes him a dangerous challenger.

Perez, whose record fell to 21-2, with 13 shortcut wins, never recovered after stopping a crushing right in the first minute. The 29-year-old southpaw went down, got up and immediately returned to the deck as Povetkin completed the night’s work.

After the fight, Wilder (33-0, 32KOs) took to the social networks to congratulate Povetkin.

"Congratulations to Povetkin on the win... I'm looking forward to having my first mandatory title defense," Wilder wrote.