By Luke Furman
Russian heavyweight contender Alexander Povetkin (29-1, 21 KOs) is ready for his mandatory shot at WBC titleholder Deontay Wilder (34-0, 33 KOs). Povetkin became the mandatory after last month's wipeout of Mike Perez in a single round. For his end, Wilder made the first defense of his title by knocked out Eric Molina in nine rounds.
The World Boxing Council will order negotiations for the month of October.
Wilder is said to be interested in having one more fight before facing Povetkin, who plans to wait for his title shot.
"I'm not going to take any fight prior to Wilder. Why would I do that? The objective has already been achieved, I am the mandatory for the title. I box with the goal of fighting the best," Povetkin said.
In a recent interview, Wilder accused Povetkin of using steroids to enhance his body and achieve some of his recent crushing knockouts. Povetkin feels that a lot of fighters in America are always pointing fingers with PED accusations.
"On a regular basis I am undergoing testing. Nothing has ever been detected. The difference now is that I live a little healthier. I changed my diet. I enjoy taking more vitamins, amino acids. This talk about steroids is a typical American ploy. They like to shock people, that's their business. I am always ready to be tested and prove that I am clean," Povetkin said.
Luke Furman covers boxing for bokser.org.