Deontay Wilder?s WBC heavyweight title defense against Alexander Povetkin on May 21 finally has a landing spot: Megasport Arena in Moscow, Russia. Povetkin promoter Andrey Ryabinskiy confirmed the news on his Twitter account on Monday, giving shape to a fight that has taken on a shroud of secrecy in the United States because of Ryabinskiy?s control over the specifics.
There were rumors that despite Ryabinskiy acquiring the rights to the fight with a winning purse bid in February, the bout would still take place in the U.S., specifically at Barclays Center, which is owned by the Russian oligarch Mikhail Prokhorov. But Ryabinskiy, who won the purse bid with an offer of $7.15 million, put to rest such talk with his Twitter post on Monday. Boxingscene?s Jake Donovan was the first to report the news.
The multi-purpose Megasport Arena, which boasts a max capacity of 13,926, isn?t a stranger to boxing. The last match it hosted was a card headlined by Denis Lebedev?s decision win against a diminished James Toney in Nov. of 2011 for a secondary cruiserweight title. Lebedev is scheduled to face Argentina?s Victor Ramirez in a cruiserweight unification match in the May 21st co-feature for the WBA and IBF titles.
The 6-7 Wilder (36-0, 35 knockouts) last defended his title with a devastating 9th round knockout of Artur Szpilka in January at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Povetkin (30-1, 22 KOs) represents Wilder?s toughest test to date. The Russian will try to win a world championship after he came up short in a decision loss to Wladimir Klitschko in 2013. Povetkin held a secondary title after he beat Ruslan Chagaev in 2011.
