The rematch became available only after Alexander Povetkin withdrew. Peter had won four consecutive fights against fringe opposition following losses to Vitali Klitschko and Eddie Chambers, but six weeks was hardly ideal preparation for the division’s best heavyweight.
Attacking immediately, Peter pushed Klitschko backward and landed a left hook during the opening round. The aggression briefly resembled the fighter who had frightened Klitschko in 2005. By the second, Klitschko had settled behind his jab and begun catching Peter with straight right hands.
The difference in hand speed was glaring. In their first meeting, Peter’s wide hooks arrived quickly enough to catch Klitschko behind the head. By 2010, Klitschko saw them coming, leaned away, and drove counters through the openings.
Soon, Peter was reduced to following him around the ring.
Using his 6’6″ frame, Wladimir controlled the distance. Whenever Peter worked past the jab, Klitschko wrapped him up and leaned his weight across the shorter man’s neck and shoulders. The tactic smothered Peter’s hooks while forcing him to carry Klitschko’s 247 pounds until referee Robert Byrd separated them.
It was effective but excessive. Whistles came from sections of the Frankfurt crowd as Klitschko repeatedly grabbed rather than punching. Emanuel Steward recognized that Peter was ready to go and demanded more aggression from his fighter.
Swelling formed around Peter’s right eye as the punishment accumulated. An uppercut hurt him late in the sixth, while his power shots became slower and easier to avoid.
The statistics captured the mismatch. Klitschko landed 142 of 499 punches. Peter connected with only 35 of 199 and failed to reach double figures in any round.
Instructions after the ninth exposed the condition of both fighters. Abel Sanchez pleaded with an exhausted Peter to let his hands go. Across the ring, Steward ordered a cautious Klitschko to stop clutching and take out a challenger who could no longer defend himself.
Steward got his response in the tenth. A sustained attack drove Peter backward before an uppercut and left hook sent him crashing onto his back. Byrd waved it off at 1:22.
“He took a lot of punishment and fought until the end,” Klitschko said. “But from round two, it was clear that his game plan wasn’t working.”
The victory carried more value than another successful title defense. Peter had represented Klitschko’s most troubling night after his knockout losses. By reducing him to a helpless target in the rematch, Klitschko buried the old questions about his composure and completed the transformation Steward had begun years earlier. Ten months later, he defeated David Haye to add the WBA title.
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