The Basket Hall Arena in Kazan, Russia hosts Heavyweight boxing this Wednesday as Alexander Povetkin (29-1) takes on Mariusz Wach (31-1) in defense of his WBC Silver heavyweight title. There is a lot at stake here, as Povetkin has been the WBC’s mnadatory challenger for WBC World titleholder Deontay Wilder and the winner of the bout could very well be up next for the WBC World Champion. Povetkin, fighting in his hometown country against a rival from Poland, is a big-time (-1500) favorite, with Wach returning at (+825). Both men have one loss, and that is to Wladimir Klitschko, and both men have sparred as professionals and fought as amateurs. Wach has always come in second to Povetkin in terms of standing, as Povetkin has seperated himself from an average crop of heavyweights in recent years and firmly established himself as the #2 guy in the division. Wach however, has won four in a row since enduring a long layoff that started with a steroid suspension and if you go back to the 2011-2012 he was a top ten heavyweight. Povetkin has clearly fought and excelled at a higher level of competition, and Povetkin besting Wach will let him prepare for title shots against the likes of Wilder or Klitschko, both bigger men. Wach will enjoy wide height and reach advantages, so if Wach has closed the gap in terms of skill with Povetkin, it could be an interesting fight. IBF World Super Lightweight Champion Cesar Rene Cuenca (48-0) defends his belt against likewise undefeated Eduard Troyanovsky (22-0). The Super Lightweight bout is truly a toss up, as Cuenca is still a relative unknown on the world scene. Cuenca has the unusual note on his record that just two of his 48 wins are by KO, and if he leaves it to the judges in his opponent’s hometown, anything can happen. Cuenca is paying at (-110), with the return on Troyanovsky standing at (-120). After fighting his entire career in argentina, Cuenca travelled to China in July of 2015 to face undefeated Ik Yang (19-0) for the belt Lamont Peterson left vacant. He was an underdog there, and he came out of the fight a world champion. If he is able to leave Russia with the belt, it will be an impressive coming out party for Cuenca. Take a look at the rest of the lines for this major card coming out of Russia from promoter Aleksey Stashkov. The event is being made available on internet pay-per-view. Cruiserweight 12 rounds – WBA World Cruiserweight Title Lateef Kayode +700 Denis Lebedev -1300 IBO World Cruiserweight title: Ola Afolabi +320 Rakhim Chakhkiev -425 Olanrewaju Durodola +1000 Dmitry Kudryashov -1750 Light Heavyweight 10 rounds – Mirco Ricci +700 Dmitry Bivol -1300
