Heat Check: Alexander Povetkin vs. Larry Donald

The kid passed his first test.

Promising heavyweight prospect Alexander Povetkin was matched against the wily, 40-year-old Larry Donald, to see how he does against a live opponent. Mind you, not live enough to check his chin or heart, but live enough for us to make an accurate assessment on where the young man's skill level resides.

In winning a virtual shutout, he showed us plenty. I like what I see.

Pros:
- Good defense. He rarely got hit with consecutive jabs, and showed a nice ability to slip a jab and counter with a hook or right hand.
- Nice body work. One thing that annoys me about a lot of European fighters (super middleweight titan Mikkel Kessler, the Klits bros, ect.) is that they act like body shots are illegal blows. This dude goes up and down well.
- Quick hands. His hands are easily some of the fastest in the division.
- Varied attack. Quick lead left hooks, double hooks to body and head, hook-uppercut combinations - variety that's rarely seen from the heavies.
- Decent stamina. Not great by any means, but above average for a heavy and especially good for one in his 13th pro fight.

Cons:
- Power? He hit Donald with several flush blows and never had him visibly hurt. This doesn't necessarily mean that he doesn't have power, as Donald has a very solid chin. But it does mean the book is still out on how hard he can crack.
- Not enough inside work. While it's true that Donald was initiating the vast majority of the clinches, Povetkin needs to work a lot more on the inside. He was more than happy to oblige whenever Larry held him since it gave him time to rest. That's all good and well against a 40 year old that hasn't fought in two years; it could be a fatal flaw against a fresher opponent who isn't afraid to get his hands dirty in close quarters.

What I'd like to see in his next few fights:
- A chin test. He needs to fight someone with a little lead in their gloves.
- A heart test. He needs to fight a durable opponent that's willing to let their hands go (Donald didn't have much other than a jab).

Suggested opponents: Lamon Brewster (if he loses to Wladimir), Calvin Brock, Matt Skelton, Chris Arreola.