Alexander Povetkin cemented his status as one of the heavyweight division’s most dangerous operators as he brought David Price’s fairy-tale evening to a brutal conclusion inside five rounds at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on 31st March 2018.

The Russian, who had arrived in Wales riding the momentum of a unanimous decision victory over Christian Hammer in Yekaterinburg just three months earlier, was given a genuine examination by the towering Liverpudlian before ultimately delivering a finishing sequence that reminded the capacity crowd of 78,000 exactly why he commands respect at the very top of the sport.

Price entered the contest as a significant underdog, and few gave the former Olympic bronze medallist much of a chance against the battle-hardened former WBA world champion. Yet from the opening exchanges, the six-foot-eight Englishman showed a composure and self-belief that had been conspicuously absent during previous painful defeats. He worked his jab with intelligence, used his considerable height and reach advantages to keep the stocky Russian at bay, and showed that his celebrated right hand retained its destructive potential.

The third round proved the turning point in an extraordinary seesaw encounter. Povetkin deposited Price on the canvas with a straight right hand to the head, and the travelling supporters feared the worst. Yet Price demonstrated genuine heart, climbing to his feet and responding with some thunderous shots of his own. Remarkably, it was the Merseysider who had the final word in the session, catching Povetkin with a left hook late in the round that sent the Russian stumbling backwards into the ropes. The referee correctly ruled it a knockdown, and suddenly an enormous upset felt genuinely possible.

Unfortunately for Price, he had expended enormous reserves of energy in that dramatic sequence, and he was unable to capitalise when the opportunity presented itself. Povetkin, the seasoned professional that he is, regrouped during the interval, absorbed the punishment he had received, and returned for the fourth and fifth rounds with renewed purpose.

When the ending arrived in the fifth session, it was swift and merciless. A right hand from Povetkin left Price disorientated and defenceless, arms hanging at his sides. The follow-up left hook landed flush and sent the Englishman crashing heavily to the canvas. Referee Howard Foster immediately waved off the contest without a count, bringing the official stoppage time in at one minute and two seconds of the round.

The result was deeply disappointing for British boxing supporters who had dared to dream, yet Price departed the ring to a magnificent ovation that reflected the courage he had shown throughout. He had knocked down a former world champion, competed on level terms for significant stretches, and refused to surrender when most fighters might have found a reason to disengage.

Ultimately, David Price’s vulnerability under sustained pressure proved his undoing once more, but on this particular evening in the Welsh capital, he showed qualities that his most ardent supporters have always believed were there. For Alexander Povetkin, meanwhile, the victory retained both his WBA Intercontinental and WBO International heavyweight titles and underlined that, even approaching the twilight of his career, the Chekhov-born Russian warrior remains a formidable force in world heavyweight boxing.