Dillian Whyte vs Alexander Povetkin RESULT: ‘Body Snatcher’ brutally KOs Russian to get rematch revenge and is now back in pursuit of Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury fights

Dillian Whyte brutally knocked out Alexander Povetkin in round four to exact revenge in Gibraltar.

The British heavyweight was astonishingly KOd by the Russian last August, but then activated his contractual clause to force a rematch and won in emphatic fashion on Saturday night.

The fight began with an incredibly fast start as Whyte swarmed Povetkin inside the opening minute.

He appeared to stagger the Russian who lost balance early on, but recovered and regained his composure.

Round two was more cagey as Whyte chose to take his time rather than rushing in with any further attacks.

His jab was effective and caused swelling under Povetkin’s left eye.

In the third, Whyte caught Povetkin with multiple right hands which caught his attention and retained the upper hand.

He remained cautious, having seemingly learned his lesson from the end of their first bout.

At the start of round four the fight exploded into life once again.

Whyte hurt Povetkin and pursued him with winging hooks, but the Russian replied and the Brit backed off.

At the end of the round, Whyte attacked again though.

This time he staggered Povetkin with a right hand that sent him back into the ropes and likely should have been ruled a knockdown.

The referee let the action continue and Whyte floored Povetkin with a huge left hook just seconds later.

He could not recover to fight on and the fight was waved off.

Whyte said post-fight: “I’m just sad I didn’t get the finish in the first round. He’s a tough guy.

“I shouldn’t have lost first time, I’m just annoyed at myself.

“All I had to do was be a bit smarter, that’s all.

“I was tempted to just go hell for leather in the first round, but then I was like, ‘Hmm, maybe it’s not a smart decision.’

“He’s a former champion whose only lost to me, Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko.

“It shows how good the guys is. He’s very strong still.

“I believe I can be a world champion and I could beat anyone.”

Promoter Eddie Hearn added: “I’d like to see him box quickly again in the summer, maybe go over to the States and have a fight over there.

“We know there’s a logjam. For me, we called for the Deontay Wilder fight for a long, long time.

“Now, he got knocked out and he’s calling for the fight with Dillian Whyte.

“So for me that’s a stadium fight, that’s a colossal fight.

“The ultimate aim has always been for Dillian Whyte to challenge for the world heavyweight title.”

For Povetkin, retirement seems like the only option and the 41-year-old’s promoter, Andrey Ryabinsky, has said he believes he will hang up his gloves following the loss. “I will persuade [him] to end his career,” he added.