Wladimir Klitschko decked Alexander Povetkin four times en-route to a lopsided unanimous decision success.
All three judges awarded the world heavyweight champion, who was deducted a point in the 11th round for excessive pushing, victory by identical tallies of 119-104.
Povetkin started brightly in front of his fans in Moscow but the Russian was soon put in his place.
A left hook decked him in the second and he struggled from to get back into the contest.
Klitschko’s excellent jab and sheer brute force was again his key to victory.
Klitschko was guilty of holding frequently and was credited with three more knockdowns in the seventh round.
However, the fight was not a pleasing spectacle.
Klitschko was typically dominant and unspectacular.
Try as he might, Povetkin could not put the necessary dents in his rival and the champion must now wonder if there are any serious challengers out there.
“That was a tough bit of work,” he said afterwards. “He’s a real fighter. I kept landing the punches but he stayed in there. I believe it was a deserved win but I can still improve.”
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