two pounds lighter than the first fight. Klitschko came in at a career heavy of 247 pounds. Both fighters had promised knockouts in the pre fight build up. Peter started the fight very aggressively in a bob and weave style he had never before fought in. He caught Klitschko with a good left hook in the opening round, though Klitschko remained unshaken. Klitschko ended the round well. In the second round Klitschko caught Peter with three hard right hands, one of which seemed to stun him. Both fighters struggled to land punches in the third round, there was a lot of clinching in what was a physical encounter. Unlike their first fight referee Robert Byrd did not let Peter punch on the break or hit to the back of the head. After four rounds the fight became one sided, with Peter's right eye closing. Peter could not find the target and started lunging with wild shots, his legs had slowed dramatically and he was taking heavy shots. He did get through with a big right hand in round six though. Klitschko, instead of going backwards as he did in their first fight, would meet Peter in the middle of the ring and dominate him physically in the clinches. Peter was taking heavy punishment and after eight rounds was totally exhausted. After the ninth round Peter's cornerman Abel Sanchez threatened to stop the fight, and said he would give him one more round. Emanuel Steward implored Klitschko to throw combinations. Peter swung wildly in the tenth and Klitschko opened up with a punishing combination which floored him. Referee Robert Byrd did not start a count and waved the fight off, awarding Klitschko the win by knockout. It was Klitschko's ninth successful title defense. The nature of the defeat to Klitschko in the rematch possibly spelled the end of Peter's career as a top level fighter. Top Rank released him from his contract soon after. In spite of this Peter's manager said they would look to secure other big fights in the division against anyone other than the Klitschko brothers. Peter vs. Helenius After his release from Top Rank, Peter and his management sent an offer to Tomasz Adamek for an IBF elimination match. The fight fell through when Peter refused Adamek's challenger money of $150,000. Peter then went into negotiations for a fight with Tye Fields which also failed to materialise.