of RCC Boxing Promotions who were working to organise the event, stated that he would attend WBO's annual convention in the next week and ask them to sanction the bout as a final eliminator. On 31 October, Hammer's promoter Erol Ceylan of EC Boxpromotion confirmed the bout. A month prior to the fight, Povetkin's manager announced that former cruiserweight contender BJ Flores (34-3-1, 21 KOs), who had previously called out Povetkin, would be on standby as a replacement in case Hammer withdrew or could not make the fight. A deal could not be reached with Flores, and instead Japanese contender Kyotaro Fujimoto (18-1, 10 KOs) signed the contract to become the back-up. On 8 November, the WBC announced that they would be lifting the lifetime ban effective immediately from 7 December 2017. From this date, WBC would start a probation period which would end on 6 December 2018. The ruling also stated that Povetkin would be re-instated in the WBC rankings in January 2018. Povetkin outworked a survival-oriented Hammer to win a lopsided 12 round unanimous decision, in what was a final eliminator to the WBA title, held by Anthony Joshua. The three judges' scores were 120–107, 120–108, and 118–108. The referee had warned Hammer repeatedly to stop putting Povetkin in headlocks, but he did not stop, eventually having a point deducted in round 7. Hammer came alive towards the end of each round, landing some big shots, at times knocking Povetkin off balance. After the fight, promoter Andrey Ryabinskiy said, “I have confirmation from WBA that Anthony Joshua must fight the winner of Povetkin-Hammer.” Povetkin vs. Price On 16 January 2018, after unification fight Anthony Joshua vs. Joseph Parker was announced, promoter Eddie Hearn offered Povetkin an opportunity to fight on the undercard, which would take place on 31 March at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Contenders Derek Chisora and David Price were mentioned as potential opponents. The next day, Price spoke to Sky Sports stating they accepted Hearn's offer and would be willing to fight Povetkin. On 30 January, Hearn told a reporter a deal was close being done after Povetkin also agreed to the fight. Three days later, the fight was officially confirmed. Povetkin won the fight via knockout in round 5. Povetkin badly hurt Price with a right hand, who was then defenceless, Povetkin finished off with a left hook that put Price down flat