Boxing champ Wilder countersued over canceled Povetkin bout (Reuters)

Heavyweight boxing champion Deontay Wilder and his promoter were countersued on Thursday by Russian boxer Alexander Povetkin and his promoter over the recent cancellation of a title bout, after the Russian tested positive for the banned substance meldonium. Povetkin and Andrey Ryabinskiy’s World of Boxing LLC said American Wilder and DiBella Entertainment Inc breached their contract by walking away from the May 21 fight in Moscow after hearing of the test results, rather than waiting for the World Boxing Council to decide what to do. Wilder then began a public “smear campaign” against Povetkin and Ryabinskiy, the lawsuit said.