Heavyweight contenders Agit Kabayel and Zhilei Zhang have been added to the February 22nd Riyadh Season card. Given the great fights on the card, Kabayel vs. Zhang could be one of the first contests shown.
Body Shots: The Key For Kabayel
Kabayel vs. Zhang could steal the show on the February 22nd card because it will be a real war. Both heavyweights like to slug, and Kabayel will take the fight to ‘Big Bang,’ looking to wear him down with his body attack. Zhang has shown to be susceptible to getting hit to the midsection, and Kabayel will look to take advantage of that weakness.
The former WBO interim champion Zhilei Zhang (41, 27-2-1, 22 KOs) needs a victory to stay in the hunt for a world title shot against unified champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Zhang, 41, looked like a fighter in his 20s in his last contest, obliterating ‘The Bronze Bomber’ Deontay Wilder by a fifth-round knockout on June 1st. The two-time Olympian Zhang must show the same form to be victorious against Agit Kabayel (32, 25-0, 17 KOs).
Kabayel, 32, is considerably younger than Zhang and has recent knockout victories over Frank Sanchez and Arslanbek Makhmudov. Few boxing fans had expected Kabayel to win either of those fights, as the first 13 years of his pro career were nothing special for the German fighter.
He’d beaten lower-level fighters and had struggled to defeat journeyman Derek Chisora in 2017, winning a 12-round majority decision. However, in Kabayel’s last two fights, he’s adapted his style, becoming a fierce body puncher and a nightmare to handle.
The way Kabayel looked in his seventh-round stoppage win against Frank Sanchez on May 18th, he’d knock out Tyson Fury. His body punching is out of this world, as we witnessed in Fury’s last fight against Usyk; he doesn’t like getting hit to his overstuffed breadbasket filled with goodies.
Kabayel vs. Sanchez Punch Stats
– Agit Kabayel: 64 of 577 punches for a 28% connect rate
– Frank Sanchez: 81 of 318 punches for 25%
Most of the punches Kabayel landed during the fight were to the body, connecting on 51.
Kabayel is ranked #2 WBC, #3 IBF, #4 WBO, and #5 WBA. He’s close to getting a world title shot. The only reason he’s not yet gotten a shot is because the champions keep focusing on fighting popular guys, and he’s not a household name with the casuals.
Zhang is ranked #2 WBO, #3 IBF, and #4 WBC. He’s still highly ranked despite losing to Joseph Parker by a 12-round majority decision earlier this year on March 8th.
February 22nd Riyadh Card
Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2
Daniel Dubois vs Joseph Parker
Jaron Ennis vs Vergil Ortiz Jr
Zhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabayel
Hamzah Sheeraz vs Carlos Adames
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