Throwback fighter Israil Madrimov could take the spotlight from the main event on December 21st with his match against Serhii Bohachuk in Riyadh. This is a classic definition of an old-school approach by the former WBA 154-lb champion Madrimov.
Old School Grit
The 12-round junior middleweight clash between Madrimov and Bohachuk is on the undercard of the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk 2 rematch at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh. Interestingly, fans are more focused on this fight because Israil was added to the February 22nd event. No top fighters in the sport fight that frequently, especially in tough 50-50 matches.
Madrimov’s courage in displaying this 63-day turnaround between fights is respectable. It’s too bad other fighters, like Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, won’t want to follow his lead.
Israil Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs) has attracted much fan interest this week with his fight against WBC interim junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. on February 22nd. The former amateur star Madrimov is putting the Vergil fight and the massive payday with that match at risk by facing Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs) on December 21.
Vergil has got to be nervous about Madrimov potentially suffering an injury or a loss in his fight against Bohachuk. If he needs to be replaced, the likely option for Ortiz Jr. is Xander Zayas on February 22nd. That fight won’t attract nearly as much interest because the 22-year-old Xander has never fought a top-level fighter.
Madrimov vs Bohachuk: A Preview
It’s not a given that Madrimov beats Bohachuk because he caused Vergil massive problems in their fight last summer on August 10th. Fans still overwhelmingly believe Bohachuk deserves the win against Ortiz Jr. but was given a raw deal by the Nevada judges in a 12-round majority decision defeat at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas.
Bohachuk’s work rate and heavy power shots damaged the slugger Vergil, who was forced to box in the later rounds because he was no match for him in the pocket. We’d never seen Ortiz Jr. outslugged before, and that was an eye-opener. Still, Bohachuk looked like he’d done more than enough to deserve the win, but again, the decision went to the A-side fighter, Vergil.
Ortiz Jr. vs. Bohachuk Punch Stats
– Bohachuk: 225 of 832 punches for 27%
– Vergil Jr: 265 of 747 for 35.5%
In Madrimov’s last fight, he came close to defeating Terence Crawford on August 3rd and would have won if he’d thrown more punches. He was lighting up Crawford with right hands all night and couldn’t miss. In one sequence, Madrimov hit Crawford five consecutive times with right hands without anything coming back. He made the 37-year-old Nebraska native look his age.
𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓓𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓶 💭 @IsrailMadrimov#BohachukMadrimov 💫 #OrtizMadrimov#RiyadhSeason pic.twitter.com/5BaYA6CeiM
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) December 3, 2024
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