Agit Kabayel pushed his way towards the front of the queue to challenge world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk when he bullied Zhilei Zhang into a sixth-round defeat Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, even surviving a fall himself along the way.
Aside from that moment in the fifth, when Kabayel went down from a left, it was largely one-sided fare as Zhang’s stamina issues were highlighted once more in Riyadh.
Both fighters had previous experience competing in Saudi Arabia, and it was the perceived better form of Germany’s Kabayel, who exposed the unbeaten records of Arslanbak Makhmudov and Frank Sanchez via one-sided knockouts there, that saw him open as a slight favorite against Zhang.
Yet few were certain how this one would play out. Zhang, after all, may have lost a tight decision to Joseph Parker – his gas tank proving to be his kryptonite – but he had subsequently returned to flatten Deontay Wilder. The Chinese veteran could also boast two victories over Joe Joyce, and even the contentious loss to Filip Hrgovic nodded to his superior experience at world level.
Kabayel, perhaps in an early sign of his advantage in stamina, jogged to the ring in contrast to Zhang, nearly 42 years old and 287lbs, who ambled slowly to the battleground.
Zhang, the heavy-handed veteran, tried to take control behind his jab and trailing left in the opening round while also daring to land his oft-forgotten right hook, while Kabayel, opting to circle the ring, flashed blows to his opponent’s ample body.
The German started the second session more aggressively, however. Zhang’s midsection remained Kabayel’s target of choice, and the skin on Zhang’s stomach had visibly reddened by the time he returned to his stool.
Zhang followed the trend in the third, bowling punches downstairs. But after taking three blasts to his own body and a right hook up top, the older man by nine years exhaled heartily for the first time. Kabayel, even when faced with a man significantly bigger and taller, was standing his ground in center ring.
The industry of Kabayel, 26-0 (18 KOs), increased further in the fourth, and Zhang, clearly tiring, attempted to thwart his opponent’s progress by opening his glove and using his palm to shove the former European champion’s forehead. The violation resulted in a warning from referee Mark Lyson.
Kabayel roared forward in the fifth, but with his rival looking bedraggled and all but beaten as he was thwacked repeatedly, Zhang scored with a left hand, and the aggressor was suddenly on the mat. The 32-year-old Kabayel, clear-eyed, regained his footing and survived the subsequent onslaught. By the end of the stanza, it was again Kabayel setting the pace.
One minute into the next round, Zhang suddenly doubled over in obvious distress, two left hooks to his body causing him to fold. Lyson, presuming Zhang was about to fall, momentarily separated the boxers, but it wasn’t long before Kabayel was again on top. Zhang, 27-3-1 (22 KOs), was bloodied and bruised, and his mouth was ajar and desperately hoovering back oxygen. Yet he simply couldn’t find enough.
A savage right hook sank into Zhang’s belly. It was followed, quickly, by a left hand to the liver, and the old man sank to the canvas and did not beat the count. It was all over at 2:29 of the sixth.
Even though this bout took place a mere two months after Usyk had beaten Tyson Fury to defend the WBC heavyweight title, alongside two other alphabet belts, that organization saw fit to attach an interim bauble going into this contest. If one chooses to pay attention to such chaos, nine months after Usyk beat Fury the first time to gain undisputed status, Kabayel now takes his place as one of five heavyweights with a claim to a world championship.
Out of all the imposters, however, Kabayel might now be the most deserving of a shot at the real king.
Matt Christie, a lifelong fight fan, has worked in boxing for more than 20 years. He left Boxing News in 2024 after 14 years, nine of which were spent as editor-in-chief. Before that, he was the producer of weekly boxing show “KOTV.” Now the co-host of ”The Opening Bell” podcast and regularly used by Sky Sports in the UK as a pundit, Matt was named as the Specialist Correspondent of the Year at the prestigious Sports Journalism Awards in 2021, which was the seventh SJA Award he accepted during his stint in the hot seat at Boxing News. The following year, he was inducted into the British Boxing Hall of Fame. He is a member of the BWAA and has been honored several times in their annual writing awards.
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