Undefeated Agrba to receive title shot after IBA Champions’ Night victory in

Khariton Agrba has claimed a IBA Pro World Champion title shot, after defeating Jose Miguel Borrego of Mexico at the IBA Champions’ Night in Sochi in a 10-round Eliminator at the Academy of Martial Arts “Sirius”.

Heading into the fight, the Russian looked to keep distance from Borrego, with the Mexican infamous for knocking his opponents out. A variety of punches and precise footwork from Agrba showed he had control of the bout early on. His stick-and-move tactic worked well, but first showed weakness at the end of the third round where Borrego was able to corner him with a flurry of punches, with Agrba saved by the bell.

After stabilizing in the fourth, Agrba was again shook at the end of the fifth, with Borrego connected well with the right hook, chasing him around the ring. Just when the Mexican seemed to have momentum coming, the Russian would not relent. Refusing to stay stationary, Agrba would reply with a flurry of punches.

A testament to his endurance throughout the fight and his ability to land the right strikes, Agrba would have his arm raised via unanimous decision to remain undefeated, impressively resisting the hard blows of Borrego, who was unable to add him to his knockout list.

With Agrba looking ahead on points, Borrego pursued his opponent, catching him early against the ropes in the eighth round in what was the Mexican’s best three minutes.

Gabil Mamedov would gain retribution against his long-time rival Dzmitriy Asanau of Belarus to become the IBA European champion at 63.5kg.

The Russian had lost all three previous bouts against Asanau, who was the 2019 European Games gold medallist.

Asanau would take a back foot stance, spiritedly moving throughout the bout, as Mamedov preferred to be the aggressor.

Nearing the end of the fourth round, Mamedov cranked up the heat, cornering the Belarusian and exerting even more pressure. The Russian had strong finishes to the fourth and fifth rounds, catching Asanau with strong combinations. Despite the activity of Mamedov, the evasiveness and selective striking of Asanau was as impressive. Little could split the pair at the end of eight quality rounds of boxing. The nod would go the way of Mamedov, ending the losing streak against his foe.

A resolved Murad Allahverdiyev from Azerbaijan would surprise home favourite Beshto Shavlaev in the 80kg bout by split decision.

The Russian continually struck Allahverdiyev throughout the fight and looked as if a knockdown would be imminent, yet the Azerbaijan boxer stood his ground when it seemed he was seconds from being dropped. Shavlaev punished Allahverdiyev’s mistakes, landing hooks to the head when he chose to turn away from his opponent.

Despite looking behind, Allahverdiyev did not concede, putting his best boxing at the end of the six-round fight. Some of the cleanest punches came in the last two rounds, in favor of the Azerbaijan boxer, who curried favor with judges in the…