Former world featherweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliyev secured his position as the mandatory contender for the WBA title in his weight class by achieving a technical knockout victory over Mexican boxer Kevin Gonzalez in the eighth round. The fight took place on Saturday, December 16 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, AZ. Akhmadaliyev dominated Gonzalez, knocking him down four times.
The bout started with a relatively even contest, but Akhmadaliyev took control in the sixth round, knocking down Gonzalez twice. Subsequently, the fight became one-sided. Despite Gonzalez’s coach suggesting he stop the fight, Gonzalez persisted. However, by the end of the eighth round, he suffered another knockdown, and following a powerful missed blow, the referee intervened, halting the fight without disclosing the scores.
Akhmadaliyev’s triumph now positions him as the mandatory WBA contender for the victor in the upcoming clash between Naoya Inoue and Marlon Tapales, who are set to compete for the title of absolute world champion. The fight is scheduled for December 26 at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan.
This will be the first undisputed super bantamweight title fight in boxing history. Inoue, who has already claimed the undisputed distinction at bantamweight, will reportedly stake his WBC and WBO 122-pound titles against Tapales, who holds the IBF and WBA versions. A win by Inoue will leave him as just the second male and third overall boxer in the world to fully unify all four major titles (WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO) at two more weights.
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