This past weekend saw a lot of stoppages as Kazakhstani WBO & IBF middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly successfully defended his IBF title against Australiain challenger Andrei Mikhailovich. British WBA featherweight champion Nick Ball also fought on Saturday, showing himself to be in excellent form by defeating his challenger, American contender Ronny Rios, through a stoppage victory.
Janibek Alimkhanuly Vs. Andrei Mikhailovich
Janibek Alimkhanuly (16-0, 11 KO’s) was the away fighter against Andrei Mikhailovich (21-1 ,13 KO’s) despite being the champion for the IBF middleweight (160 lbs) title fight. Notably, Alimkhanuly’s WBO title was not on the line despite the WBO having indicated [prior to the match] it was eligible to be defended. The two fought on Friday, October 4th, at “The Star” venue in Sydney, Pyrmont, in Mikhailovich’s home country of Australia. Australian promotion No Limit, Mikhailovich’s promoter, was the organizer for this event.
From the onset, it appeared Alimkhanuly was miles above his opponent not only in experience but also in talent. Mikhailovich struggled early, mild moments of inexperience and inadequate defense resulting in an early knockdown in just the 2nd round. Subsequently, Mikhailovich remained in danger for the rest of the round as he struggled to retain his balance with Alimkhanuly maintaining his offense. However, the Australian maanged to stay up on his feet, even in the last half minute where he once more looked to be on weakened legs.
Overall, Janibek Alimkhanuly was the one pushing the pace as the champion, rarely letting Mikhailovich gain an advantage over him as he applied his ring IQ to devastating effect. This was further compounded by Alimkhanuly’s southpaw stance, which posed heavy problems to the orthodox-stanced Mikhailovich, making the Australian contender an easy target for Alimkhanuly’s left hand.
By the 9th round, Alimkhanuly had virtually dominated every single round, virtually bullying Mikhailovich which endless combinations that the Australian had few to no answers to. To his credit, Mikhailovich did show tougness and resilience, despite Alimkhanuly’s combinations and left hand making him struggle to remain standing throughout several rounds.
However, even Mikhailovich’s resilience had its limits as the 9th round saw Alimkhanuly as two hard left hands by Alimkhanuly sent Mikhailovich into the ropes. Having endured plenty of damage during the fight, the referee intervened and stopped the match, allowing Alimkhanuly to grab a dominant victory by technical knockout (TKO). The Kazakhstani champion retained his IBF 160 lbs title as a result, and his mandatory duties to defend his title against an IBF-mandated challenger in Mikhailovich have also been satisfied.
Undercard Results:
In the women’s featherweight (126 lbs) division, New Zealand talent Mea Motu (20-0, 8 KO’s), considered a top contender at super bantamweight (122 lbs), fought Australian contender Shannon O’Connell (24-8-1, 12 KO’s).
The match went widely in favor of Motu who displayed her talents in full, stopping O’Connell in the 4th round of their 8-round [non-title] bout, after O’Connell’s corner threw in the towel following an onslaught by the New Zealand fighter. Motu thereby won the match by technical knockout.
With a dominant victory over a former world title challenger in O’Connell secured, Motu now appears to be the overwhelming #1 contender in the 122 lbs division where she has built up her name and resume and appears well-situated to face any of the four world champions currently at super bantamweight. Though her fight against O’Connell occured at featherweight, it is important to note that both Motu and O’Connell had relatively little experience at featherweight, and Motu is currently not a ranked fighter in that weight class.
Nick Ball Vs. Ronny Rios
Having acquired his belt last June, WBA featherweight champion Nick Ball (21-0-1, 12 KO’s) defended his title for the first time against American veteran Ronny Rios (34-5, 17 KO’s) in a title bout scheduled for 12 rounds. The two headlined a Queensberry Promotions show on Saturday, October 5th, at the Echo Arena in Liverpool [Ball’s hometown].
Proving he deserved his title, Ball proceeded to oversee a thoroughly dominant victory over Rios. with his come-forward pressure style of fighting resulting in a demolition job over the American. Starting heatedly from the start of the first round until the end of the match, Ball coursed through the rounds convincingly, knocking Rios down at least three times in the 3rd, 7th, and 10th round.
The 10th round would be the final round as Nick Ball overwhelmed Ronny Rios with his combinations, resulting in the one of the aforementioned knockowns. With Rios having already taken heavy damage throughout the fight, his corner stopped the match by throwing in the towel, allowing Ball to retain his WBA title for the first time by a TKO victory.
