Junior middleweight Josh Kelly took the chance that most of the big names in the division refused to take and it worked out for him.
Kelly (18-1-1, 9 KOs) scored a majority decision (113-113, 115-111 & 114-113) over Bakhram Murtazaliev (23-1, 17 KOs) to become the new IBF world champion. After the fight, Kelly didn’t call out anyone but said he wanted to return to New Castle for a big fight.
Murtazaliev’s promoter, Kathy Duva from Main Events, said this exclusively to FightsATW: “Kelly gets credit for taking Bakhram on when all the big names ran from him. Funny though. Once he got in the ring, Kelly ran from him too! Nevertheless, he got a close decision in his hometown. So, congratulations to Kelly on his achievement. Bakhram will be back.”
In the opening round, both fighters feinted frequently as they gauged distance. Murtazaliev used his left jab to target Kelly’s head and body. There were a few moments when Kelly exchanged close-range shots with Murtazaliev, and both fighters landed some punches, but neither was significantly hurt. In the last ten seconds, both fighters connected with solid right hands, bringing the round to an end.
In the second round, Kelly did more moving than punching. He used his left jab occasionally. Murtazaliev mainly threw the left jab as he followed Kelly around the ring. In the last ten seconds of the round, Kelly landed a huge left hook and straight right hand to catch the judges’ attention after spending most of the round moving his feet.
Maintaining his rhythm, Kelly continued to move around the ring in the third round and flicked a left jab, but when Murtazaliev lost concentration for a second, Kelly landed an overhand right. Murtazaliev would only smile but did not land anything significant in the third round.
Kelly’s movement caused some issues for Murtazaliev in the fourth round as he occasionally lost focus. With a minute left, Kelly landed a powerful left jab that pushed Murtazaliev back, causing his glove to touch the canvas, which was rightly called a knockdown. Kelly didn’t throw a single punch after the knockdown. He continued to move around the ring, settling for potshots and staying away from Murtazaliev to prevent him from landing anything significant. A small cut appeared under Murtazaliev’s right eye from Kelly’s left jab.
In the sixth round, Murtazaliev continued to follow Kelly around but didn’t land anything significant. Kelly, with his pop shots, set the pace throughout the round. Murtazaliev woke up a bit in the seventh round, landing left hooks to Kelly’s head and body. Although Murtazaliev had a strong round, Kelly threw fewer punches, but they were the more showy ones.
The eighth was more of the same from Kelly, but in the ninth round, although Kelly appeared to be in control, Murtazaliev landed a left hook to the head, sending Kelly down to the canvas. Kelly beat the count and held on for dear life until the end of the round.
In the championship rounds, Murtazaliev controlled the pace as Kelly’s punch output seemed to disappear. Kelly showboated more than he threw punches, which excited the crowd but didn’t impress the viewers at home due to the lack of offense from Kelly. In the final round, Kelly landed some big combinations as both fighters fought hard to win the round.
Kelly won the fight, but it wasn’t in a convincing fashion, leaving a lot to be desired from the decision victory.
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