Kazakhstan’s Janibek Alimkhanuly (16-0, 11 KOs) has successfully defended IBF and WBO world middleweight titles, stopping a spirited Andrei Mikhailovich (21-1, 13 KOs) in the ninth round of their contest at the Star Hotel, Sydney. Originally slated for July 13 in Las Vegas, the pair settled their score after a week-long build up filled with tension and theatrics.
From the opening bell, Alimkhanuly established a strong presence in the center of the ring behind his long, southpaw jab. Having been stung by several straight lefts to both body and head, Mikhailovich soon adopted a mauling approach, hitting after tying up an arm or the neck while in close. The pocket of success soon dried up as the Kazak worked in his signature rear-uppercut, among other punches in his arsenal, to great effect, wobbling the Russian-born Kiwi multiple times throughout the stanza.
Yet the 26-year-old, not short of heart, returned to action in a similar fashion to the way in which he ended the first frame, limiting Alimkhanuly’s advantage at distance with a smothering, albeit messy, style. Not willing to wilt to the pressure though, the champion welcomed the fight in close quarters and, despite the workmanlike efforts of his rival, landed the cleaner punches over the proceeding round via repeated flurries of shorts hooks and uppercuts. As the onslaught continued, the scene playing out threatened to take a grim turn, and as the challenger hit the deck with just seconds remaining in the second round; the result seemed inevitable.
As the second half of the fight commenced, Janibek quickly re-established a favorable punching distance akin to the opening stages of the contest, battling hard throughout the three minutes to keep his advancing foe where he wanted him. As a result, Alimkhanuly began to sting with his left hand, a heavy straight in the opening seconds that sent Mikhailovich staggering towards a neutral corner, which was the punch of note. By the time the bell rang to end the eighth, the titlist’s confidence had swelled to the point that the jarring shots repeatedly found their mark.
The sheer weight of hard punches soon caught up to Mikhailovich and while he continued to try and negate the tide by chasing, the telling blow landed not long after. Having ducked an errant lead hand and pivoted to the right, Alimkhanuly used the newfound angle to place a perfectly timed left uppercut on his opponent’s jaw before following it up with another after a sharp right hook, sitting the ultra-tough Mikhailovich down on the bottom ropes. Although he bounced back to his feet, referee Katsuhiko Nakamura rushed in to end proceedings with just 15 seconds remaining in the round.
Speaking through a translator with Main Event’s Ben Damon, Janibek broke down his performance before giving praise to his brave challenger. “As far as the fight, please keep in mind I haven’t been fighting in the ring for a year, and last fight, it didn’t happen. So it was a good experience for me to come back and shake rust,” he said. “He’s a good boxer, he has a very good team, nice people. I want to wish him luck.” In victory, the 31-year-old now turns his attention to unifying titles at middleweight, making his intentions clear that meetings with WBC champion Carlos Adames (24-1, 18 KOs) and WBA belt holder Erislandy Lara (31-3-3, 19 KOs) are on his wishlist. “I do have two titles and two titles are missing. Any of them, Adames or Lara, I am ready anytime. Send me papers; I’ll sign anytime.”
Motu Continues On Path To World Title Shot
In the co-main event, an aggressive Mea Motu (20-0, 8 KOs) turned back a gallant Shannon O’Connell (24-8-1, 12 KOs) inside four rounds to continue on her path to a shot at Ellie Scotney’s (9-0) IBF, WBO and Ring Magazine super bantamweight titles. Set to face the champion in Manchester on October 26 before the belt holder’s withdrawal, the New Zealander Motu’s dominance in the short-notice contest ensured that her hopes of challenging for the trio of straps stayed intact.
Statement made by Mea Motu 😲#nolimitboxing #nolimitonfox #janibekmikhailovich pic.twitter.com/R5fvGVrlrE
— No Limit Boxing (@NoLimit_Boxing) October 4, 2024
So combative was the Kiwi that her forward-moving, heavy combination punching style often led to erratic exchanges, one of which caused a severe cut to open up on the left temple of her Australian counterpart in the opening round. The flowing claret served as a red rag to a raging bull in the subsequent rounds, and although the 41-year-old O’Connell was able to penetrate the defenses on occasion, most landed with her back to the ropes in the middle of four and five-punch combinations from Motu.
Ultimately, it was the weight of numbers that won out. With the damage on O’Connell’s face now visible in the form of a large hematoma on her forehead, the towel was thrown at the halfway mark of the fourth. Ranked with two of the major sanctioning bodies (IBF #1, WBA #3), there is no doubt that world title glory is front of mind for the 34-year-old “Nightmea.”
Undercard Results
Kicking off the broadcast portion of the card, Charlie Kazzi (7-0, 3 KOs) stopped rugged Papua New Guinean Lui Magaiva (4-7, 1 KO) in the seventh of a scheduled eight rounds to pick up the WBC Australasian silver lightweight title. The 19-year-old led the bout from start to finish, investing in the body early with punishing rips on the inside, resulting in openings for hooks as the rounds played out.
Not without controversy Magaiva, protesting what appeared to be an early stoppage, took a swipe at referee Will Soulos as the official waived off the action. Despite the ensuing unsavory actions, the performance secured the first professional title of the raw Kazzi’s young career. Earlier, Ahmed Reda (2-0, 2 KOs) made short work of Joe Kara (5-7-1, 5 KOs), scoring a second-round stoppage in an untelevised lightweight bout.
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