Promoter Dmitry Salita (Salita Promotions)
claimsthat he has a fighter in his stable who will very soon throw off the throne of the light heavyweight leader of the Russian Artur Beterbiev (18-0, 18 KOs). It turns out that this is a prospect from Russia, Ali Izmailov (8-0, 6 KOs), who will have a fight very soon – in August he will fight an unbeaten American
Eric Murgia (14-0, 12 KOs).
Salita is sure that “Izmailov is probably already the best fighter in the world in this division. I have no doubt that this is a future superstar. He has only 8 professional fights behind him, and he is already ready to face division leaders Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.”
According to the promoter, it is Izmailov who will throw the long-playing knockout champion from the throne. Coach John David Jackson, who has experience working with boxers from the Russian Federation, agrees with Salita – he trained the ex-division leader Sergei Kovalev, but after the second defeat in a row to the American Andre Ward, the parties stopped cooperation and began desperately pouring slop on each other.
“Working with Ali is a pleasure,” says Jackson. This kid is a world class fighter. It absorbs everything like a sponge. He loves to study. And despite the fact that he only has 8 fights, he is already on his way to the top. To be honest, he’s one of the best fighters I’ve ever worked with.”
In the meantime, there was news from the leaders of the division: Bivol’s priorities were set, Beterbiev will be determined by the IBF contender. Interestingly, recently YouTuber Paul announced his intentions to take the light heavyweight title.
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