Felix Cash Defeats Magomed Madiev by Way of UD
In his latest tour of duty, UK middleweight fighter Felix Cash (15-0, 10 KO’s) handily defeated Russian boxer Magomed Madiev (15-1-2, 4 KO’s). Cash bested the previously unbeaten Madiev by way of unanimous decision. The prizefight was the first for Cash, who is ranked #8 (WBO) and #14 (IBF), in just under a year. It was also the first time that he has been forced to the cards since his October 27, 2018 dustup with Stephen Danyo.
Armed with the win, and the vacant WBC International middleweight title, Cash will continue his pursuit of a full world title. Or, perhaps he will hunt down more European glory. Naturally this soggy outcome is not what Madiev was looking for when he travelled to the UK. In fact, this was the very first bout that Madiev contested outside of his native Russia. Perhaps this is a critical notice that he needs to begin expanding his horizons if he wants to continue improving in the sport.
PACKED A LUNCH AND A PUNCH
For the first 90 seconds of action, Cash enjoyed his stark height and reach advantage by sniping at range with a stabbing jab. Just as he was falling into a good groove, Madiev began finding the timing on a potentially nasty left hook. The blow put a pause in the overly zealous aggression Cash was showing. The action remained lively, but now it was a bit more level. The second was largely like the first, only this time when Madiev caught Cash with the same left hook, he went down.
Still hurt to the head, once on his feet the Russian pursued the UK bruiser like a pack of wild dogs. He chewed at his head and gouged his body with the same maniacal intensity. Pushed back to the ropes, Madiev sank a series of sharp uppercuts into Cash’s bottom jaw. To his credit though, Cash weathered the storm and even managed to finish the round fighting hard.
The UK pugilist would box a good stabilizing round in the third and was clearly the ring general in the fourth. Now the fight was being waged in the center of the ring and saw Cash circling smoothly, whilst sticking and moving at his whim. Madiev was still game but a steady diet of deflating body blows had taken a handful of teeth out of his bite.
DRAMA DOWN THE STRETCH
Once Cash resumed control of the fight dynamics, very little changed with the passing of the rounds. Madiev continued to wage competent and purposeful war. Trouble was he just a hair too slow and too short to keep up with his fleetfooted foe. Round by round he was getting outworked and out-pointed. Nevertheless, the Russian came roaring off his stool in the final round and attacked Cash with gusto.
He was so intense that he instantly had Cash going in reverse and even scored a knockdown. Once back on his feet, Cash did little else but shamelessly hold on like a frightened toddler clasped to their parents pant leg. It was so gratuitous that referee Mark Lyson deducted an additional point for the infraction. Not wanting to lose a third point in one period, Cash finished the bout fight toe-to-toe with the Russian. Due to the significant shift in points, there was a real sense of drama heading into what should have been a predictable decision. When the cards were read however, Cash still walked away with the unanimous decision to the tune of 95-92 (x2) and 94-93.
Reading Time: 3 minutes
By: Bakari Simpson
