Cody Crowley Puts on the Performance of his Career in Upset win over Abdukakhorov
Much was on the line as Kudratillo Abdukakhorov (18-1, 10 KOs) took on Cody “The Crippler” Crowley (20-0, 9 KOs) at Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California in a ten-round welterweight battle.
For Abdukakhorov, this fight was about preserving his position. The 28-year-old is ranked #6 by the WBC and is the IBF welterweight mandatory challenger but also wanted to stay active until he eventually gets a title shot. In March 2021, he returned from a seventeenth-month hiatus and stopped Javier Flores in eight rounds.
He faced a Crowley that was highly motivated and brought in experience from sparring with Hall of Inductee Floyd Mayweather Jr. The fighter from Ontario, Canada was offered the chance to fight Abdukakhorov in April of this year, but the fight fell through.
Then he was set to face Gabriel Maestre in August but had to withdraw after contracting COVID-19. Then due to a lack of finances, he was forced to sell his car. Now with a second chance and a new lease on life, the Canadian plans on taking full advantage.
SETTING THE PACE
Crowley began the fight applying pressure early. He had Abdukakhorov on the back foot and connected with a right jab and right hooks. But after getting stunned in the second round, Abdukakhorov put Crowley down later in the round. Undeterred, he dusted himself off and continued to walk down and stalk the highly ranked welterweight.
MAKING HIM UNCOMFORTABLE
Abdukakhorov landed some nice body shots. The problem was, Crowley was mostly walking through his shots and continued the all-out assault during the middle rounds and late rounds. His activity and sheer relentlessness overwhelmed Abdukakhorov in the second half of the fight. “Crippler” had all the answers, Abdukakhorov had none.
In the end, the judges correctly scored the fight for Crowley by unanimous decision (95-94, 97-92 98-91). For the winner, this is by far the biggest win of his career. Look for Crowley to appear in the world rankings as he is officially a player in the welterweight division.
It’s a crushing setback for Abdukakhorov. He was hoping this would be the springboard towards a world title shot. Instead, he has to pick up the pieces and go back to the drawing board.
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By: Michael Wilson Jr.
