Jared Anderson Stops Rudenko; Efe Ajagba Gets A Bizarre Victory
Heavyweight contender Jared “Big Baby” Anderson (16-0, 15KO) scored an impressive crowd-pleasing stoppage over veteran Andriy Rudenko (35-7, 21KO).
Big Baby fought with a purpose and showed off an array of improvements. Boxing fans always knew he was an offensive force, but in this fight, Anderson’s defense was on full display.
His counterpunching, angles, footwork, and bodywork were sharp. It was beginning to look easy for the young talent who landed everything except the kitchen sink.
In round five, Rudenko was deducted a point for holding behind the head. Realizing his opponent was afraid to clinch, Anderson went on the attack and after landing several unanswered shots, he was declared the victor as the referee waved off the fight.
Ranked #5 WBO, #15 IBF, and #7 by both WBC and WBA, Big Baby is poised to make a charge for a world title shot. When looking at the rankings, fights with Arslanbek Makhmudov, Joseph Parker, or the winner of the Joe Joyce vs Zhilei Zhang rematch are all good options for the next fight.
EFE AJAGBA VICTORIOUS AFTER ZHAN KOSSOBUTSKIY IS DISQUALIFIED
In a wild heavyweight bout, Efe Ajagba (18-1, 13KO) got the painful victory after Zhan Kossobutskiy (19-1, 18KO) was disqualified for low blows.
This fight instantly brought back memories of the 1996 Riddick Bowe versus Andrew Golota fight.
RELATED: Big Fights Could Lie Ahead For Ajagba Following Unimpressive Win
After a terrible performance in his last fight, Ajagba looked impressive from the start of the bell. He boxed beautifully from behind the jab and displayed vastly improved movement, counterpunching, and aggression.
In round three, Kossobutskiy did not like getting touched hard to the body and intentionally threw low blows, resulting in being deducted one point, twice. It was clear he was breaking down mentally, and it was only a matter of time before he would self-destruct.
As the fight continued, Ajagba continued to outclass the undefeated fighter and was floored by another illegal blow. The referee realized Kossobutskiy was looking for a way out, waved off the contest in the fourth round.
Before the disqualification victory, Ajagba looked like the fighter so many gave high praise to in the early part of his career. Moreover, he is ranked #14 by the WBC and should receive a nice bump up in the ranking.
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