Ivan Kozlovsky Digs Deep to Defeat Zoravor Petrosian
On February 19, all eyes were on the Russian fight scene. Starting the event was rising prospect Ivan Kozlovsky (5-0, 2 KO’s) narrowly escaping with a split decision over Zoravor Petrosian (12-2, 5 KO’s).
Hot prospect Kozlovsky is being fast tracked and rightfully so. He holds a few national championships and a took gold in the World championships in 2015. His amateur record of 262-8 is impressive and the 24 year-old southpaw is making his presence felt in the division.
Zoravor Petrosian’s amateur background is nothing to sneeze at. He won the 2016 AIBA Youth Boxing championship and the Klithschko Brothers Youth Tournament. He suffered his first defeat at the hands of Elnur Samedov in his last fight.
HIGH -LEVEL ACTION EARLY
Despite being viewed as the more technically sound fighter, Kozlovsky was at a disadvantage fighting the taller Petrosian. Kozlovsky started out using his speed and footwork to confuse his opponent. He was able to land crisp hooks to the body, ensuring he was first in every exchange.
It appeared the decorated Russian was going to run away with the fight. He was landing the straight left hand and winning the midrange battle. He effectively landed sharp counters before sliding out of range to avoid any return fire.
However, Petrosian started finding his rhythm and was landing beautiful uppercut counter-punches. He even started switching southpaw to trap Kozlovsky against the ropes. Here, he landed a double hook body shot that froze the young prospect.
There was a point when Petrosian started to mess with Kozlovsky mentally by putting on a display of footwork while avoiding punches.
THE SECOND HALF WAS A WAR
As both fighters would trade winning rounds in the last five of the fight, it became an all-out war. Kovlovsky found the footwork and work-rate he lost during the middle rounds while landing the straight left hand and hard body shots.
However, Petrosian was not going to be outdone! He began to come forward and trap the prospect in the corner while landing a hard, straight right hand. He landed a body shot that was felt by the crowd.
CLOSE DOWN THE STRETCH
Down the stretch, Kozlovsky took control in the final two rounds, fighting inside a phonebooth. He was sharp with those combinations punches, landing an overhand left followed up with a hard double straight left hand. The fight was tightening up down the stretch as both fighters emptied the gas tank.
Petrosian kept applying pressure and coming forward landing good body shots. However, Kozlovsky was finding a home for the straight left and right hook to the body.
It was clear the young Russian’s skillset was on full display and paying dividends. He closed the fight with blazing hand speed and excellent counters. Kozlovsky was able to pull out a split decision victory with two judges scorecards in his favor for 96-94. One judge saw it for Petrosian 99-91. The young Russian’s undefeated record remained intact as he dug deep to show what he was made of.
Reading Time: 3 minutes
By: Garrisson Bland
