Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov Makes Easy Work of Sardor Muzaffarov
At the KRK Uralets Arena in Ekaterinburg, Russia, number one ranked IBF junior lightweight contender Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (16-0-1, 12 KOs) stepped into the ring to face Sardor Muzaffarov (4-5, 2 KOs) in a ten-round contest.
It’s been a bit of a hard-luck 2021 for Rakhimov. The 27-year-old from Ekaterinburg made a name for himself in February of this year when he battled former IBF world junior lightweight champion Joseph “JoJo” Diaz to a disputed majority decision draw.
Rakhimov was set to face Kenichi Ogawa for the vacant IBF world 130-pound title in August but withdrew due to injury. Ogawa instead fought and defeated Azinga Fuzile for the vacant IBF belt on November 27.
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Rakhimov faced a Muzaffarov who, to be fair, was a late substitute and sported a very modest record. This looked to be little more than a tune-up for Rakhimov.
SHORT AND QUICK
Rakhimov took the early portion of round one, zoning Muzaffarov in before buzzing him at the end of the round with a left hand. He stepped up the pressure and started pounding his foe throughout round two. Another left hand to the shoulder further troubled Muzaffarov. Then at the end of the second round, Muzaffarov said “no mas” as he was displaying pain in his right shoulder in the corner.
Hurt shoulder aside, Rakhimov was well on his way to victory as he was the stronger and more skilled fighter. Given his number one ranking with the IBF, he hopes to land a fight with Ogawa for the IBF world junior lightweight belt at some point in 2022.
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By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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