How Good Is IBF 154lbs Champion Bakhram Murtazaliev?
By Ralph Rimpell
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 26 Oct 2024
Bakhram Murtazaliev who?
Last Saturday night, IBF 154lbs champion Bakhram Murtazaliev (23-0, 17KOs) was paired against popular named fighter and former WBO 154lbs champion Tim Tszyu (24-2, 17KOs). Murtazaliev was viewed merely as the IBF title holder and was supposed to be an opponent for Tszyu.
Tszyu was last seen fighting unified 154lbs WBC/WBO champion Sebastian Fundora (23-1-1, 13KOs) on March 30, 2024 losing by split decision largely due to a cut from an accidental elbow which drained blood into his eye impairing his vision. Tszyu previously had an opportunity to fight on a very popular card by influential Saudi Promoter Turki Alalshikh on August 3, 2024 against top undefeated contender Vergil Ortiz (22-0, 21KOs), but was not cleared to fight as the cut to his scalp was not fully healed.
Tszyu promised destruction and to inflict punishment on Murtazaliev on Saturday night. The stage was also set for a new beginning for Tszyu. He had reconciled with his father after being estranged for years. Tszyu’s father is Boxing Hall of Famer and former unified junior welterweight champion Kostya Tszyu. Kostya helped him his son train for his fight for Murtazaliev. His mother and brother (Nikita) were in the audience. Tszyu is promoted by Premier Boxing Champions (PBC), while Murtazaliev is Promoted by Kathy Duva of Main Events.
All Tszyu had to do was defeat Murtazaliev and he could look forward to “Big Fights” and 10 figure paydays against the likes of Terrence Crawford, a rematch with Fundora, Errol Spence, and possibly rumored bout with Canelo Alvarez.
At the start of the opening bell it was Murtazaliev who would impose the destruction and inflict punishment on Tszyu. After a “toe to toe” (no fighter retreated) first round where both fighters threw heavy punches, Murtazaliev knocked down Tszyu 3 times in the 2rd round and twice in the 3rd round. Tszyu’s corner had seen enough and threw the towel into the ring conceding defeat to Murtazaliev.
Prior to this latest defeat, Tszyu had some notable wins against quality fighters and former champions such as Terrell Gausha, Tony Harrison, Carlos Compas, and Brian Mendoza. Prior to those wins Tszyu was accused of not being a good enough fighter and was in a good position because of being the son of Kostya Tszyu. To Tim Tszyu’s credit, he is no ordinary fighter. But with two “back to back” losses (a split decision loss and a devastating knockout loss to Murtazaliev) one has to ask has Tszyu peaked? Or is his career over?
Time will tell as to what’s next for Tszyu. Does he retire from the sport of boxing? Or does he continue? Tszyu’s previous opponents Fundora suffered a devastating knockout to Brian Mendoza. However, Fundora came back in his next fight and defeated Tszyu in his last fight for the WBO/WBC welterweight titles. One fight, a victory over Tszyu, put Fundora back on top.
Tszyu has proven he is more than just an ordinary boxer. Tszyu is capable of returning to his winning ways but he needs a big win, like Fundora, to get his career back on track. A fight against former undisputed champion Jermell Charlo never materialized because Charlo moved up to 168lbs to challenge Canelo Alvarez for his 168lbs titles. Perhaps a fight/win against Charlo or a Keith Thurman would jump start Tszyu's career. Fight fans will have to let the proverbial dust settle to see what Tszyu will decide to do next.
However, Murtazaliev walked in the fight with Tszyu as a title holder, but walked out as the champion. Tim Tszyu conceded, “Victory belongs to Bakhram, he is the man at 154 [pounds] and the IBF champion.” https://www.smh.com.au/sport/boxing/live-boxing-updates-tim-tszyu-v-bakhram-murtazaliev-in-world-title-fight-20241020-p5kj. Murtazaliev, based on his performance against Tszyu, has put every 154lbs in the world on notice. There is no doubt that Turki Alalshikh has taken notice of Mutazaliev’s.
Murtazaliev’s victory over Tszyu reminds this Writer of a then little known Filipino named Manny Pacquiao who was brought in as an opponent against Marco Antonio Barrera who totally outclassed Barrera earning a TKO victory in the 11th round back in 2003. Those of us who follow boxing know that was the beginning Pacquiao’s ascent to stardom and mainstream status. Is Murtazaliev’s victory over Tszyu his path to stardom?
This Writer wears glasses and contact lenses for vision correction but Murtazliev has a strong resemblance to undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev. Beterbiev recently defeated Dimitry Bivol in a close fight two weeks ago to solidify his position as the only champion and best of all the 175lbs. Both fighters are Russian and both fighters are undefeated. Will Murtazaliev be as good as Beterbiev?
Not much is known about Murtazaliev as most of his early bouts took place in Russia. He later signed with Promotional Outfit Main Events led by Kathy Duva. Former light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev who also fights for Main Events was the one who brought Murtazaliev to Duva’s attention who promptly signed him upon realizing his potential. After receiving a ranking from the IBF, Murtazaliev patiently waited his turn for a world title and defeated Jack Culcay in Germany for the vacant IBF title that was abdicated by former champion Jermell Charlo. No one expected the outcome of the Tszyu vs Murtazliev fight. Tszyu is a good fighter evidenced by him beating former world champions and good fighters.
So does that make Murazliev a potential star like Manny Pacquiao, Gennadiy Golovkin, or Vasily Lomencheko? Can Murazilev defeat Crawford, Fundora, Vergil Ortiz and the other top 154lbs in the world? Also, How good is Murtazliev? Only time will tell. However, Murtazaliev will certainly be given the opportunity to show how good a fighter he is now that he has defeated Tszyu which will likely be voted the boxing upset of 2024.
Contact Writer: RLuvsboxing@aol.com
***Ralph Rimpell is a writer based out of New York and is a Boxing Correspondent for Philboxing.com. Ralph holds an undergraduate degree from City University of New York. He has been a Boxing Writer for over ten years having written for several top boxing websites on the World Wide Web. Before becoming a writer, Ralph's passion was for professional wrestling until he realized professional wrestling was entertainment and not a real sport. It was at that time the 1984 US Olympic team made up of future stars such as Evander Holyfield, Meldrick Taylor, Pernell Whitaker, etc. entered the professional ranks and signed with promotional outfit Main Events.It was also at that time a young exciting Heavyweight originally hailing from Brooklyn named Mike Tyson also turned professional and became the face of boxing. Young boxing fan Ralph just couldn't get enough of boxing as a large part of it was being broadcast on "free TV". As time went on, Ralph felt boxing writers were not being forthcoming with their boxing coverage, opinion pieces, interviews, etc. So Ralph decided to write an article and submitted it to a Boxing website thinking it would be deleted and ignored by the Editor. To Ralph's surprise his article was posted on their website and the readers embraced it. The rest is history.
"I thank God for the Internet because it has created opportunities for writers like myself who likely would not have been given an opportunity to write for print publications. I hope someday soon to expand my role in Boxing on different levels." -- Ralph Rimpell
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ralph Rimpell.
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