Janibek Alimkhanuly (16-0, 11 KOs) easily retained his IBF and WBO middleweight titles with a ninth-round knockout against freshman challenger Andrei Mikhailovich (21-1, 13 KOs) on Friday evening at the Star in Sydney. , Australia.
After the contest, 31-year-old Janibek said that he had taken Mikhailovich and that he could be knocked out in the second round. Indeed, it looked like Janibek pulled away after backing Mikhailovich to the canvas with some hard punches in the second round.
He had Mikhailovich hurt in rounds three and four, but it didn’t go for the finish. Janibek could be seen pulling away each time, allowing Mikhailovich to stay in the fight. It almost looked like Janibek was showing mercy to the 26-year-old because it was too easy and not a fair fight.
Mikhailovich was totally outmatched and floored repeatedly by Janibek’s hard punches. In retrospect, the IBF and WBO did Mikhailovich no favors, giving him a high ranking despite his lack of experience against world-class fighters. Mikhailovich had never fought a top 15 fighter before facing Janibek, and it showed.
Mikhailovich made adjustments after the fourth round, crowding Janibek, fighting close, and not letting him leverage his shots. Still, the champion had worked, his face bleeding, and he looked tired.
Janibek hurt Mikhailovich with hard left hands in the eighth and ninth, which knocked out his legs. Finally, the referee stepped in and stopped the fight in the ninth round after Mikhailovich was caught in the ropes. The time of the arrest was at 2:45.
After the fight, Janibek said he wants to fight a unification match after 160 against champions Erislandy Lara and Carlos Adames. It’s doubtful either of those guys will accept his offer for a fight because he’s a dangerous puncher, and neither of those fighters is fighting at the level he showed tonight.
“I could have finished in the second round, but I didn’t because I needed to work a little bit,” Janibek told the media after the fight, making it clear that he had taken Mikhailovich. “He changed his tactic, and I had to adjust to his next tactic. I really like what I did.
“He spoke a lot during the press conferences. I told myself that I will bring him some pain. Therefore, beating him in the second round would not be very easy. So, I brought him, and as you can you see, he took a lot of punishment for what he did.
“I didn’t feel his punches coming. So I handled him very well without question. I know both fighters. I was in the ring sparring with Adames, so I know him. I have my tactics for both fighters, and I’m ready as soon as they are ready,” said Janibek when asked about his interest in fighting WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames and WBA champion Erislandy Lara in a unification fight.
