Israil Madrimov is scheduled for two fights within 63 days. He will fight former WBC interim junior middleweight champion Serhii Bohachuk on December 21st and then Vergil Ortiz Jr. on February 22nd.
Madrimov-Ortiz Jr. is one of the better fights on the February 22nd card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. If it happens, it’s going to be interesting to see how Vergil Jr. handles Madrimov’s technical skills and power. However, that match will depend on whether Madrimov gets through the Bohachuk without getting beaten or injured,
Two Fights, Two Months
If Madrimov can pull it off, it would be massive for his career and might lead to other fighters trying to follow his lead. It’s one way for fighters to increase their marketability quickly.
Today, Madrimov’s fight with Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs) was one of the announced contests on His Excellency Turki Alalshikh’s Riyadh Season card. Promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed that Madrimov is still scheduled to fight Bohachuk on the undercard of the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk 2 rematch in 19 days on December 21st
For ‘Little GGG’ Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs) to get to the match against WBC interim 154-lb champion Ortiz, he’s got to come through the Bohachuk fight without losing or suffering a bad cut. Bohachuk is known for his high work rate and punching power.
This guy is going to be a real problem for Madrimov if he doesn’t increase his output. Bohachuk lost his last fight to Vergil Jr. by a questionable 12-round majority decision on August 10th in a fight that easily could have gone the other way.
Madrimov is coming off a close 12-round unanimous decision loss to Terence Crawford last summer in a Riyadh Season event on August 3rd.
It was a fight that Madrimov could have won if he followed in the footsteps of GGG by going on the attack, but he let Crawford outwork him in rounds nine through twelve. With Madrimov’s amateur experience, he should have known what he needed to do to win.
The loss to Crawford was a learning experience for Madrimov, who knows what he must do to win against the higher-level fighters. Going into that match, Madrimov had been fighting average fighters, and he now knows that he needs to raise his game to win against the elite.
