LONDON: Yunier Dorticos had never been stopped in his previous 22 fights before the World Boxing Super Series semifinal matchup on Saturday, so it was always going to take something special to inflict the first defeat of the Cuban’s career and rob him of his WBA cruiserweight title.
And Murat Gassiev, the big punching Russian, produced it, delivering a sledgehammer of a left hook with just 90 seconds remaining of their enthralling fight in Sochi. It was a shot the watching Gennady Golovkin would have been proud of.
What a fight and what a finish! Congratulations to Gassiev!#GassievDorticos #Boxing #AliTrophy pic.twitter.com/6i3CxSqMml
— Miguel (@UnkhanciousAmir) February 3, 2018
Dorticos somehow got up but the damage was done and Gassiev won the fight by TKO to extend his own record to 26-0 and set up a winner-takes-all showdown with fellow unbeaten Oleksandr Usyk in Jeddah on May 11. On the line is the Muhammad Ali Trophy and the chance to be crowned cruiserweight division’s first undisputed champion. Usyk was ringside on Saturday and they whetted the appetite for the clash of the cruiserweight titans by indulging in their first face-off.
The finalists have their first face-off ahead of the big fight on 11th May! #GassievDorticos #AliTrophy pic.twitter.com/ysiN0lXc54
— World Boxing Super Series (@WBSuperSeries) February 3, 2018
