Once the most feared man in the light-heavyweight division, Sergey Kovalev went at least a little ways towards regaining that status last night in New York. In totally destroying the decent if not great Vyacheslav Shabranskyy inside two short rounds, “Krusher” regained a portion of the belts he lost to Andre Ward (the Russian dropping a controversial decision to the now-retired Ward last year and being stopped in this year’s return fight).
Vyacheslav Shabranskyy
Sergey Kovalev destroys Vyacheslav Shabranskyy
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev regained his WBO Light Heavyweight World Title in classic Krusher fashion with a second round stoppage of Vyacheslav Shabranskyy at the Theater at Madison Square Garden and live on HBO World Championship Boxing. Kovalev came out of the gates swinging, knocking down Shabranskyy twice in the first round. The second round continued with more hard shots from The Krusher and a third knockdown. Finally, at 2:36 of the second round, the referee called a halt to the action and Kovalev was named the new WBO champ.
Kovalev v Shabranskyy: Preview
On Saturday night, Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) will look to regain the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title from The Theater at Madison Square Garden live on HBO World Championship Boxing against Vyacheslav “Lion Heart-Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy (19-1, 16 KOs). The scouting report for this much-anticipated battle is below: The Krusher has knockout power in both hands and can end a fight with any punch he throws. He has a sharp jab that has been effective in keeping his opponents at bay and has plenty of big-fight experience coming into this bout.
Barrera vs. Valera on Kovalev vs. Shabranskyy card
Sullivan Barrera – “Camp has been great. It continues to get better with my new coach, Derik Santos. Every camp we work on different things. I am enjoying camp because I am learning a lot from him and we mix well. Nov 25 expect a great performance from me!”
“The door is wide open for everyone in the light heavyweight division. There are a lot of great fights to be made and I’m just looking to continue being in the mix with all the great fighters we have in our division.”
Kovalev quotes for Shabranskyy fight
An energized, reinvigorated Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 KOs) spoke with Southern California’s leading boxing journalists and websites and put on a show of skills at a media workout on Tuesday, November 14. The event also featured Kovalev’s new trainer, Abror Tursunpulatov; Kathy Duty, CEO of Main Events, and Egis Klimas, Kovalev’s manager. (Photo credit Craig Bennett/Main Events)
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev – former unified light heavyweight world champion
Sergey Kovalev vs. Vyacheslav Shabranskyy press conference quotes
Kathy Duva, CEO – Main Events: All right, everybody, welcome. We are here today to officially kick off the promotion for a fight that’s going to take place at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, November 25. That’s the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev is going to fight Vyacheslav Shabranskyy in a fight that is going to be a little departure for what Sergey’s gone through lately. It’s going to be a fight where both guys stand in the ring and throw punches at each other.
Results: Barrera stops Shabranskyy
Light heavyweight contender Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (17-1, 14 KOs) was no match for Sullivan Barrera (18-1, 13 KOs) in getting knocked down three times and halted in the 7th round tonight at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California. The 29-year-old Shabranskyy was flattened with a right hand in the 7th. The fight was stopped by the referee after that knockdown. The match was stopped at 2:05 of round five. Shabranskyy was also on the canvas in the 1st and the 5th. Barrera was knocked down in the 2nd.
Sullivan Barrera Pulls Upset Over Vyacheslav Shabranskyy
Cuban stand out Sullivan Barrera (18-1, 13 KOs) pulled an upset over Vyacheslav “Lionheart Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy (17-1, 14 KOs) in a slugfest for the WBC USNBC Light Heavyweight title at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif. before a nearly sold-out crowd and televised on HBO Latino. The fight lasted until the seventh round, where Shabranskyy’s team waved the white towel at the 2:05 mark.
“Of course we would never expect this,” said Vyacheslav Shabranskyy. “We will decide next steps after we get over this.”