Super bantamweight prospect and former Olympic bronze medalist Murodjon Akhmadaliev improved to 5-0 (4 KO) with a win tonight on HBO, beating Isaac Zarate via ninth round stoppage. The official time of the stoppage was 1:17 of round nine.
Akhmadaliev, 24, was on the biggest stage of his young professional career, and he put on a strong showing in Atlantic City. The fight ultimately was a mismatch — we’re talking about a highly successful, seasoned amateur taking on a young journeyman pro with almost no amateur background, and the fight played out as such.
The first couple of rounds were relatively competitive, but the third turned into a beat ‘em up in Akhmadaliev’s favor, and the fight never got any more balanced from there, as it became The MJ Show.
Zarate (16-4-3, 2 KO) was game and tried to stay busy, especially early, but the power of Akhmadaliev just took over the fight, and Zarate didn’t have anything to discourage Akhmadaliev from stalking and attacking.
The finish came when Akhmadaliev landed a clean right hook, followed by a clean left hand. At that point, the referee had simply seen enough of a one-sided fight.
Akhmadaleiv landed 206 of 469 (44%) of his total punches, and a sensational 50% (151 of 303) of his power shots. Zarate landed just 111 of 519 (21%) total punches, and 83 of 327 (25%) power punches.
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