Qatari pro Sheikh Fahad extends unbeaten streak to 9

Gulf Times

By Mikhil Bhat/Doha

Qatar’s first professional boxer Sheikh Fahad bin Khalid al-Thani extended his winning streak to nine when he beat Dumitru Nicu Manea in their super welterweight bout in Leon, Spain, late on Saturday.
Sheikh Fahad was earlier supposed to face Gheorghe Ghiompirica in Saturday’s bout but had to deal with a change in opponent since the Romanian could not make his medicals on time.
Ghiompirica’s compatriot Manea then stepped in for the fight, which posed its own set of challenges for the 31-year-old Qatari. “I had prepared for Ghiompirica, who is shorter than the opponent I eventually fought. Manea was taller, which meant he had a better reach, and had actually come to knock me out,” Sheikh Fahad told Gulf Times after his win.
Nonetheless, Sheikh Fahad won the first two rounds with a good pace, showing improvement in movement.
However, Manea wasn’t going to give up without a fight and came on strong in the third, till a mistimed move meant he hit Sheikh Fahad on his inner elbow, and the Qatari caught him with an upper cut.
Manea tried rallying in the fourth but eventually ended up retiring courtesy the earlier attacks from the Qatari pro.
“I have improved so much since my last bout,” Sheikh Fahad said. “I only hope to keep up my high level of activity and keep building on my experience.”
Sheikh Fahad, who made his pro debut in 2016 in Croatia, had, in an earlier conversation, told Gulf Times about how he is focused on the task at hand in the ring and only bothers to listen to his Cuban coach Ismael Salas.
That paid off for him given the change of opponent. “Listening to Ismael Salas instructions gave me the edge in the ring. I used a few combinations that I worked on during my camp but I hope to improve further and quicker, especially with my control of distance and my jab,” he said.
Sheikh Fahad made a winning debut against Hungary’s Bela Sandor in May 2016. He has since beaten a string of Romanians, including Adrian Parlogea (thrice), Ghiompirica (twice), Ionut Bogheanu and Marius Racaru.