Zhanibek Alimkhanuly vs Andrei Mikhailovich Preview October 4th, 2024
Unbeaten southpaw Zhanibek Alimkhanuly of Kazakhstan defends his IBF Middleweight Title when he meets undefeated Andrei Mikhailovich of New Zealand, this Friday, October 4th. The 12-rounder from Sydney, Australia, can be seen live in America on ESPN+ about 5am ET while fans Down Under can catch it on Kayo Sports. Alimkhanuly, who is also the WBO Champion, stopped Vincenzo Gualtieri in the sixth round in his last outing in October to take his IBF Belt. He halted Steven Butler in the second round five months earlier to defend the WBO Belt after winning the interim title a year earlier by stopping Danny Dignum in the second round and beating Denzel Bentley by unanimous decision in his first defence. Mikhailovich last fought in April when he halted Lee Sherrington in just 84 seconds. This fight was originally scheduled for July in Las Vegas but Alimkhanuly had to pull out due to dehydration.
Alimkhanuly vs Mikhailovich Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Andrei Mikhailovich +600
- Zhanibek Alimkhanuly -1000
My Pick
The 31-year-old Alimkhanuly, who now fights out of Oxnard, California, enters the ring with a perfect record of 15-0 with 10 Ko’s and has boxed 87 rounds since making his pro debut in 2016. Prior to that he enjoyed a fine amateur career as he represented Kazakhstan at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where he was beaten in the quarterfinals. He also won a gold medal at the 2013 World Championships where he beat Anthony Fowler and Jason Quigley.
Alimkhanuly reached the quarterfinals of the 2015 World Championships, 2015 Asian Championships and 2010 World Youth Championships, won a gold medal at the 2013 Asian Championships and 2014 Asian Games and also fought in the 2015 World Series of Boxing for Astana Arlans. He stands just over 5-feet-11-inches tall with a 71.5-inch reach and has also won the WBC Continental Americas and WBO Global Middleweight Belts as a pro.
He’s a solid puncher with a good chin as he carries around a current knockout ratio of 66.7 per cent and had stopped six straight six opponents before going the distance with Bentley and has stopped both opponents since. Alimkhanuly also has wins over Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam, Milton Nunez, Vaughn Alexander, Steve Martinez, Cristian Olivas, Stuart McLellan and Rob Brant. He’s an excellent boxer with speed, power and fine boxing skills and appears to be entering the prime of his career at the moment.
As for Mikhailovich, he’s just 26 years old, was born in Russia and grew up in New Zealand. He climbs through the ropes with a perfect mark of 21-0 with 13 Ko’s. He has 94 rounds of experience to his name since his pro debut in 2018 following his amateur career. As an amateur he captured multiple New Zealand national championships in light middleweight and middleweight. As a pro, he’s won the IBF Pan-Pacific and WBO Global Middleweight Titles. He measures just over 5-feet-11-inches tall with a 74.5-inch reach and is the same height as the champion but has a three-inch edge in reach.
Mikhailovich also has above-average power in his arsenal as his current knockout ratio comes in at 62 per cent and eight of his last nine wins have been by stoppage. He also won the New Zealand Junior Middleweight belt in 2020. He has never fought outside of New Zealand as a pro and has fought mainly against domestic opposition with his biggest wins coming against Gunnar Jackson, Shay Brock, Alex Walters, King Davidson, Ernesto Espana, Edisson Saltarin and Francis Waitai.
Prediction…
Alimkhanuly hasn’t been a pro for long but has plenty of amateur experience and is a solid boxer in all areas. Mikhailovich has a pretty good chin but has been dropped before. Both men will be tested here but it may be difficult for Mikhailovich to keep Alimkhanuly off of him for a whole 12 rounds because of the champion’s aggressive style. I’m expecting Alimkhanuly to leave the ring with his undefeated record intact with another victory but it’s not going to come easy. This fight should have some momentum swings but the champion should keep his belts, possibly by stoppage.
Play Alimkhanuly -1000 @ BetOnline.ag
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Andrei Mikhailovich betting • Zhanibek Alimkhanuly betting