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Murat Gassiev produced a stunning knockout of Kubrat Pulev to claim the WBA ‘regular’ heavyweight title in Dubai.
Gassiev landed a clean left hook to floor Pulev and end the contest in the sixth round, with his opponent unable to beat the count as he tried to stumble to his feet.
Pulev is no stranger to British boxing fans, having been beaten by Anthony Joshua and Derek Chisora in 2020 and 2022 respectively.
At 44 years old, his clash with Gassiev was arguably a last roll of the dice, but he came up short.
Gassiev celebrates after claiming the WBA ‘regular’ heavyweight title
With his eye-catching victory, Gassiev could now earn a full world title shot with the WBA against unified champion Oleksandr Usyk, who has held the WBA ‘super’ belt since his first victory over Joshua in 2021.
Gassiev, a former cruiserweight world champion, has met Usyk once before at cruiserweight, with Usyk winning by unanimous decision.
Britain’s red-hot prospect Moses Itauma is also lying in wait for Gassiev, with the WBA having stated before the fight that the winner of Pulev-Gassiev must fight Itauma next.
Pulev was initially ordered to make a mandatory WBA title defence against Itauma, but the Bulgarian’s team had plans already in place for the fight against Russia’s Gassiev.
Itauma puts his 13-fight unbeaten record on the line on January 24 when he faces American Jermaine Franklin in Manchester.
