Batyrgaziev is an accomplished amateur who won the world championships in his weight class last year. He turned pro today and competed for a WBA regional title versus Armen Ataev. He has fast hands and good footwork which he used well in the fight where he couldn’t miss with his counters.
He got caught a few times early on but as the fight progressed he was landing more and more until Ataev was pulled out of the fight by his corner before the 8th round. I was impressed with Batyrgaziev who looked comfortable outclassing his opponent even though it was his debut and he was facing a decent fighter. He seemed to be getting better as the fight went on so expect him to break people down rather than score one punch knockouts.
Super Featherweight is one of my favourite divisions in the sport and I think he’ll be a good addition to it. I think he’ll likely go to the Olympics next year and as a lot of next year’s Olympians are doing is getting some pro fights in so as to not waste time.
Boxing Fulcrum 