WBO Super-Middleweight Champion Arthur Abraham ends the year with a bang.
Abraham proved that he is back at the top after defeating Mehdi Bouadla by
TKO in round eight in Nuremberg, Germany on Saturday night. The 7.000 fans
in attendance witnessed a great performance by the titlist, who presented
them with an early Christmas gift.
Abraham began the fight forceful. The prodigy of coach Ulli Wegner
pressurized Bouadla right from the get go, just like he did in his fight
against Robert Stieglitz on August 25. Powerful jabs found their way through
the defense of the French challenger. Right towards the end of round one the
champion let loose a salvage of heavy blows, which got Bouadla into trouble
and the crowd rising from their seats and chanting Abraham’s name.
But the hard hitting titleholder did not only rely on his power and high
volume of punches. By constantly switching his target from head to body, he
was eager to keep the challenger guessing as to where he would attempt to
hit him next. Nevertheless, Bouadla was in no way willing to leave the
battlefield without trying his luck. After being the victim of yet another
flurry of hard punches during the third round, he decided it was time to
start an attack himself. However, it was easy to see, that the man from
Aulnay sous Bois, France had nothing to match the sheer strength of his
opponent.
After some more or less slower rounds, Abraham turned up the heat once more
in round seven. A lovely uppercut as well as a big straight right hand made
it evident, that the WBO Champion was just too much to handle for Bouadla.
Those landed punches resulted in a deep cut on the challengers right eye.
The 30-year-old did make it through to the break, but in round eight, it was
clear that the injury had a big influence on Bouadla’s vision, as he was not
able to see Abraham’s punches coming. Hence, referee Mark Nelson made the
correct call by taking Bouadla out of the bout after 2:11 minutes of the
eight round and declaring the German as the winner.
Winning his 36th fight in Nuremberg meant a lot to the new and still world
champion. “It was in Franconia where I picked up boxing. Therefore, there is
no better feeling than being able to celebrate a victory with the fans in
this particular city,” said Abraham who also had some kind words for his
opponent. “He is one tough cookie who can take a punch, but 2012 was my
year.”
Bouadla, who now stands at five losses out of 31 fights, admitted right
after the defeat, that Abraham was just too strong for him: “He was just too
good. It is as simple as that. The referee made the right call by stopping
the fight. Abraham was very impressive with his power and didn’t allow me to
land any of my counter-attacks.”
Moreover, coach Ulli Wegner explained why he kept praising Abraham
throughout the whole time leading up to and after the fight. “I can only
complain about Arthur if he gives me a reason to do so. Today he did
everything I asked him to.”
Also successful in his quest to defend his title was Jack Culcay, who still
has an unbeaten record after 14 professional bouts. The 27-year-old took on
Jean Michel Hamilcaro in a fight for the WBA-Intercontinental Light
Middleweight Title. And Culcay made it clear, why he is regarded as one of
Germany’s future superstars. The challenger from France did not stand a
chance against the speed and power of Culcay. The referee stopped the fight
in round five as Culcay proved to be too strong for his counterpart.
Winning his first important title was Mateusz Masternak. The Polish
cruiserweight and Juho Haapoja from Finland fought it out for the vacant
European Championship. Masternak was in total control throughout the fight
and landed shots at will, but his opponent gave it his all and made it to
the final bell. After 12 rounds, the judged submitted their scorecards and
declared Masternak the winner by a clear-cut unanimous decision. All three
scored the fight 120-108 in Masternak’s favour who now stands at 29
victories out of as many fights.
