The outcome of the duel between Russian Murat Gassiev and American Mike Balogun can be unpredictable, but the Russian fighter has definitely more chances to win. On Saturday, February 25, this opinion was expressed to Izvestia by the champion of the CIS and Slavic countries according to the WBC CISBB heavyweight Dmitry Kudryashov.
The boxer is confident that in the upcoming fight, which will take place in Armenia as part of the REN TV Fight Club in early March, Gassiev will easily defeat Balogun.
“In my opinion, boxing is such a thing when everything can turn in the opposite direction, but this is not the case. I think that after a couple of unsuccessful attempts, Balogun will stop resisting,” he said.
Kudryashov noted that Gassiev has a higher status than his rival.
“Gassiev is a fighter with a name, he fought in the elite, he is a world-class boxer. Balogun has an ideal record, but I don’t see how he can compete with Murat, ”Kudryashov said.
According to him, now Gassiev needs such fights while he recovers from injuries.
Earlier on Saturday, Olympic boxing champion Yevgeny Tishchenko told Izvestia about his expectations from the upcoming fight. The athlete said that he expects “an interesting sight” from Gassiev and Balogun, since both fighters are heavyweights, and it is always interesting to watch them in the ring.
At the same time, Tishchenko also believes that the Russian is the favorite of the fight. At the same time, the fighter noted that Balogun is an undefeated and experienced opponent who “boxes without defeat, on the go, boxing in America,” although he is not so rich in regalia.
Murat Gassiev is a former unified world heavyweight champion. He became the IBF champion by defeating compatriot Denis Lebedev. In 2018, Gassiev knocked out Cuban boxer Yuniel Dorticos, taking away his WBA title. He spent 30 fights, in 21 of which he won by knockout.
On account of the 39-year-old American Balogun 20 victories, 16 of which he won ahead of schedule. The athlete ranks eighth among all heavyweights from the United States.
REN TV will broadcast the fight between Gassiev and Balogun live on the evening of March 3.
