Alakhverdiev Beats Escalera

In one of the more exciting fights on Friday’s card at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Russian junior welterweight prospect Khabib Alakhverdiev (5-0, 2 KO’s) defeated Puerto Rican prospect Josean Escalera (2-2, 1 KOs) by four-round split decision. Alakhverdiev, 24, is a fighter that many boxing experts have an eye on, noting that he was a former Russian Olympian with over 200 amateur bouts under his belt. In the first two rounds, it looked like an easy night for the southpaw Alakhverdiev, as used a concentrated body attack to pile on the points.

In the 3rd and 4th rounds, however, Escalera’s size advantage begin to weigh in his favor, allowing him to land at a distance against the much shorter Alakhverdiev. Still, however, Escalera looked far from polished, missing many of his punches and still getting tagged a lot by the Russian. Both fighters went at it in the fourth and final round, making the fight appear more like a tough man contest than a professional boxing match. In the end, Alakhverdiev got the edge on the judges’ scorecards, winning 39-37, 38-39 and 39-37.