ZHAKIYANOV DESTROYS KHONGCHANA INSIDE A ROUND

Hatton Promotions exciting new signing Zhanat Zhakiyanov knocked out Thai rival Noppadol Khongchana in the first round to claim the World Boxing Council (WBC) Asian bantamweight title on Friday night.

A sell-out 1500 crowd packed into the city sports hall in Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan for the fight despite outside temperatures of -27 degrees centigrade.

Khongchana remained unconscious for several minutes and attended by the paramedics in the ring, but was able then to walk back to the dressing room.

The event, co-promoted by Hatton Promotions and Kazak promoter Yerik Jailauov, was the first ever professional boxing promotion to take place in the Northern Kazakhstan city.

Zhakiyanov said that his next target is to bring back the European bantamweight title to his home city and hopes to challenge EBU champion Jamie McDonnell this year.