STOCKTON, Calif. -- It's strange to say that an undefeated fighter who has won every single fight by the way of knockout is overlooked. That does seem to be the case with IBF light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev. A strong showing on ESPN on May 4 might make more people take notice. On that day, Beterbiev will put his IBF strap on the line against Radivoje Kalajdzic.
What jumps off the screen when you watch Beterbiev (13-0, 13 KOs) is his power. He has won every single one of his fights via the knockout, and usually those knockouts come fairly early. Everything Beterbiev throws is thudding, even his jab. Most of his knockouts come from his right hand and while he can put in good with with his left hook too, it's really the powerful right that does the most damage. The 34-year-old is a patient fighter and does a tremendous job of mixing his attack upstairs and to the body and if he keeps winning, and keeps knocking people out, the world will have to take notice.
It seems like most of the top light heavyweights right now all have some familiar names on their resumes. Beterbiev is no different and two of his most notable wins have come against veterans Tavoris Cloud and Gabriel Campillo. Beterbiev's fight with Cloud ended with a second round knockout and it took just four rounds to knockout Campillo. In his most recent fight Beterbiev took on the undefeated Callum Johnson and knocked him out in the fourth round, handing Johnson the first loss of his career. One issue for Beterbiev has been getting the other top light heavyweights in the ring with him and that will be true against Kalajdzic too since he isn't considered by most to be a top 10 fighter in the division. Not even the IBF, whose title Kalajdzic will be fighting for, has him ranked in the top 10. They rank him at 13, one spot behind Johnson who Beterbiev had no issues with.
The only advantages Kalajdzic (24-1, 17 KOs) will have against Beterbiev is his height and reach. The challenger is slightly taller and has a 3-inch reach advantage but he doesn't exactly fight tall. He throws a lazy jab and lets it hang down near his hip after he throws it and his left hook shouldn't worry Beterbiev too much. Kalajdzic's best punch is his right hand but when he throws it he doesn't keep his chin protected so if Beterbiev can time him he can wait for that punch and unleash a power shot of his own. Although Kalajdzic has never been knocked out his defense is sloppy and he often backs straight up with his hands down. His sloppy style could be disastrous against a patient power puncher like Beterbiev.
The best opponent Kalajdzic has ever faced was Marcus Browne, who he fought in 2016. Kalajdzic dropped a split decision in that fight which was a sloppy one. Outside of Browne, Kalajdzic hasnt fought a high level of opposition and he's only been scheduled to go 10 rounds twice in his career. He's never gone all 10 though and the longest fight of his career has been eight rounds. How a fighter who has zero notable wins, has only been scheduled to go 10 rounds twice, and has never gone more than eight rounds gets a title shot is confusing. Or at least it would be confusing if you weren't familiar with boxing and it's many frustrations.
Sometimes when a fighter is brought in to be the opponent who isn't expected to win, he doesn't expect to win himself. Other guys rise to the occasion, taking offense to being brought in just to be beat, and look better than ever. Kalajdzic has to hope he looks better than ever. Outside of a slight height and reach advantage Kalajdzic will have a disadvantage in every other category. Beterbiev is the better boxer and bigger puncher and he even has more experience against better fighters despite having fought 12 less bouts as a professional. Look for Kalajdzic to shoot his right hand from the outside and survive while Beterbiev should just look to steamroll him.
PREDICTION: This fight is going to be all about Artur Beterbiev. Simply put, Radivoje Kalajdzic just isn't on the same level as Beterbiev is. After a few rounds Beterbiev will really start to put his punches together and he will knock Kalajdzic out in the fifth round.
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| Beterbiev landing a right hand to the body |
It seems like most of the top light heavyweights right now all have some familiar names on their resumes. Beterbiev is no different and two of his most notable wins have come against veterans Tavoris Cloud and Gabriel Campillo. Beterbiev's fight with Cloud ended with a second round knockout and it took just four rounds to knockout Campillo. In his most recent fight Beterbiev took on the undefeated Callum Johnson and knocked him out in the fourth round, handing Johnson the first loss of his career. One issue for Beterbiev has been getting the other top light heavyweights in the ring with him and that will be true against Kalajdzic too since he isn't considered by most to be a top 10 fighter in the division. Not even the IBF, whose title Kalajdzic will be fighting for, has him ranked in the top 10. They rank him at 13, one spot behind Johnson who Beterbiev had no issues with.
The only advantages Kalajdzic (24-1, 17 KOs) will have against Beterbiev is his height and reach. The challenger is slightly taller and has a 3-inch reach advantage but he doesn't exactly fight tall. He throws a lazy jab and lets it hang down near his hip after he throws it and his left hook shouldn't worry Beterbiev too much. Kalajdzic's best punch is his right hand but when he throws it he doesn't keep his chin protected so if Beterbiev can time him he can wait for that punch and unleash a power shot of his own. Although Kalajdzic has never been knocked out his defense is sloppy and he often backs straight up with his hands down. His sloppy style could be disastrous against a patient power puncher like Beterbiev.
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| Kalajdzic landing his best punch, his right hand |
Sometimes when a fighter is brought in to be the opponent who isn't expected to win, he doesn't expect to win himself. Other guys rise to the occasion, taking offense to being brought in just to be beat, and look better than ever. Kalajdzic has to hope he looks better than ever. Outside of a slight height and reach advantage Kalajdzic will have a disadvantage in every other category. Beterbiev is the better boxer and bigger puncher and he even has more experience against better fighters despite having fought 12 less bouts as a professional. Look for Kalajdzic to shoot his right hand from the outside and survive while Beterbiev should just look to steamroll him.
PREDICTION: This fight is going to be all about Artur Beterbiev. Simply put, Radivoje Kalajdzic just isn't on the same level as Beterbiev is. After a few rounds Beterbiev will really start to put his punches together and he will knock Kalajdzic out in the fifth round.
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