Boxing

Zhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabayel Result: Kabayel Stops Zhang In Knockout Win On Beterbiev vs Bivol 2 Undercard

Agit Kabayel stuns Zhilei Zhang on the Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 undercard.

Apratim Banerjee

IMAGO / Norbert Schmidt

Zhilei Zhang and Agit Kabayel clashed on the undercard of the Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 event on February 22. The WBC interim heavyweight title was on the line for the matchup.

Zhang entered the contest on the back of a TKO win against Denotay Wilder. Kabayel, meanwhile, was undefeated coming into the contest.

Zhang started the fight well, putting Kabayel under pressure. The German, though, recovered well and had Zhang on the back foot.

Kabayel almost neutralized Zhang with his grueling pressure by round 4. However, Zhang always had the equalizer with his power.

That came into play when Zhang put Kabayel down in the fifth round. Kabayel, though, recovered well and continued his pressure. He kept on attacking Zhang's body to the point where he looked like he had nothing left in the tank.

Another body shot in the sixth round made Zhang take a knee. He was unable to respond to the count in time and Kabayel earned a stoppage win, perhaps the biggest victory of his career so far.

Kabayel became the first fighter to stop Zhang. He is now 26-0-0 with 18 knockout wins. Zhang, meanwhile, is now 27-3-1. Kabayel has become the WBC interim heavyweight champion courtesy of his win.

With the victory, Kabayel establishes himself as a top contender in the heavyweight division. He could very well be line for a bigger name next after the most important win of his career. As for 41 year old Zhang, it would be interesting to see his next move.

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Apratim Banerjee
APRATIM BANERJEE

Apratim is an experienced sports journalist and has covered Football, Boxing, MMA, and more for the past five years. He has worked for Sports Illustrated, Sportskeeda, EssentiallySports, and other publications. Apratim is currently pursuing an MSc. in Sport Marketing at Loughborough University London.