Kubrat Pulev defeated Ihor Shevadzutskiy from Ukraine in front of the crowded stands at he Arena Sofia hall in the capital, a BGNES reporter reported. The Bulgarian was the better of the two in the ring and won by unanimous decision in all three of the judges cards - all three by 117-111.
After an introductory first round, the Cobra began to find gaps in the guard of his 33-year-old opponent, who was coming into the fight after a victory a month ago. Bulgaria's boxer continued to be more active and more accurate, and as the match progressed, he began to wear down the Ukrainian, who was almost 18 kg heavier than him. In the fifth round, the Cobra received a warning for a blow to the back of the head, but this did not distract him in any way. Shevadzutskiy also landed accurate shots to the body on several occasions as well as several left straights, but to no avail.
Kubrat continued to dictate the game and be moderate in his actions, realizing that there was no point in taking excessive risks that would expose him to the open. In the 11th round, the Ukrainian played more risky in search of a knockout, but despite his strong performance, he was unable to achieve more than a good round for the statistics. In the final 12th round, Kubrat looked for the knockout in the closing seconds, but his opponent held his attacks. In the end, the victory was absolutely deserved for the Bulgarian, who received the WBA international heavyweight belt.
“The opponent was not at my level, but he is super uncomfortable. He tried to do everything possible, but his punches were hard to hit - and he hit below the belt, but we are Bulgarians, nothing scares us. He congratulated me, I want to tell him to prepare for September. I thank him, preparing for then, it won't be easy for him - I hope his injury will go away faster", were the first words of the Cobra, who also turned to Mahmoud Charr, who got into the ring after his match with Shevadzutskyi and greetings Char is out of the bill for the fight with Kubrat for the regular WBA world heavyweight title.
"Hello, Bulgaria. Thanks for the hospitality. Respect to Kubrat, but I promise him that in September I will beat him. He didn't show me anything special today. Take it easy, I'll give you the chance for the title, see you soon", Charr addressed the Bulgarian audience at Arena Sofia, who booed him during his speech.
The legend of Bulgarian football, Hristo Stoichkov, also entered the ring, to congratulate the Pulevi brothers after their victories this evening. "Good evening. Proud and happy. It is not easy to wear the colours of Bulgaria. I am proud that we are friends. I thank everyone who supported these Bulgarians", Stoichkov said.
"I want to thank this great Bulgarian. To have the honor of being in this world at the same time - my respect and bow to him. A truly great Bulgarian, thank you for coming. I've prepared some gloves for his shop so they don't forget we're friends", added Kubrat, who is now 31-3 (14 KOs). In September, he is expected to fight Charr for the regular WBA world heavyweight title. /BGNES
