The World Boxing Organisation No 1-ranked cruiserweight boxer, Ola Afolabi (19-2-3, 9 KOs), is once again the interim WBO world cruiserweight champion after defeating Valery Brudov (39-4, 28 KOs) in a fifth-round knockout on Friday.
It became clear after Afolabi, 31, had taken the Russian contender and former interim titlist to school in devastating fashion.
Referee Gino Rodriguez saved Brudov from his own bravery and further punishment after the fifth round .
Brudov, who accepted the fight two weeks ago, was rusty but willing to bring some heat to Afolabi, who was also ranked No 4 by the WBA and No 7 by both the WBC and the IBF (Brudov was rated No 8 by the WBO in advance and he was also WBA No 14).
He marched forward and threw looping shots but the Nigerian easily slipped them with his supreme defense. He kept Brudov at the end of his jab, while adding stinging right swings on ocassion and left hooks to the body to make Brudov’s diet a bit more diverse.
In round three, Afolabi went after Brudov and landed two right hammering shots to put him down on his knees. Brudov, 35, refused to surrender and continued to fight on. The fourth stanza was also in Afolabi’s favor. He wasn’t very active but when he opened up he tagged the Russian once again. Punishment continued to accumulate in the fifth.
Midway into the round, Afolabi landed several left and right hand bombs, and Brudov went down for the second time. He got up and went on, trying to harm Afolabi at all costs. Costs were cheap, however, as the Nigerian landed several huge right hand bombs at the bell. Brudov didn’t go down but he was too wobbly, which made referee Rodriguez bring a halt to the contest.