Jones Wins WBO, Abdullaev, Brook, Makhmudov, and Munguia Win
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent
Friday February 18 to Sunday February 20, 2022, featuring some interesting boxing action in significant main events bouts around the world. In the most important weekend result, Natasha Jones is the Real Combat Media Female Fighter of the Month for February 2022, after dropping Chris Namus in the first and second round, on route to a second round stoppage, to win the World Boxing Organisation Female World Super Welterweight title.
Jonas, 11-2-1 with five knockouts, Liverpool, United Kingdom, stopped Namus, 25-7 with eight knockouts, Uruguay, United Kingdom, a former International Boxing Federation Female World Super Welterweight champion, at 28 seconds of the second round in Manchester Arena, in Manchester, United Kingdom. The win propelled Jonas, in her third world title attempt, into the number one female BoxRec ratings position at 154 pounds worldwide, on February 19, 2022.
At RCC Boxing Academy, in Ekaterinburg, Russian Federation, on Saturday, February 19, 2022, Zaur Abdullaev, 15-1 with nine knockouts, Ekaterinburg, Russian Federation, knocked out Jorge Linares, at 2:28 of the twelfth and final round, to win the World Boxing Council Silver Lightweight title. 47-7 with 29 knockouts, Tokyo, Japan. Abdullaev knocked down Linares twice in the final round to earn the stoppage and another shot at Devin Haney. The sometimes competitive Linares, a former World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association World Lightweight Champion, and veteran of eight world title bouts at lightweight, has lost four of his last seven bouts, and his career might be winding down.
Ring rusty Kell Brook, the former International Boxing Federation World Welterweight champion, 40-3 with 28 knockouts, Sheffield, United Kingdom, shook off 28 months of inactivity, using left jabs, overhand right hands, and right hooks, to stop Amir Khan, 34-6 with 21 knockouts, Bolton, United Kingdom. Khan, a former WBA and IBF World Lightweight champion, got wobbled by some solid power shots from Brook in the first round, and never recovered, taking a beating in rounds five and six. When Brook threw punch after unanswered punch, with Khan helpless on the ropes, referee Victor Loughlin stopped the bout at 51 seconds of the sixth round in the Manchester Arena main event, probably ending Khan’s career, though Khan does have a mandatory rematch clause.
Arslanbek Makhmudov, a Russian fighting out of Montreal, Canada, went to 14-0 with 14 knockouts, at Montreal Casino, Montreal, Canada, with a sixth-round knockout at 0:39 of the sixth of former heavyweight contender Mariusz Wach, 36-8 with 19 knockouts, Krakow, Poland, to win the vacant North American NABA and NAF Heavyweight titles.
Middleweight contender Jaime Munguia went to 39-0 with 31 knockouts, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, at Plaza Monumental, Tijuana, Mexico, with an impressive third-round stoppage of D’Mitrius Ballard, now 21-1-1 with 13 knockouts, Temple Hills, Maryland. Munguia, a former World Boxing Organisation World Super Welterweight champion, retained the WBO Inter-Continental Middleweight championship, and is overdue for a world middleweight title shot later in 2022.
On the Manchester Arena undercard, Germaine Brown, 12-0 with three knockouts, London, United Kingdom, won the BBBofC English Super Middleweight title, with a 10 round decision over defending champion Charlie Schofield, 17-2 with one knockout, Ashton under Lyle, United Kingdom.
Two-time world cruiserweight title challenger Artur Mann, 18-2 with nine knockouts, Hannover, Germany, won a10 round decision in Poland over Nikodem Jazewski, 20-2-1 with nine knockouts, Koscierzyna, Poland, at Hala Orbita, Wroclaw, Poland, on February 19, 2022, winning the vacant International Boxing Organization Inter-Continental Cruiserweight title. Scoring of 98-92, 97-93, and 96-94 in Poland appeared neutral and fair.
At Caribe Royale Orlando, Orlando, Florida, super welterweight Paul Kroll, 9-0-1 with six knockouts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, fought to an eight-round split draw with Marquis Taylor, 12-1-2 with one knockout, Galena, Texas.
In the upset of the week, super featherweight Angel Rodriguez, 20-1 with 10 knockouts, Barranquilla, Columbia, by way of Venezuela, won an upset 12 round split decision over favored Mark Urvanov, 210-3-2 with 10 knockouts, Peruouralsk, Russian Federation.
Felix Cash, 15-0 with 10 knockouts, Wokingham, United Kingdom, won the vacant World Boxing Council International Middleweight title by10 round decision over Magomed Madiev, 15-1-2 with four knockouts, Makhachkala, Russian Federation. Cut over the left eye, down in the second and tenth rounds, and penalized a point for holding in the tenth round, Cash somehow won the bout with scores of 95-92, 95-92, and 94-93.
At Trump Turnberry, Turnberry, Scotland, United Kingdom, Saturday, February 19, 2022, 3-23 welterweight journeyman Gary McGuire of Castlemilk, Glaskow, Scotland, won the Real Combat Media Ringer of the Month award for February 2022, with a second-round stoppage of debuting prospect Alfie McArthur of Paisley, Scotland. Referee Darren Maxwell stopped the bout at the end of the second round. McGuire won for the second time in his last five bouts, also magically outpointing debuting Scottish prospect Hayden Hill in October 2021.
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