Madrimov’s trial by fire: Bohachuk, THEN Ortiz Jr. in 63 days!

Israil Madrimov will face Serhii Bohachuk this month in a 12-round fight on December 21st, then make a quick comeback 63 days later to challenge Vergil Ortiz Jr. for his interim WBC junior title on February 22. Both fights are in Riyadh.

Running The Gauntlet

If former WBA 154lb champion ‘Little GGG’ Madrimov (10-1, 7 KOs) makes it through those two fights, he will face Terence Crawford, Bohachuk and Ortiz Jr. in back-to-back fights. That’s the classic definition of running a gauntlet.

Getting through a 12-round war with Bohachuk will be tough enough for Madrimov without getting cut or beaten. But returning two months later to take on fellow Vergil Ortiz Jr. for his WBC 154lb interim title will be a physical feat. But if anyone can do it, Madrimov can. He had over 350+ amateur fights and he was used to fighting often.

Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs) is a tough fighter, who many felt was robbed in his last fight against Virgil Ortiz Jr. on August 10th in Las Vegas. He lost a 12-round majority decision to Ortiz Jr., and it was seen as a highly controversial decision.

Lessons from Crawford

For Madrymov to beat Bohachuk, he needs to let his hands go a lot more than he did in his narrow 12-round unanimous decision loss to Terence Crawford on August 3rd. Madrimov used too many feints, showed too much respect to the 36-year-old Crawford and gave the fight away by not throwing enough.

Crawford vs. Madrimov hitting stats

Terence: 95 out of 433 for 22%
Madrimov: 84 out of 275 for 31%.

‘Little GGG’ is only average 22.9 shots he’s throwing himself round after round against Crawford, and that’s not enough to beat a fighter of his class. He can’t afford to do that against Bohachuk or Ortiz Jr. It’s a miserable performance.

The punches Madrimov threw were single right hands, which landed effectively, but there was no follow-up. Madrimov had the advantage in strength, youth, size and technical skills over Crawford, but he did not throw enough. If he fights Bohachuk like that, he’ll be outmatched because this guy throws a lot of punches and has heavy hands.

The fact that Virgil Jr. chose not to give Bohachuk a rematch is the highest form of respect, showing that he didn’t want a second helping of the punishment handed down to him by the Ukrainian talent.

What if Madrimov falls?

There’s no word on who His Excellency Turki Alalshik has on standby in case ‘Little GGG’ Madrimov gets injured or gets too beat up in his Dec. 21 fight with Bohachuk to face Vergil Ortiz Jr. on Feb. 22. It would be disappointing for the fans if Madrymov was replaced Xander Zaias for the fight of Virgil the Younger.

Zaias (20-0, 12 KOs) is much less fun to watch, seen as a hype job created by Top Rank, who have matched him against an incorrigible opponent throughout his career. If Madrymov can’t fight Ortiz, hopefully a better replacement opponent will be chosen, someone like Erislandi Lara or Eriksson Lubin.

One of the biggest congratulations ever on February 22 in Riyadh 🥊🔥#BigTime#RiadhSeason pic.tvitter.com/4jKEovMKSvD

— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) December 2, 2024