Christian Mbilli took another step in his march towards a world title, Saturday afternoon, at the Casino de Montreal, in sparkling fashion.
The adopted Montrealer made one of the knockouts. the most exceptional of recent years on Quebec soil against his French compatriot Nadjib Mohammedi. Although the 36-year-old boxer quickly regained his senses, he was still taken to a hospital as a preventive measure.
“Christian has just sent a powerful message to the 168-pound division,” said promoter Camille Estephan after the gala. The difficulty will now be to find someone who wants to face him, since we will not be invited to a world championship fight. »
The fight was intense from the first round, with a high volume of blows exchanged between the two boxers. Mohammedi had started the second round well, before Marc Ramsay’s protege finished it in power, first with right hooks to the body, but especially with a left to the face in the last moments of the 6th minute.
Mohammedi stood out in the 3rd round with his hard and precise work with both hands. Two of the judges also awarded him the round. But in the 4th, the former world contender was badly shaken with heavy shots, especially at the very end of the round.
Mbilli continued his attacks in the same way at the start of the 5th round, still devastating with the left hook. Then 15 seconds from the end of the engagement, Mbilli found the perfect opening to unleash a powerful bomb from the left in the face of Mohammedi who then fell like a tree. Referee Steve St-Germain had no choice but to stop the fight immediately.
“It was a difficult fight,” admitted Mbilli after his victory, his 19th by K.-O. and a 21st victory in as many fights. “He was giving a lot of small blows, it was embarrassing. But otherwise, I did what I had to do. I knew in the 4th round that I should do more because he wouldn’t break right away. »
The Eye Of The Tiger protege admitted that the duel was sometimes frustrating, but his trainer Marc Ramsay was happy to see that “Solid” was able to maintain his concentration throughout the fight, without falling into the trap of falling into the trap. emotion during this fight followed in the overseas Hexagon.
Marc Ramsay now wants to see Christian Mbilli deliver his next fights against boxers who truly belong to the elite of the 168-pound division. Camille Estephan estimates that the income generated in France by the web-broadcast of the fight will make it possible to finance a confrontation against a boxer of the top-5.
On the other hand Ramsay and Estephan wish that Mbilli benefits from a break, he who was one of the most active boxers with 5 fights during the last 15 months.
New belt for the Tigers
Artem Oganesyan (13-0) signed the victory on his return to competition after an absence of more than a year and takes the NABF super-welterweight belt.
But the victory against Stephen Danyo (20-5-3) was not easy to obtain. The Eye Of The Tiger prospect found himself knocked out in the first round, even though he implored referee Alain Villeneuve that it was a slip. Too bad for him since he still mistreated the Dutchman, who had not fulfilled his obligations the day before, during the weigh-in due to being very overweight.
We later realized that it was a leg injury that probably prevented Danyo from presenting the regulation weight. The doctor ordered the end of the duel 15 seconds after the start of the 5th round, given the impossibility of Danyo to defend himself well with his movements. Meanwhile, Danyo had visited the mat and taken the many powerful strikes from Oganesyan who would have preferred to win in a more brilliant way.
The “Mike Tyson” of women’s boxing
In the first women’s fight of the evening, Mary Spencer won the first duel she was fighting for her new promoter. And let’s say that it was a really spectacular introduction, as much if not more than that of Christian Mbilli!
Spencer, who is the first-ever athlete to represent Canada in women’s boxing at the 2012 Olympics, outplayed Mexican rival Beatriz Aguilera (7-7-1) with a bevy of left hooks at the body of her rival. Just twenty-three seconds into the fight, and after another left, this time to the face, Aguilera found herself on the mat.
After her victory, Spencer said she was aware of the message she had just sent to the world of women’s boxing, with a 3rd victory by K.-O. in 4 fights. Radiant after her victory, the 37-year-old left-hander intends to progress quickly to find herself in a world championship fight as soon as the opportunity arises. Marc Ramsay and Camille Estephan agree. “We’re going to chase any champion in the 147 and 154 pound categories. Spencer, it’s dynamite, we found our Mike Tyson” raved the promoter, never short of comparisons.
Until then, Mary Spencer will continue to train in Montreal with Jessica Camarra, under the guidance of coach Ian McKillop.
In the other women’s fight, Quebec’s Leila Beaudoin (5-0) won her second battle of the year 2022, by unanimous decision 60-54, 58-56 and 58-56, against Mexican Estafania Gonzalez Franco (2 -5). Beaudoin knew that she faced a dangerous boxer when you want to approach her in close combat, as evidenced by her face after the fight. The 25-year-old right-hander therefore enjoyed this fight, which she describes as a chess game, where she had to score points on the counterattack before moving away from her rival.
Montrealer Christopher Guerrero had the honor of playing the first fight on the card in front of a packed house at the Casino.
Guerrero had his hands full against Marco Chino Villa in the first 2 rounds, but managed to adjust to the 3rd assault, which he dominated. Villa had not said its last word and, twice, hit the Quebecer with a powerful right in the 4th round. In the end, the judges awarded Guerrero the victory with identical scores of 39-37.
Note also the victories of Alexandre Gaumont by unanimous decision and Joshua Fraser by knockout. in the 1st round.
