QUEBEC CITY, Canada – Former amateur standout Imam Khataev (6-0, 6 KOs) put a beating on late substitute Michal Ludwiczak (17-13-1, 9 KOs) on Saturday, scoring a second round knockout at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City, Canada.

Khataev, who won bronze at the 2020 Olympics, won his third fight since signing with Montreal-based Eye of The Tiger and collected the vacant NABF title in the process. From the opening bell it was clear the physically imposing Khataev had too much for Ludwiczak, pushing him back and regularly landing heavy shots that reddened the away fighters’ ribs. 

To his credit, Ludwiczak didn’t fall in the opening round but it looked only a matter of time and that came when the onslaught continued in the second round and eventually after getting dropped once, the follow up was too much and referee Alain Villeneuve jumped in and called a merciful halt to proceedings at 2:17 of the round. 

In junior lightweight action, Leila Beaudoin (11-1, 1 KO) exacted a measure of revenge by defeating Elizabeth Chavez (4-6-3, 1 KO) over eight-rounds by unanimous decision. 

The two had met last May in Mexico where Chavez won an eight-round decision. This time Beaudoin was determined not to let the same happen again and remained focused on her game plan boxing on the back foot and pick up points as she went along. She didn’t have things all her own way but she did enough to get the decision by 78-74×2 and 77-75.

Popular hometown hero Wilkens Mathieu (6-0, 3 KOs) pleased his fellow Quebec City fans who came out to support him against Jose Arias (3-2, 1 KO) with a four-round unanimous decision. 

Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Rank

The Mexican showboated by raising his hand similar to how Billy Joe Saunders did against David Lemieux when Mathieu threw a wild punch. That riled Mathieu who went after him. In one of those exchanges he went down and was counted though looked more of a push in Round 2. 

Mathieu pressed the action throughout the third but couldn’t put a real dent in the older man, who at 39 was almost double his age. Mathieu had his fans cheering loudly when he landed a volley of punches in the early going of the fourth round and later drilled him with a left hook into the ropes. Ultimately Mathieu had to settle for going the win on points, winning 40-35 on all three scorecards.

Aggressive light heavyweight Mehmet Unal (8-0, 7 KOs) wasted little time taking out Dragan Lepei (22-7-2, 10 KOs) at 0:57 of the opening round. 

The 31-year-old Turkish-born Montreal resident hurt Lepei with a three punch combination that started with a left hook to the body, right hook followed by right to the body. That had the Romanian back-tracking, Unal jumped on him and landed a further two punches that put Lepei down. Referee Martin Forest reached the count of 10 with Lepei on one knee.

Rising welterweight Christopher Guerrero (10-0, 5 KOs) gained valuable experience winning an eight-round unanimous decision over Sergio Herrera (7-4, 4 KOs). 

Early on Guerrero dominated behind the jab before he visibly hurt the Mexican import with a body shot on the bell at the end of the fifth round. 

The 22-year-old had Herrera covering up late in the seventh. However, despite Herrera being tired he was able to see out the fight and last the distance. All three judges scored the fight 79-73 and 78-74×2 for Guerrero, who had won his last five fights inside the distance. 

2023 World Championship bronze medalist Moreno Fendero (3-0, 2 KOs) continued his progression as a professional with a first round stoppage over Victor Hugo Flores (7-3, 3 KOs). Fendero dropped Flores multiple times before being stopped on his feet. 

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