By Derek Bonnett: Some fighters are endeared by fans no matter what they do, but it seems that some are finally having their eyes opened to the true status of Evgeny Gradovich as a top featherweight contender. The “Mexican-Russian” took fans by storm when he wrested the IBF featherweight title away from Billy Dib in Mashantucket, Connecticut. My wife, Jill, and I covered that card for SecondsOut. I was reporting from press row and she was taking pictures from ringside. It was a difficult night for me as Dib has become a friend over the years, but the fight was good. Gradovich looked the better man all around. When Gradovich repeated his victory over Dib in Macao, S.A.R., China, I felt it was time my buddy called it a day. He did not.
Now, I have similar feelings about Gradovich. Although I cannot call him a friend beyond the Facebook variety, I think it is in the best interest for the young family man to say his farewell to the sport sooner rather than later. The word is that Gradovich’s next bout will be against Nonito Donaire, a former Pound for Pound leader, who also finds himself on the decline. However, a closer look at Gradovich’s resume shows that his 2013 rematch with Dib may be the last great performance of his career. Gradovich defended his title against Alexander Miskirtchian following the Macao bout. Although he won over twelve rounds, he found himself on the canvas. In his next defense against Jayson Velez, the Russian fighter could only muster up a draw to close out 2014. Gradovich’s days as a champion came to an end when he was dominated and stopped by Lee Selby in 2015. Gradovich barely got back in the win column five months later when he posted a split decision over journeyman Aldimar Silva Santos, who entered the bout with a record of 19-8-0 (12). Gradovich may have opened 2016 in what could be called the year’s first Fight of the Year contender. However, the victory came by majority verdict over Jesus Galicia, who finished the night with a record of 13-9-1 (8).
Gradovich may be facing his last hurrah against Donaire should that fight get signed. It might be a good one for the fans, but my hunch is it won’t be good on Gradovich’s health.
SecondsOut fighters On the Move:
On Saturday, January 9, at Centro Deportivo Boxing Unitres, Communidad Valenciana, Spain, Evgeny Gradovich defeated Jesus Galicia by majority decision in a ten round featherweight bout. Gradovich earned scores of 99-93, 96-94, and 96-96. Gradovich won for the second time since losing his title to Lee Selby last May. He raised his record to 21-1-1 (9). Galicia fell to 13-9-1 (8).
Gradovich fell from number eight to number ten in the SecondsOut featherweight rankings after struggling to defeat journeyman opponents in his last two outings following a loss and a draw.
SecondsOut ranked fighters in action through Sunday, January 17, 2015:
On Saturday, January 16:
At Barclay Center, Brooklyn, New York, USA, Deontay Wilder versus Artur Szpilka in a twelve round WBC heavyweight title bout; Vyacheslav Glazkov versus Charles Martin in a twelve round vacant IBF heavyweight title bout
For a more in depth look at Derek Bonnett’s SecondsOut world rankings:
https://www.secondsout.com/rankstat/secondsout-rankings
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January 11, 2016
