Sergey Kovalev successfully defended his WBO World Championship title in the semi heavyweight category on Sunday night. In the legendary Madison Square Garden, the Russian defeated Igor Mikhalkin with a technical knockout. in the seventh round (now in Re-Live on DAZN).
Kovalev dominated the fight from the beginning and cut his opponent’s right eye early on. This grew steadily, which is why the judge was forced to stop the fight towards the end of the seventh round.
Even before the technical knockout, Kovalev looked like the sure winner anyway. Two out of three judges awarded the 34-year-old the first six rounds of 10:9 to the 34-year-old, while Mikhalkin was able to see Mikhalkin in front in just one run.
With the victory, Kovalev defended his title for the first time after securing the vacant WBO belt by beating Vyacheslav Shabranskyy last November. The American Andre Ward, Kovalev’s predecessor as WBO champion, ended his career in September.
Also on Sunday night, Deontay Wilder defended his WBC heavyweight title against Luis Ortiz.