Moscow, Russia - In a sound upset, Uzbek import Azizbek Abdugofurov overcame the odds by beating former WBA super middleweight champion Fedor Chudinov in a scheduled ten-rounder at the Vegas City Hall in Moscow, Russia.

The final scores were: 98-91, 97-92 and 97-93 - for the Uzbek fighter, who now has two wins over both Chudinov brothers.

Abdugofurov isn't known for having one-punch or even multi-punch hitting power but he is good at feinting, bobbing & weaving and using defensive techniques.

Tactics favored him over the very durable and sturdy but plodding Chudinov, who has slowed down over the years. Chudinov, 34, applied stalking pressure from the opening bell but moving forward without even a shade of jab was a bad option for him. Abdugofurov was setting traps on Chudinov's way in, jabbed him and clinched or held whenever Fedor was too close.

Azizbek showed defensive prowess by neglecting or softening a majority of Chudinov's power punches. Fedor's hard shots mostly hit the air or gloves of Abdugofurov. Azizbek was also very potent by throwing multi-shot combos with his back across the ropes and landed many of them cleanly. Still, there was nothing that could prevent Chudinov from moving on.

Abdugofurov, 30, used dirty tactics at times by holding his opponent's hands and by inducing wrestling instead of boxing. Referee Sergey Litunov warned him several times for violations until a point was deducted from the Uzbek in the eighth round. It hadn't done much to deter the guest fighter, who continued to outbox Chudinov - mostly at the ropes. Chudinov tried to finish the bout strong, but the final surge wasn't overly effective.

The loss is a major setback for the Russian, who was rated #12 by the WBC and was #2 in the WBA rankings until Russian fighters (or, at least, their names) were excluded from the ratings.

Chudinov is now 25-3-1, with 17 KOs. Abdugofurov moves up to 14-1, 5 KOs. He defeated Fedor's elder brother Dmitry on his native soil via unanimous decision nearly four years ago.

The fight was the main event of a multi-bout mixed affair, promoted by Vladimir Hryunov and supported by the REN-TV channel.

----------------------

Former amateur heavyweight standout Maxim Babanin (4-0, 4 KOs), while visibly overweight, got his fourth consecutive knockout with a convincing third-round stoppage of towering 6'10'' Evgueny "Molecule from Hell" Orlov (17-18-1, 13 KOs).

Babanin, 33, though pudgy a bit, was also more mobile and showcased better reflexes than his 43-year old opponent. Babanin wisely chose punches to continuously hold Orlov in his world of pain.

The most painful punch came two minutes into the third, and it was a straight right hand to the solar plexus of the giant, which almost doubled him down and forced Orlov's corner to throw in a towel. Time of stoppage was 2:05.