Shavkatdzhon "Shere Khan" Rakhimov returned to the win column for the first time in more than two years.

 

The unbeaten junior lightweight contender made quick work of Sardor Muzaffarov, scoring a stoppage win after two rounds Saturday evening in Ekaterinburg, Russia. Rakhimov came back ten months after his draw in the IBF super featherweight title challenge against Joseph 'JoJo' Diaz to engage in short, yet a fan-friendly scrap with the Uzbek journeyman.

 

Both boxers threw caution out of the ring as soon as the opening bell sounded. The difference was the mastery of Rakhimov, 27, who landed more and with bigger power. The two-way action continued for two rounds, which were clearly in Rakhimov's favor. Muzaffarov (4-5, 2KOs) retired in his corner after the second round.

 

Rakhimov improves to 16-0-1 (13KOs) with the win, his first since a come-from-behind knockout of Azinga Fuzile in their September 2019 title eliminator. The TBRB #4 rated contender is on a short track for yet another shot at one of the major belts in his weight class.

 

WBO #9 super featherweight Ruslan Kamilov (12-0-1, 6 KOs) ended both his year and RCC Boxing's intrinsic tournament with a bang by stopping fellow countryman Dmitry Khasiev at about 1:40 of the sixth round. Kamilov also made the third defense of his WBO Intercontinental super featherweight title.

 

A brilliant counterpuncher with a decorated amateur career, Kamilov immediately showed why he is touted as one of Russian boxing's self-grown gems. Khasiev, an aggressive slugger from Vladikavkaz, immediately pressed action against Kamilov. But the latter showed remarkable calmness under fire, and then a huge right counter put Khasiev down on his pants midst into the first. As always, Kamilov, 33, didn't go in a berserk mode to get the job done but rightfully sensed Khasiev was up and ready.

 

Khasiev, 26, continued to deliver in rounds two and three but Kamilov wisely stood out of danger while picking up punches during pauses between Khasiev's assaults. Kamilov's own offensive was sparse but he well controlled the flow of the fight. The challenger got more successful in the fourth, landing some blows and forcing Kamilov to hold at the most heated moments. Still, the latter was calm and calculated.

 

During the sixth stanza, Kamilov turned on some extra powers at one moment. Finally, Khasiev threw in a major left hook, sensed he created a hole for a sneaky left hook to the chin and put his right elbow a bit off mark. The left hand did land though - with a crunching power right to the liver of Khasiev (12-3-2, 6 KOs). The following right hand missed as the challenger was already down in severe pain. At ten, he was still on his knees - a clear body kayo for Ruslan Kamilov.

 

At 33, Kamilov has little time left to earn a shot at the title, owned by Shakur Stevenson. Yet, he could very well place him at a higher position in the ranks - perhaps as high as #3 - for an occasional shot at the maroon belt.