Arslanbek Makhmudov ready to regain lost ground against Miljan Rovcanin
Arslanbek Makhmudov was moving along nicely. He was seemingly ready to gatecrash the upper echelons of the heavyweight division, but then disaster struck when he was stunningly stopped by Agit Kabayel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The 34-year-old Russia-born Canadian resident’s situation was further compounded when he suffered a broken right hand during the fight. After surgery, he was initially tabbed to face Junior Fa, only for the New Zealander to promptly retire.
He will now instead face Miljan Rovcanin at Centre Gervais Auto, Shawinigan, Quebec, Canada, on Saturday.
“I have same goal to any opponent, to beat him, to destroy him,” Makhmudov (18-1, 17 knockouts) told The Ring menacingly.
“He’s a good guy, good technique, it’s a challenge for me. Change of opponent but same target.”
Makhmudov isn’t letting the first defeat he suffered in the ring in a decade get on top of him.
“It happened, it can happen with anybody,” he said matter-of-factly. “When I punched, he turned and my hand caught him and I had two fractures. I didn’t feel anything [at first], I had too much adrenalin, I don’t feel pain but my hand became numb. I started feeling this in the second round, I thought it was injured. After I punch I knew it happened.
“In the third round he did his job good with a body punch and finish the fight [in Round 4] but for me it’s a good experience. I fight with broken hand for three or four rounds.”
Arslanbek Makhmudov (left) Photo by Vincent Ethier
He remains upbeat despite the loss to Kayabel.
“Honestly, I know myself, this guy isn’t at my level, he’s not a bad record,” he said. “Look at his record, he did 23 fights, half his fights he didn’t fight with anybody and couldn’t knock them out and some were close. You think I’m worse than this guy? Of course not! [Laughs] It’s God’s wish. God chose this for me and I agree with that. Do I get sad? No. I see positive things, I see my mistakes. I have to fix my mistakes.
“It gave me experience of going through adversity. It’s not OK but when you do everything you can and you lose, you are OK with yourself. If not you’ll be sad all your life.”
Eye of The Tiger’s Camille Estephan is ready to welcome the fearsome heavyweight back into the fold and hopes he can return to form.
“I believe Arslanbek has made some changes in this camp that will be very positive for the future,” said Estephan. “He was relying too much on only one tool, while he has many in his arsenal.
“We hope the injury has healed well, in camp everything’s been great. Of course it remains to be seen during the fight. Needless to say it is the most important fight of his career.”
Rovcanin (27-3, 18 KOs) turned professional in 2012. The Serbian won his first 18 fights before suffering his first career defeat against Alexander Dimitrenko (DQ 10). After returning with a win he lost to Kabayel (TKO 3) in a European title shot.
The 30-year-old reestablished himself before heading stateside and being knocked out by Jared Anderson (KO 2). He has since won three fights while waiting for his next opportunity.
This is a hugely important fight for Makhumdov, who lost his awe along with his 0 when he was beaten by Kabayel. Now he has to begin to piece his career back together. I feel he’ll get to Rovcanin in around three rounds.
Mbilli-Heffron, plus undercard bouts, will be broadcast on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT.
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at elraincoat@live.co.uk.
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