Sultan Ibragimov

Today is the debut of our new section "Boxing Pedestal", in which we will regularly talk about those who brought and continue to bring glory to domestic boxing, starting from 1952 (when Soviet boxers first performed in the international ring) and ending with the present times. Let us remember those who, alas, are no longer among us and give a word to those who are alive.

Let's start with a story about the silver medalist of the 2000 Olympic Games in the heavy weight category (up to 91 kg), bronze medalist of the 2001 World Championship, finalist of the 2000 European Championship, two-time champion of Russia (1999, 2001), world champion in the heavy weight category among professionals. version of the World Boxing Organization (WBO) SULTAN IBRAGIMOV.

“IN THE FIRST SPARRINGS, I DROPPED THE WINNER OF THE RUSSIAN CHAMPIONSHIP”

Sultan, more than nine years have passed since you hung up your gloves and completed a ten-year boxing career. How do you assess it from the height of your current 42-year-old age? Can you firmly say to yourself: “I am satisfied with myself”?
In general, it’s positive, although I can’t say unequivocally that I’m satisfied with myself. For example, in the professionals, where the opponents were, figuratively speaking, twice my size, with my middleweight data I managed to achieve the world heavyweight title in one of the three most prestigious versions - WBO. To remain in this status for eight months, to carry out a unification fight for three belts with dignity, which not everyone has achieved in their careers.

As for the amateur period, I often return in my thoughts to its apogee - the final fight with Felix Savon at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, I watched the video of this fight dozens of times... I had no doubt then, but now I’m simply sure that we made a mistake with tactics that day. Of course, history does not tolerate the subjunctive mood, but, nevertheless...

Apparently, assuming that Savon would constantly attack in his favorite manner, the coaches gave me the instruction to box as “number two,” to work ahead. But he structured the fight completely differently, he did not dare to go into open battle - he acted very carefully, afraid of running into a blow. As a result, I, accustomed to discipline, lost too much time before I decided to change tactics. But he would have gone forward from the first minutes, started fighting right away, breaking his opponent, and could have ended the fight in his favor, since by the end Savon was clearly tired and began to swim, missing blows. In addition, he had a cut... I’m watching the video recording now - I clearly see all this again and that’s why it’s even more offensive. It’s a pity, of course, that I realized it too late. When things started to work out, the time was already over... But what now?! You won't get anything back...

Do you dream about this fight?
No, I don't dream about boxing. But in reality I continue to closely monitor him. I'm rooting for our guys. Keep abreast of all movements in the ratings of the main professional boxing versions. I remember how during my professional career I had to live in the USA for five to six months. Thousands of kilometers from home, in conditions, to put it mildly, far from those in which he grew up, grew up, and lived during the period of playing for the Russian national team. Psychologically it was very pressing – I constantly wanted to return. And physically it was not easy - two or three workouts a day. The loads are huge. I dreamed, I remember, when will all this end, when I won’t have to get up every morning for a run, and deny myself many things?! And now I understand that these were the best and happiest times in my life, along with those that I spent in the Russian amateur team.

Sultan Ibragimov - Felix Savon (video)

With great warmth and nostalgia I remember the entire team with which I walked towards the goal set from the first day - to become a world champion among professionals: doctor, massage therapist, manager, promoters, coaches, sparring partners... Now I look at it a little differently: I’m convinced that we were like one family, united by a clear task, which we managed to solve in June 2007. I still call and correspond with many of them on social networks. With the same Jeff Mayweather, For example. Just an hour before our meeting I spoke with Anthony Chill Wilson, who is currently working under a contract in Dubai, “I miss working with you, champion,” says...
Constantly in touch with Ramazan Abacharaev, whom I consider my brother. He and his family have helped me both in boxing and in life from the very beginning of my career. Roma was always there. When I turned professional, he became my promoter. I owe him too much! Without his support, I wouldn’t have succeeded as a boxer, and this should not be forgotten. Now, unfortunately, we see each other less often, but this does not prevent us from being friends with our families...

You mentioned the beginning of your boxing biography. I remember how in the late 90s you, together with your first coach Anatoly Chernyaev, began to appear at national team training camps, to which... no one invited you...
Yes, it happened. In 1998. By that time, I had five years of boxing experience behind me, which I became interested in when, having arrived from Dagestan to Rostov-on-Don, I entered a financial college to study. At first he boxed on his own, and then under the guidance of Anatoly Timofeevich Chernyaev a, who began to take me to the training camps of the national team. As a sparring partner for leading boxers. I looked for money for these trips myself. It was at that time that he began to help me Ramazan Abacharaev, who saw in me a future good boxer and believed in my prospects.

By the way, that was the first time I learned that such fees even exist. I won’t forget how, during freestyle fights with my participation, coaches left their students and went to look at me, because I fought with everyone. He fought desperately. In the literal sense of the word. At that moment I simply didn’t know how to box any other way, although in one of the first sparrings I dropped the Russian Championship medalist...

Nikolay Khromov

At his first national championship, held in Belgorod, he lost in the first fight, but the head coach of the national team Nikolai Dmitrievich Khromov Then he already paid attention to me, took me under his wing - began to give me hints and help. A year later I won the national championship in Chelyabinsk - I won the European champion and Olympic participant in the final with a knockdown Igor Kshinin and deservedly secured his place in the national team as number one in the heavyweight division.

“I SHOULD HAVE FIGHTED WITH SAVON, NOT WAITED...”

Can you remember your first international victory in this capacity?
In April 1999, in friendly matches with the Americans in the USA. By the way, I won both fights there, and the first one was ahead of schedule in the third round against Devarril Williamson, the same one who later, having become a professional fighter, won Corey Sanders, Oliver McCall, Irish Kevin McBride, who in turn won against Mike Tyson.

Your breakthrough in your amateur career is impressive: as they say, right off the bat - in 1998, as you put it, you couldn’t really box, but in 2000, you already participated in the Olympic Games, winning a silver medal there...
Before that, there was also silver at the European Championships, held in Tampere four months before the Olympics. True, I don’t have the best memories of him either, since in the final I literally gave victory to the Frenchman with my own hands Jackson Chanier…

The devil got me wrong, as one of the newspapers later wrote...
This is what actually happened there. I was in complete control of the fight, but the coaches, nevertheless, saw some passivity in my actions and before the last round they scolded me slightly in the corner. It stuck. I decided to improve, maybe even finish early, when...it no longer needed to be done. There was a minute left until the end, the score was 7:3 in my favor - the European champion title was, one might say, already in my pocket. I just had to run away and that’s all, but without stopping my attacks, I struck a blow that became fatal for me. He hit me in the stomach, but the Frenchman at that moment, apparently also wanting to get at me, made a leap, and I unintentionally hit him below the belt. He collapsed with a wild cry and began to roll on the flooring... As a result, he was carried away on a stretcher, and I was disqualified. Moreover, I also lost the prize for the best boxer in the championship, which, as I later found out, was planned to be awarded to me.

Sultan Ibragimov

The doctor of our team later told me that from your blow, Chanier’s bandage... burst, the fragments of which dug into his groin. How did you manage to do this with gloves in which you can’t really clench your fist? I've never heard of anything like this before or since.
It's hard for me to explain. To be honest, I haven’t seen this bandage myself. But I think that Shanier still wasn’t hurt enough to tumble around in the ring like he did after the hit. He organized a circus, realizing that this was his only chance to save the battle. He succeeded - he eventually became a champion, albeit a horizontal one, as they say in such cases. But four months later we met again - in the quarterfinals of the Olympic Games and I showed him his place, proved once again which of us is really stronger. Thanks to this victory of mine, he left Sydney without a reward, despite the fact that he was much better prepared there than in Tampere.

Few people knew then that a month before the Olympics you experienced extreme stress due to the death of your older brother Gadzhi in a car accident...
To say that this tragedy affected my performance in Sydney would be an understatement. When this happened, my first thought was to refuse to participate in the Games altogether, but they dissuaded me, convincing me that Gadzhi would not approve of this. He was confident that I would return from Sydney with a victory, he even began to prepare for this meeting, inviting guests in advance...

After the penultimate training camp in Kislovodsk, I and he had no doubt about my success, because I felt in great shape. But this misfortune broke me; to put it in boxing language, I stopped breathing in the ring. In Vladivostok, where the final stage of training took place, I managed to recover to some extent, but still did not reach my former physical condition. I felt it already in the first fight against an unknown boxer from Samoa. The third round, and at these Games we boxed for four rounds of two minutes each, even lost with a score of 1:6, but then managed to pull ourselves together and knock him out...

Next was Chanier, and in the semi-finals he defeated the Georgian by a margin of fifteen strokes Vladimir Chanturia. Despite the experience, he fought for two, constantly thinking about his brother. When the judge in the ring raised my hand, he knew that Gadzhi was among those rejoicing at my victory. It’s a pity, I repeat, that in the decisive battle against Savon I started acting too late as I should have... I don’t know, maybe I’m wrong, but then it seemed to me that our coaching staff was not psychologically prepared for my victory over the two-time Olympic champion , a six-time world champion, did not bet on me, considering that getting into the finals was already a good result for a debutant. It was with this attitude that we were brought into this fight, and we were given the appropriate instructions. And I could have broken Savon that day if I had not waited for him to open up on his own...

"FELIX LEFT EARLY..."

Despite the defeat in the final, experts highly appreciated your boxing potential, noting that you managed to reach the final despite using approximately seventy percent of your capabilities. What prevented you from winning against Savon in your first fight with him, which took place in March of the same year at an international tournament in the Czech Republic?
Before going there I caught a bad cold. There was even a question about abandoning these competitions. But I went anyway - I reached the semi-finals there, where I met Savon. I won after the third round with a difference of three strokes, but in the end there was not enough “breathing” to maintain the advantage... After the defeat in the Olympic final, I most wanted to meet Felix again - I already knew how to work against him. I was very upset to learn about his decision to end his boxing career! When this news appeared in the media, my friends began to call me at home - they congratulated me, saying that now, they say, no one is stopping me from becoming the first in the world in my weight category. But I didn’t want to hear about it, because I had already begun to picture in my mind our next battle, which would certainly be fought in the tactical manner that Savon always avoided. Alas, this was not destined to come true. “Iron Felix” left too early, too soon...

Felix Savon – Sultan Ibragimov

After the Sydney Games, some of your famous teammates who won medals there, in particular Oleg Saitov and Raimkul Malakhbekov, took a break to rest and recover. You decided to participate in the 2001 World Championships in Belfast. Why?
Because compared to Oleg and Raim, my experience in big boxing at that moment was negligible and I had not yet gotten tired of it. I passed the selection honestly. First he won the international tournament in Plovdiv, becoming at the same time the best boxer in these competitions. And in April in Saratov he won his second Russian champion title, winning the final Evgenia Arkhipova.

Those who are well acquainted with your amateur career have the impression of some understatement. It seems that you did not use even fifty percent of your potential there. They didn’t take what they thought they should have in accordance with their talent. At the European Championships in Tampere, they essentially gave their opponent a gold medal. At the Olympics in Sydney we stopped one step away from the highest step of the podium. They did not make it to the 1999 World Championships in Houston, because that year all the first numbers of the national team were exempt from these competitions. At the 2001 World Championships, we again failed to win - only bronze...

Don't you have that feeling yourself? Do you regret anything in this regard?
Except that it was not possible to meet Savon again and take revenge from him. But in the grand scheme of things, what’s the point of regretting if nothing can be changed? And the fact that I was not able to achieve a single high-profile international victory as an amateur is entirely the will of the Almighty. Although the most important victory that we, together with our friends from the national team, Gaidarbek Gaidarbekov,Kamil Dzhamaludinov And Timur Gaidalov– won with their good work in the ring, no awards can replace them. I mean the real boxing that began after that in Dagestan - thousands of boys began to switch from wrestling, traditional for our republic, to boxing. I remember that eighteen (!) Dagestan boxers came to the post-Olympic Russian Championship in 2001. No other region of the country had such representation. In Dagestan, I never had problems with sparring partners in training, which I can’t say about Rostov - there it was impossible to find a worthy opponent in my weight class during the day.

Sultan Ibragimov - Odlanier Solis (video)

By the way, at the last Russian championship in Orenburg, representatives of Dagestan won two gold medals, and another fighter became a prize-winner. And at the World Championships in Belfast I lost to Savon’s successor Odlanier Solis. I was in very good shape then – I finished two of the three fights before the semi-finals ahead of schedule. But Solis simply didn’t catch up in the ring. He didn’t want to box at all: he would hit and run around the ring - he was fast, like a flyweight. But in the final, nevertheless, he knocked out the Englishman David Hay. I was forced to attack because I was knocked down in the first round... The fight with Solis was my last as an amateur

How many were there in total? Did you make such a calculation?
No. I didn't see the point in this.

IN PROFESSIONAL BOXING QUICKLY BECAME ITS OWN

After Belfast, you were showered with tempting offers to go professional. But you, referring, I remember, to a frank conversation with the head coach of the national team Khromov, said that you would like to first compete at another Olympics and win gold there. However, in May 2002 they finally turned professional. What prompted you to take this step?
Firstly, I must say that I received offers to turn professional at the 2000 European Championships. And even earlier. What was the deciding factor for me as a result? A number of circumstances. I suddenly felt that amateur boxing was no longer interesting to me. Not boxing itself as such, but what it turned into then, thanks to ill-considered, in my opinion, changes in the rules, in equipment and, accordingly, in the principles of judging. During the fight, boxers began to count not only blows, but also pokes, more similar to injections in fencing. The more pokes you land, the higher your chances of winning. There were a lot of unimpacted fights, which depersonalized amateur boxing and destroyed the essence of this sport.

And take the “20 strikes rule,” according to which the fight was stopped if, before the start of the last round, the advantage of one of the fighters reached twenty points. What was it? I'm twenty points behind in the count and... goodbye! It was ridiculous, it’s hard to find another word, it all looked when, supposedly caring for the health of a boxer who was combat-ready and eager to fight, they not only deprived him of the opportunity to continue the fight, but also counted his defeat as almost a knockout. It reached the point of absurdity, because if the difference in the score before the last round was not 20 points, but, say, 19, the match continued and by the end the score could grow, say, to 42:16. It turned out that a difference of 20 blows was dangerous to health, and more was nothing. Well, isn't it stupid? I'm not even talking about the fact that, even if he loses hopelessly, a boxer always has a chance for a lucky punch. And the “20 strikes rule” took away this chance from him in the last round.

In general, I, who was called the most powerful boxer on the team, became bored in such amateur boxing. And when with your future promoter Ramazan Abacharaev I flew to America, the Mecca of professional boxing, and quickly realized that this was mine, that I could achieve a lot here. I quickly became part of professional boxing. And for the first time in a new capacity he entered the ring on May 25, 2002 in Delray Beach against Tracy Williams, who at that time had six professional fights under his belt. But even one round was enough for me to knock him out.

Five hundred dollars, according to rumors, was earned then. This is true?
I don’t remember anymore, to be honest.

Why did you choose Miami when going to the USA for professional boxing bread?
Lives there Boris Grinberg, a former Rostov resident who became my manager. There are a lot of emigrants from Russia, entire neighborhoods, so I didn’t feel alone. Of course, the warm climate that was comfortable for me also played a big role. They rented an apartment for me in a house on the ocean. What, tell me, could be better for relieving any stress than a morning run on the beach? Over time, thanks to Abacharaev and the promotion company he created, which bought the former warehouse and equipped it with modern equipment, I also had a personal training room...

One of your coaches was the legendary Angelo Dundee, the former mentor of Muhammad Ali, “Sugar” Ray Leonard, George Foreman and many other big ring stars. Moreover, it was you, as he once admitted, who forced him to return to the ring again after some break...
Yes it is. And I was very pleased when, after my sixth fight, he, giving an interview to one of the American television channels, said, “that, finally, America can again see a white heavyweight champion, who has not existed for more than 50 years...”.

Sultan Ibragimov

Why were you nicknamed the Russian Hunter in America?
Probably because I spent five years hunting for the championship belt, and then for the absolute title.

Sultan-Akhmed Ibragimov was born on March 8, 1975 in the city of Kaspiysk, Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. He started boxing after moving to Rostov-on-Don, where his brother lived. In 1998, Ibragimov joined the Russian national team.

Ibragimov’s main success in the amateur ring was reaching the finals of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, where he lost on points to Cuban Felix Savon. In 2000, the Russian also became a silver medalist at the European Championships in Tampere (Finland), and in 2001, a bronze medalist at the World Championships in Belfast (Northern Ireland).

On May 25, 2002, Sultan Ibragimov made his debut in the professional ring in the most prestigious heavy weight category. By the end of 2005, he won 19 victories in 19 fights and received the right to fight for the title of official contender for the IBF (International Boxing Federation) world title.

On July 28, 2006, Ibragimov met with American Ray Austin. As a result of this fight, the judges determined a draw, and Austin retained the title of official IBF challenger. In his next fight, which took place on March 10, 2007, the Russian knocked out Javier Mora from the USA in the first round.

On June 2, 2007, Ibragimov fought the first championship fight in his career and defeated American WBO title holder Shannon Briggs on points. After this, the Russian signed a contract for a unification fight with WBA (World Boxing Association) champion Ruslan Chagaev, but this fight did not take place due to the illness of the Uzbek boxer.

At the beginning of August 2007, Ibragimov signed a contract to fight with the former absolute world champion, American Evander Holyfield. The fight between Ibragimov and Holyfield took place on October 13, 2007 in Moscow at the Megasport Sports Palace on Khodynskoye Field. At the end of 12 rounds, the judges unanimously gave victory to Ibragimov with a score of 117:111 (twice) and 118:110.

In November 2007, Ibragimov agreed to fight with IBF (International Boxing Federation) world champion Vladimir Klitschko. This meeting, which was the first heavyweight unification fight since 1999, took place on February 23, 2008 at the famous Madison Square Garden arena in New York.

The fight, which lasted 12 rounds, was held with a noticeable advantage for Klitschko, and the judges gave the victory to the Ukrainian by unanimous decision, scoring 119:110, 117:111 and 118:110. Thus, Ibragimov lost the WBO title, and Klitschko became the world champion according to the versions of two prestigious organizations at once - IBF and WBO.

Best of the day

Sultan Ibragimov, whose biography will be discussed below, is an example of a gifted boxer who came to the world of big-time sports in adulthood and within a few years became one of the main stars in amateur boxing. Having turned professional, he did not get lost among the main stars of the heavyweight division and managed to become the WBO world champion.

Outfighter

Sultan Ibragimov competed in the heavyweight category, establishing himself as an outfighter. That is, using the length of his arms, he tried to keep his opponent at a distance, boxing from a long distance. Being a left-hander, Sultan boxed in a right-handed stance, his right blows were quite weighty, so his opponents did not risk approaching him for fear of running into a strong counter blow.

Nevertheless, the Dagestan boxer worked well with both hands, distributing hooks and uppercuts to his opponents if necessary. During his career, Sultan established himself as a brave and desperate fighter; he was not afraid of anyone and fought in an aggressive manner, overwhelming his opponents with activity. This allowed him to finish most of his fights ahead of schedule - out of twenty-four fights, in seventeen he brought the matter to victory without waiting for the final blow of the gong.

Sultan Ibragimov suffered his only defeat from Vladimir Klitschko, a boxer who prefers a similar strategy. The taller and longer-armed Ukrainian was stronger in long-range combat, but Sultan did not have enough skills in close combat, just as he was unable to break through the barrage of long-range artillery fire and get close to Vladimir.

Guy from Rostov

Dagestan, where boxer Sultan Ibragimov was born, is better known as the homeland of the best freestyle wrestlers, but the hero of the article did not follow the beaten path and looked for his own ways of self-expression in sports. He was born in 1975 in the village of Tlyarata, Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, and was of Avar origin.

He began to take up boxing at a fairly mature age, having already graduated from school and moved to Rostov, where he went to study at a financial college.

At first, the Avar trained on his own, then Anatoly Chernyaev, who was the first coach of boxer Sultan Ibragimov, drew attention to the nugget from the North Caucasus. Ramazan Abacharaev, who in the future would become his promoter, played a significant role in the fate of the Sultan. Ramazan advised Nikolai Khromov, the coach of the Russian boxing team, to evaluate the potential of an unknown boxer from Dagestan.

Breakthrough

Soon, Sultan Ibragimov began to participate in the training camps of the national team boxers as a sparring partner for team members. Here he showed himself in all his glory, boxing passionately and desperately, knocking down the winners of major competitions. Impressed, Khromov, contrary to tradition, included the self-taught boxer in the Russian national team, and from then on the career of one of the best heavyweights in the history of the country began.

Sultan Ibragimov, by and large, failed his first championship, losing in the first fight. However, coach Nikolai Khromov took the promising debutant under his wing, supporting and guiding him. The result of cooperation was a convincing victory in the national championship in 1999, and in the final the Sultan knocked down the European champion and participant in the Olympic Games.

Having taken the status of number one among heavyweights, the Dagestani went to the European Championship, where he was supposed to win. However, the young and hot Caucasian succumbed to his opponent’s provocation in the final battle, which is why he had to settle for silver. The incident was completely anecdotal - Sultan, in the last round of a practically won match, got carried away with the attack and in the heat of the moment hit his opponent below the belt. The Frenchman fell as if knocked down, and the Sultan was awarded defeat.

Victories and defeats

With sadness, the Dagestan heavyweight remembers his entire life about his participation in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Before the main tournament, Sultan suffered a terrible loss - his older brother Gadzhi died in a car accident. He even thought about refusing to participate in the Olympic Games, but Ramazan Abacharaev managed to persuade him to go to Australia. The experiences were not in vain - in the first fight against a little-known boxer from Samoa, Sultan Ibragimov “burned” with a score of 1:6, but managed to pull himself together and knocked him out.

Then things went smoothly, the Dagestani made it to the finals, simultaneously taking revenge on his offender at the European Championship, defeating him in the quarterfinals.

In the decisive match he was opposed by the great two-time Olympic champion from Cuba. Fearing a formidable opponent, the coaches advised Sultan not to escalate and choose the number two tactics. However, Felix was also wary of the Sultan and, in turn, acted in a counterattacking manner.

According to Ibragimov himself, he realized the need for active attacking actions late and rushed into the attack when the experienced Cuban had already secured a solid advantage in points. However, the silver medal at the Olympic Games was an excellent reward for a boxer who until recently had not even thought about big victories.

End of amateur career

In 2001, Sultan Ibragimov took part in the championship, where in the final he lost to the heir of Felix Savon from Cuba. Despite this, he still refused to turn professional and sought to take part in the next Olympics. However, according to the Dagestani, he sharply negatively accepted changes in the rules adopted by the World Boxing Federation, which turned men's martial arts into a kind of fencing with gloves.

Not wanting to take part in the profanation of his favorite sport, Sultan Ibragimov decided to leave amateur boxing and try to realize himself as a professional.

Moving to the USA

Many Russian boxers chose Germany to start their professional career, which became a serious obstacle to their further progress. After all, European boxers, by definition, were doomed to vegetate for a long time within the framework of their continent, holding fights that were not interesting to anyone with second-rate opponents.

Sultan Ibragimov and his promoter Ramazan Abacharaev acted more wisely by immediately going to the USA, where talented boxers had every opportunity for rapid growth. Another native of Rostov, Boris Grinberg, who owns his own business in Miami, became Sultan’s manager.

Thanks to such support, Sultan was spared the need to fight for a piece of bread and was able to fully concentrate on training.

America's "White Hope"

Sultan Ibragimov fought his first fight in the professional ring against Tracy Williams, a little-known fighter with a negative balance of victories and defeats. The Russian boxer confidently knocked him out without even waiting for the end of the first round. Then Sultan Ibragimov had four more fights against passable opponents, winning all of them confidently.

A difficult test for Sultan was his sixth fight, where he was opposed by the undefeated boxer Chad Butler, who has four knockouts in four fights. Tough and stubborn Chad was not at all afraid of Ibragimov’s blows and was constantly eager to exchange short gifts.

With great difficulty, the Sultan nevertheless defeated him, managing to make a more favorable impression on the judges with his activity. After this fight, the legendary trainer of Muhammad Ali and other boxing stars even said that Sultan could become the first white-skinned world heavyweight champion in many years.

World champion

Over three years, Sultan Ibragimov, whose photos increasingly began to appear on the covers of leading boxing publications, had 19 fights, in all of which he prevailed over his opponents. Thus, he earned the right to an eliminator - a fight for the title of official contender for a fight with the owner of the championship belt. The Dagestani's opponent was the strong American Ray Austin.

Sultan tried to dominate the ring from the very beginning and even knocked down Ray in the fourth round. However, he leveled the situation by the end of the fight and in the tenth round, as a return courtesy, he put Sultan on the canvas with a powerful blow. According to the judges, the fight ended in a draw, as a result of which the status of the official contender for the fight with Klitschko went to Austin as the owner of a higher rating.

Sultan Ibragimov, whose wife was his main fan, received the opportunity to fight for the WBO world title as a consolation. In 2007, he met in the ring with The fight was quite stubborn, but Sultan had the advantage, defeating his opponent by decision of the judges.

Fight with Klitschko

Ibragimov managed to defend his title once, defeating the legendary heavyweight Evander Holyfield. For some time there was talk about holding a unification fight with WBA world champion Ruslan Chagaev, however, due to the latter’s injury, these plans remained unrealized.

In 2008, a duel between Sultan Ibragimov and Vladimir Klitschko took place, in which the IBF and WBO championship belts were up for grabs. The more experienced and larger Ukrainian turned out to be stronger, retaining the title of the strongest in the world.

After this fight, the Dagestan fighter announced his retirement, explaining this with an injury to his left hand.

The son of Sultan Ibrahim is also involved in boxing, so soon fans of the famous boxer will be able to watch the emergence of a new star in the professional ring.

Born 1975-03-08 Russian professional boxer

Life

Sultan-Akhmed Magomedsalikhovich Ibragimov (March 8, 1975, village of Tlyarata, Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic) is a Russian professional boxer competing in the super heavyweight category. Silver medalist at the 2000 Olympic Games. Former world heavyweight champion according to the WBO (2007-2008). Avar by nationality.

2002 — 2006

He made his debut in professional boxing in 2002.

In December 2005, he knocked out Lance Whitaker in the 7th round.

In July 2006, an IBF eliminator took place between Sultan Ibragimov and Ray Austin. The fight was very even. Austin was knocked down in the 4th round, and Ibragimov in the 10th. The fight had little interest, so it was broadcast only by ESPN, which specializes in showing minor fights.

Because Austin was ranked above Ibragimov, and because this was his second straight eliminator, he was given the chance to face champion Wladimir Klitschko. Ibragimov got a chance to meet the WBO champion.

2006 — 2008

In July 2007, Ibragimov defeated WBO world heavyweight champion Shannon Briggs.

In October 2007, he defeated the legendary Evander Holyfield in Moscow.

In February 2008, a unification match took place between the WBO heavyweight champions Sultan Ibragimov and the IBF champions Vladimir Klitschko. Klitschko fought a cautious fight, using only his jab. Ibragimov was inferior in height and therefore could not keep up with his opponent. Vladimir Klitschko confidently won on points.

(c) Wikipedia

• October 29, 2010 Thirteenth round
• October 26, 2010 The head of the election headquarters of Sultan Ibragimov was seriously wounded in the Tlyaratinsky district
• October 25, 2010 Mass riots occurred in the Tlyaratinsky district
• October 13, 2010 The best fights of Sultan Ibragimov
• June 15, 2010 Former world champion Ibragimov does not rule out the possibility of returning to boxing
• April 30, 2010

Sultan-Akhmed Ibragimov was born on March 8, 1975 in the city of Kaspiysk, Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. He started boxing after moving to Rostov-on-Don, where his brother lived. In 1998, Ibragimov joined the Russian national team.

Ibragimov’s main success in the amateur ring was reaching the finals of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, where he lost on points to Cuban Felix Savon. In 2000, the Russian also became a silver medalist at the European Championships in Tampere (Finland), and in 2001, a bronze medalist at the World Championships in Belfast (Northern Ireland).

On May 25, 2002, Sultan Ibragimov made his debut in the professional ring in the most prestigious heavy weight category. By the end of 2005, he won 19 victories in 19 fights and received the right to a fight for the title of official contender for the IBF (International Boxing Federation) world champion title.

On July 28, 2006, Ibragimov met with American Ray Austin. As a result of this fight, the judges determined a draw, and Austin retained the title of official IBF challenger. In his next fight, which took place on March 10, 2007, the Russian knocked out Javier Mora from the USA in the first round.

On June 2, 2007, Ibragimov held the first championship fight in his career and defeated the WBO title holder, American Shannon Briggs, on points. After this, the Russian signed a contract for a unification fight with WBA (World Boxing Association) champion Ruslan Chagaev, but that same fight did not take place due to the illness of the Uzbek boxer.

At the beginning of August 2007, Ibragimov signed a contract for a fight with the former absolute world champion, American Evander Holyfield. The fight between Ibragimov and Holyfield took place on October 13, 2007 in Moscow at the Megasport Sports Palace on Khodynskoye Field. At the end of 12 rounds, the judges unanimously gave victory to Ibragimov with a score of 117:111 (twice) and 118:110.

In November 2007, Ibragimov agreed to fight with IBF (International Boxing Federation) world champion Vladimir Klitschko. The summit, the first heavyweight unification bout since 1999, took place on February 23, 2008 at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The fight, which lasted 12 rounds, was held with a noticeable advantage for Klitschko, and the judges gave the victory to the Ukrainian by unanimous decision, scoring 119:110, 117:111 and 118:110. Thus, Ibragimov lost the WBO title, and Klitschko became the world champion according to the versions of two prestigious organizations - IBF and WBO.

Sultan Ibragimov is left-handed and fights in a right-handed stance. He is one of only five left-handed heavyweights to win a championship in this weight class. In this regard, Ibragimov fought 24 fights in the professional ring, 22 of which he won (17 by knockout), the only one he drew and the only one he lost.

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