Israil Madrimov is going through his final 50 days of preparation before taking on WBC Interim Junior Middleweight Champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. on the Artur Beterbiyev vs. Dmitri Bivol 2 card in Riyadh on February 22nd. The event can be seen live on DAZN PPV.
Former WBA 154-pound champion Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs) will use what he learned from his recent 12-round unanimous decision loss to Terence Crawford to defeat popular Virgil Jr. (22-0, 21 KOs). ).
Relentless pressure from Ortiz Jr
Israel lost the Crawford fight because he failed to stand in the trenches and throw leather in the last three rounds, 10 to 12. Terence’s pressure made him look tired and scared, which was strange considering he had the strength advantage , size and amateur experience.
Ortiz Jr. will probably try to overwhelm Madrimov with pressure like Crawford did in the championship rounds, but he will do so from the first round. If Madrymov can’t fight like that, he’ll lose a wide decision, or he could be knocked out. It comes down to endurance and courage. If he falls short in any of these categories on February 22nd in Riyadh, Virgil Jr. will beat him and make him look bad.
Madrimov, 29, has the superior boxing skills to defeat Ortiz Jr., 26, but it may not be enough for him to win.
Beterbiev vs. Buffalo 2 Card
Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker
Carlos Adames vs. Hamzah Sheeraz
Virgil Ortiz Jr. vs. Israel Madrimov
Shakur Stevenson vs. Floyd Schofield
Zhilei Zhang vs. Agit Kabaiel
Joshua Buati vs. Callum Smith
DAZN PPV Undercard Debate
Interestingly, the Ortiz vs. Madrimov fight was placed below the Adames-Sheeraz fight. Sheeraz is not highly regarded in the US, mainly after he decided not to challenge Janibek Alimkhanouli for his IBF and WBO middleweight titles. Vergil-Madrimov should probably be a co-feature on the Beterbiev vs. Bivol 2 card because it’s a better fight than those above them on this card.
Adames is not well known in the US either and is considered the weakest link among the champions at 160. As such, this Adames-Shiraz should be positioned below the Ortiz Jr. fight. against Madrimov, at the bottom of the card. True talents should be near the top, not hype jobs and paper champions.
In Vergil Jr’s highly controversial 12-round win over Serhiy Bohachuk on August 10th, we saw that Madrymov might have to go one-sided rounds or score a knockout.
Fighting on the outside gives Madrim the advantage if he can do that throughout the fight, but again, it’s questionable if he can beat the A Vergil fighter by boxing him out.
The level of inner struggle and activity favors Virgil. In terms of popularity, Ortiz has a huge advantage, as he has a large fan base on the West Coast of the US, especially in the Los Angeles area.
Virgil Jr. has better stamina than Madrimov, who ran out of steam in the later rounds in his loss to Crawford.
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐫𝐚𝐦 @IsrailMadrimov is ready for next month 💫#BetterbievBivol2 | #RiadhSeason | February 22, live on DAZN | @Turki_alalshikh pic.twitter.com/uCbikr0LI7
— DAZN boxing (@DAZNBoking) January 3, 2025