 Madrimov in 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nickname | The Dream | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1995-02-16)February 16, 1995 (age 31) Khiva,Khorazm Region, Uzbekistan | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft8+1⁄2 in (174 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | Light middleweight | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reach | 68+1⁄2 in (174 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stance | Orthodox | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boxing record | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total fights | 14 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Win by KO | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Losses | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draws | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Israil Madrimov (born February 16, 1995) is an Uzbekprofessional boxer. He held theWorld Boxing Association (WBA)light-middleweight title in 2024. As anamateur, he won a silver medal in thewelterweight division at the2014 Asian Games and gold in themiddleweight division at the2018 edition.[1]
At the international level, Madrimov won gold medals at the2017 Asian Championships and2018 Asian Games, and silver medals at the 2011 Junior World Championships; 2013 Asian Youth Championships; and2014 Asian Games. At national level he won the 2013 and 2016 Uzbekistan National Championships, and placed second at the 2014 edition.[2]
AIBA World Championships2017[3]
Asian Games2014[4]
2018[5]
Asian Championships2017[6]
Madrimov made his professional debut on 24 November 2018, against Vladimir Hernandez at theHard Rock Live inAtlantic City, New Jersey, with the vacantWBA Inter-Continentallight-middleweight title on the line. Madrimov dropped his opponent in round three en route to a sixth-roundtechnical knockout (TKO) victory. At the time of the stoppage, Madrimov was ahead on all three judges' scorecards (50–44, 50–43, 49–45). The fight was part of the undercard forDmitry Bivol's successful world title defence againstJean Pascal.[7]
Madrimov made the first defence of his title, again on the undercard of a Dmitry Bivol world title fight – this time againstJoe Smith Jr. – on 9 March 2019 against Frank Rojas at theTurning Stone Resort & Casino inVerona, New York. Madrimov dropped his opponent in round two with a left hook. Rojas rose to his feet before the referee's count of ten, only to be knocked unconscious moments later with another powerful left hook, giving Madrimov the win via second-roundknockout (KO).[8] Two days before the fight it was announced Madrimov's promoters, World of Boxing, had signed a co-promotional deal withEddie Hearn'sMatchroom Boxing USA.[9]
Madrimov won via sixth-round technical knockout over Norberto Gonzalez atMadison Square Garden inNew York City, New York, USA on 8 June 2019.[10]
Madrimov defended his title for a second time againstAlejandro Barrera on 5 October 2019 atMadison Square Garden,New York City, on the undercard of theGennady Golovkin vs.Sergiy Derevyanchenko world title fight. Madrimov retained his title with a fifth-round TKO.[11]
On 15 August 2020, Madrimov fought Eric Walker in the co-main event on aDAZN-televised card inTulsa, Oklahoma. Madrimov won the fight by unanimous decision. However, there was controversy, as it appeared that Madrimov had knocked Walker down and out with a legal punch in the ninth round of the fight, but referee Gary Ritter ruled that it was not a knockdown or a knockout, but rather that Madrimov had illegally knocked Walker down with his shoulder. As Walker remained down on the canvas for a minute, telling Ritter that he was dizzy, Ritter implored the fighter to get back up. After a minute, Walker stood up, stumbled into the ropes and then collapsed into the corner. Ritter gave Walker five minutes to recover and then restarted the fight, allowing Walker to take further punishment for 2+ rounds. Hall-of-Fame refereeSteve Smoger admonished Ritter after the fight for not ruling a knockdown and subsequent knockout, asserting that Walker took unnecessary punishment as a result.[12]
On 17 December 2021, Madrimov foughtMichel Soro, who was ranked #1 by the WBA at light middleweight, in an eliminator for theWBA light-middleweight championship.[13] Madrimov won by technical knockout in the ninth round.[14]
The next bout was a rematch against Soro. A violent clash of heads in the third round cut Soro near the left eye and blood poured on the canvas. After consultation, referee Steve Gray decided to stop the bout and the bout ended in a technical draw.[15]
On March 8, 2024 inRiyadh, Saudi Arabia, Madrimov faced the undefeated Magomed Kurbanov for the vacant WBA light-middleweight title. He stopped Kurbanov in the fifth round, winning the title.[16]
InTashkent, Israil Madrimov was awarded by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. He was handed the keys to a Chevrolet Tahoe.[17]
On April 20, 2024, it was reported that Madrimov would make the first defense of his WBA light-middleweight title againstESPN's #1 P4P fighterTerence Crawford on August 3, 2024, atBMO Stadium inLos Angeles,California, with the vacantinterimWBO title also on the line. Crawford, undefeated at 40–0 and a two-timeundisputed champion andthree-weight world champion, was coming off of a stoppage victory overErrol Spence Jr. to become undisputed atwelterweight.[18][19]
Madrimov proved to be a difficult matchup for Crawford, preventing Crawford from settling into his rhythm and repeatedly catching him with a straight rights, while Crawford found success behind the southpaw jab, landing with hard uppercuts and being more active. Despite a constant back-and-forth, Crawford edged out a unanimous decision victory, handing Madrimov his first loss and ending his brief title reign. Madrimov nevertheless became the first person to go the distance with Crawford since 2016 after an 11-fight stoppage streak, and the competitiveness of the bout even made some observers question Crawford's ability at heavier weights.[20][21][22]
Following his loss to Crawford, Madrimov was initially scheduled to next faceSerhii Bohachuk on theOleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury 2 undercard at theKingdom Arena in Riyadh,Saudi Arabia, on December 21, 2024.[23] However, Madrimov pulled out citing bronchitis and was replaced by Ishmael Davis. Instead, Madrimov's next fight would be againstVergil Ortiz Jr. on the undercard ofBeterbiev vs. Bivol 2 on February 22, 2025, this time at The Venue Riyadh Season in Riyadh. This fight would be for Ortiz'sWBCinterim light-middleweight title.[24]
After 12 rounds, Madrimov lost by unanimous decision, with two scores of 115–113 and one score of 117–111. Madrimov was the second fighter to go the distance with Ortiz, following Bohachuk in his previous fight.[25][26]
After 11 months out of the ring due to knee and shoulder surgeries, Madrimov faced Luis David Salazar on 24 January 2026 atFontainebleau inLas Vegas, USA.[27] Madrimov had also been recovering from pneumonia prior to the bout. He won by unanimous decision, earning scores of 99–1 from all three judges. Though Madrimov suffered significant swelling over the left eye, he remained undeterred and controlled the bout from start to finish, hurting Salazar in the final round.[28]
| 14 fights | 11 wins | 2 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 7 | 0 |
| By decision | 4 | 2 |
| Draws | 1 | |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Win | 11–2–1 | Luis David Salazar | UD | 10 | 24 Jan 2026 | Fontainebleau,Las Vegas,Nevada, U.S. | |
| 13 | Loss | 10–2–1 | Vergil Ortiz Jr. | UD | 12 | 22 Feb 2025 | The Venue Riyadh Season,Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | ForWBCinterim light-middleweight title. |
| 12 | Loss | 10–1–1 | Terence Crawford | UD | 12 | 3 Aug 2024 | BMO Stadium,Los Angeles,California, U.S. | Lost WBA light-middleweight title; For vacantWBOinterim light-middleweight title. |
| 11 | Win | 10–0–1 | Magomed Kurbanov | TKO | 5 (12),2:20 | 8 Mar 2024 | Kingdom Arena,Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Won vacantWBA light-middleweight title |
| 10 | Win | 9–0–1 | Raphael Igbokwe | UD | 10 | 8 Apr 2023 | Boeing Center at Tech Port, San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | |
| 9 | Draw | 8–0–1 | Michel Soro | TD | 3 (12),2:20 | 9 Jul 2022 | The O2 Arena, London, England | Fight stopped in round 3 after a clash of heads opened a cut on Soro |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Michel Soro | TKO | 9 (12),3:00 | 17 Dec 2021 | Tashkent, Uzbekistan | |
| 7 | win | 7–0 | Emmany Kalombo | UD | 10 | 3 Apr 2021 | Humo Arena,Tashkent, Uzbekistan | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Eric Walker | UD | 12 | 15 Aug 2020 | Downtown Streets, Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Charlie Navarro | TKO | 6 (10),2:24 | 29 Feb 2020 | Ford Center at The Star,Frisco, Texas, U.S. | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Alejandro Barrera | TKO | 5 (10),2:36 | 5 Oct 2019 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | Retained WBA Inter-Continental light-middleweight title |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Norberto Gonzalez | TKO | 6 (10),0:49 | 8 Jun 2019 | Madison Square Garden,New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Frank Rojas | KO | 2 (10),1:58 | 9 Mar 2019 | Turning Stone Resort Casino,Verona, New York, U.S. | Won vacant WBA Inter-Continental light-middleweight title |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Vladimir Hernandez | TKO | 6 (10),1:22 | 24 Nov 2018 | Hard Rock Live,Atlantic City, New Jersey U.S. |
| Sporting positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regional boxing titles | ||||
| Vacant Title last held by Kanat Islam | WBA Inter-Continental light-middleweight Champion March 9, 2019 – 2019 Vacated | Vacant Title next held by Kieron Conway | ||
| World boxing titles | ||||
| Vacant Title last held by Jermell Charloas Super champion | WBA light-middleweight champion March 8 – August 3, 2024 | Succeeded by | ||
1958–2018:75 kg | |
|
