Coach Murata Gassieva Vitaly Slanov, in an interview with , said that a victory over Swede Otto Wallin would help the Russian boxer qualify for the fight for the title of mandatory challenger.
The fight between Gassiev and Wallin will take place on September 30 in Belek, Turkey. The stakes of the meeting will be the WBA intercontinental heavyweight belt, owned by the Russian.
— Otto Wallin is Murat’s most serious rival after the end of the Super Series (since summer 2018). We are already studying the pros and cons, but Murat should surprise him, not the other way around. But we won’t talk about our preparations and secrets for now. We work hard, we have a good camp. So everything should go well in combat.
— Did you like the development of Gassiev’s career?
“It didn’t depend on Murat.” The one they supported was the one they boxed with. It is now said that if Murat wins, he will fight for the mandatory challenger. But that’s more a matter for the promoters. Our task is to achieve a positive result on September 30 in a fight against a dangerous, strong-willed and resilient opponent, so we should not look behind Wallin’s back,” Slanov told .
Former WBA and IBF cruiserweight champion Gassiev has 30 victories (23 by KO) and one defeat. The Russian has been competing in the heavyweight division since the fall of 2020 and has earned four debut victories during that time. Wallin has 25 victories (14 by KO) with a defeat in September 2019 against the current WBC champion, Briton Tyson Fury. After this fight, the Swede won five consecutive victories.
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Source : MatchTV
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
