The Ukrainian lost to the Japanese Seyigo Akuyi and lost the championship belt
Former World Bantamweight Champion Artem Dalakyan commented on the defeat to the Japanese Seyigo Akuyi.
“Hello everyone, friends. First of all, I want to thank our Union Boxing Promotion team and all those people who believed in me throughout my career, supported me and watched my fights.”
“My feelings and thoughts after the defeat are fatigue and the desire to see my beloved wife, our daughters and son as soon as possible. In recent years I have seen my family very rarely. Now I only think about meeting my relatives and about peace coming to Ukraine as soon as possible and this horror ending.”
“I want to show respect to my opponent. He did a good job in the ring, but as for me, my athletic old age has arrived and I feel how moral and physical fatigue has accumulated over the years. Defeat was bound to happen sooner or later, but not in this battle.”
“I never got the chance to unify the belts, but I held the world title in my hands for five years and I’m happy that I have something to remember. Time will tell what will happen next.”
The Ukrainian was defeated by Akuya and failed to defend the WBA bantamweight belt. At the end of twelve rounds, all judges gave victory to the Japanese.
For Dalakyan, this was the seventh defense of the title and the first unsuccessful one – the Ukrainian suffered his first defeat in the professional ring with 22 victories. Akuyi scored his 19th victory and became the new WBA world bantamweight champion.
36-year-old Dalakyan became world champion in 2018. Artem had his last fight in January 2023 against Costa Rican David Jimenez. The fight lasted all 12 rounds, the judges unanimously gave the victory to the Ukrainian.
Source: Sportarena
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