In just his second contest, Kazakhstan southpaw Tursynbay Kulakhmet signalled his professional promise with a clearcut points triumph over Macaulay McGowan to clinch the WBC international super-welterweight title at the MTK Fight Night at Production Park Studios in Wakefield on Wednesday night.
Kulakhmet, who holds an amateur win over the world-rated Israil Madrimov, registered a knockdown with an overhand right in the seventh round en route to a landslide 99-89 verdict on all three cards. Manchester’s McGowan dips to 14-1-1, 3 KOs.
“I’m very happy to have my second fight in the UK. This is the land of boxing, and it is growing year by year,” said Kulakhmet. “I hope I gave a good performance for the fans in the UK. I want to fight for a world title by next year. I was happy to fight for this title in my second fight, and I want to thank MTK Global because they gave me this opportunity.”
Limerick’s highly-rated southpaw Paddy Donovan (5-0, 3 KOs) eased to his fifth pro win with a comprehensive points victory over former Southern Area champion Jumaane Camero (10-7, 3 KOs) at welterweight. Referee Ian John Lewis scored 60-55.
“We knew it would be a tough fight. It was a step up, and I was listening to Andy Lee about what was needed. These guys will test me. I’ll progress and get better,” said Donovan.
“It’s great having Andy in my corner to give me the advice. Camero had great fitness and a great engine, so I knew he wouldn’t be easy to get him on the backfoot, so I had to step back and let my hands do the work and counter him.
“Sometimes you can sense they’re ready to go, but he recovered fast and he came back straight away. We need to keep stepping up, I’m still only young at 21, and I’ll build up the ladder and it will make me a better fighter.”
In other action, Manchester welter Jack Rafferty (13-0, 7 KOs) decisioned Redcar’s Tom Hill (9-2, 2 KOs) in a back-and-forth encounter (Score 78-75), Southampton light-heavy Lewie Edmondson (3-0, 0 KOs) trumped Manchester’s Scott Williams (0-9, 0 KOs) over four rounds (Score 40-36), Southminster 154-pounder Jack Martin (4-0, 0 KOs) eclipsed Basildon’s Inder Bassi (2-1, 0 KOs) in a battle of former amateur rivals (Score 59-55) whilst Dave Allen’s protégé Danny Murrell won his pro debut with a verdict over Hyde’s Dale Arrowsmith in a super-welter four-rounder (Score 40-37).
Main image: Kulakhmet is victorious. Photo: MTK Global.