After the defeat from Oleksandr Usyk in 2018, Murat Gassiev's career obviously did not develop in the most favorable direction.

The former IBF and WBA cruiserweight world champion immediately announced his move to heavyweight, but missed more than two years due to injuries.

The return to the ring took place only in October 2020.

However, this did not add optimism to the fans, since the level of the Russian's opponents in the new category remained quite modest.

Some kind of competition he managed to make only Michael Wallisch, who lasted until the fourth round.

Nuri Seferi and Carlos Welch were knocked out in the first.

For two, Iron spent a total of exactly three minutes.

He himself admitted that he boxed with "bags", but complained that the leaders of the division did not risk meeting him.

In Yerevan, a native of Vladikavkaz also faced not the most serious test in the person of Mike Balogun.

The American, although he could boast of a perfect record of 19 victories, 15 of which were by knockout, was hardly able to challenge the enemy.

Moreover, among the athletes defeated by him, there are almost no recognizable ones, with the exception of Trey Lippe, the son of ex-WBO heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison.

Yes, and Balogun began his professional career only at the age of 31, and before that he played American football.

Despite this, Gassiev tried in every possible way to exclude underestimation.

“I think he is motivated and came here solely to win.

We have been preparing for this fight for a long time.

Looking forward to a good fight.

The opponent is experienced, without defeat.

Although age-related, I tune in to it very seriously, ”REN TV quotes Gassiev.

The American, unlike the Russian, had nothing to lose, because in the event of a defeat, no one would strongly criticize him.

But, having won, he would not only have sold his shares, but also won the WBA Intercontinental belt.

“We went through a great camp.

I'm ready for everything 100%.

My plan is to box and take advantage of every opportunity, ”Balogun admitted.

The unexpected acquisition of Armenian citizenship by Gassiev gave additional intrigue to the confrontation.

This was reported in the press service of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the country.

Probably, the boxer took such a step in order to be able to compete in all the strongest organizations.

At the same time, information appeared in the media that a native of Vladikavkaz also retained his Russian passport.

And at the weigh-in ceremony, he came out in a T-shirt with the flags of Russia and North Ossetia.

Moreover, the athlete intended to climb into the ring under the national tricolor.

But the organizers did not allow him to do this, citing a ban from the European Boxing Union (EBU).

All flags on the equipment had to be sealed.

However, this did not affect the actions of the favorite in any way, even if the first round was entirely spent on exploration.

Balogun, on the contrary, at first looked very good.

He understood that it was impossible to stagnate in any case, since any delay threatened with a knockout.

Because the American, despite his age and weight, actively moved.

At the same time, he worked well with his right hand and, if possible, connected his working left.

Basically, everything was in the block, but after one of the hits, the Russian even threw a surprised look at his opponent.

He himself tried to adapt to the manner of an uncomfortable opponent, forcing him out of the center of the ring.

But the fans did not wait for a single strong blow in his performance in the starting three-minute period.

In the corner of the boxer from the United States, they did not hide their satisfaction, because, unlike Seferi and Welch, he held out until the break.

But it was obvious that sooner or later Gassiev would throw his signature powerful shot.

As a rule, he always takes some time to build up, and then ends the fight.

So this time, Murat decided not to delay and already in the middle of the second round he forced the opponent to surrender.

The denouement was effective.

Iron, with a movement of his hand, urged the former football player to move to the side, and after a couple of seconds he struck a monstrous right side in the bypass of the block.

The blow fell exactly on the jaw, and the huge Balogun, like a rag doll, collapsed onto the floor.

Already at the judge's count, he tried to get up from his knees and find a mouth guard, but quickly realized that he was unable to continue.

A native of North Ossetia, on the other hand, had the impression that he was upset by such a quick end.

He, for sure, wanted to work in the ring longer, but again he did not meet worthy resistance.

But Murat, having won the fourth heavyweight victory and the 30th anniversary in total, won the WBA Intercontinental belt.

It remains to be hoped that this will finally bring him closer to the more status fights that the former world champion has long deserved.

And obtaining Armenian citizenship should help him get around the restrictions imposed on Russian boxers.

Iron himself admitted after the meeting that he took such a step just for the sake of the opportunity to hold big fights and, in particular, to fight again for the championship belts.

At the same time, he found it difficult to name the desired opponent, emphasizing that his team was looking for opponents.

“Very pleasant emotions, as always after the victory.

Glad to be here.

Thanks to the people who came to the fight from all over Russia and my homeland of North Ossetia.

This fight turned out to be very important for my career, ”REN TV quotes the athlete.

Murat also explained why he acted so carefully in the first round.

According to him, this was due to the power and speed of Balogun.

“We had to look at him first.

It's a heavy weight class and one punch here can make all the difference, no matter how you prepare.

I just yawned somewhere, missed it, and it was all over.

In the same way, Mike could knock me out, ”added Gassiev.