On Saturday, December 17, 2016, Oleksandr Usyk (11-0, 10 KOs) scored a ninth-round TKO victory against Thabiso Mchunu (17-3, 11 KOs) to defend his WBO Cruiserweight title at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
The scheduled 12-round fight was the first televised bout of a three-fight telecast on HBO in the U.S. This was also Usyk’s HBO debut.
Usyl, a 29-year-old native of Ukraine, began the fight by struggling with Mchunu’s defensive style. Both men are southpaws, so the southpaw advantage was nullified.
Mchunu a 28-year-old native of of South Africa, stood very low as he defended against Usyk’s offense. Usyk, at first, seemed too big and too long for Mchunu, allowing him to defend easily.
By Round 5, Usyk had timed his opponent, earning himself a knockdown caused by an accumulation of punches.
However, the action declined a bit, allowing Mchunu to land a few counter shots in Rounds 6 and 7.
In Round 9, Usyk once again increased his activity and scored two knockdown, the second of which forced the stoppage.
“I get to take my belt back home, and I got to do it with my fellow Ukrainians in the crowd,” said Usyk.
“We were hoping to get the knock out earlier, but we got it and we’re looking forward to bringing more fights to this Cruiserweight division,” said Usyk.
“He got the better of me, and he used it against me,” said Mchunu.
“All I can say now is that we have to go back to square one,” said Mchunu.
Though Usyk did not look as spectacular as would have wanted to look, he faced a tough opponent that he was able to eventually stop. Mchunu is tougher than one might give him credit for, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Usyk, who is promoted by K2 Promotions, will join his K2 stablemate, Gennady Golovkin, on the undercard of Golovkin’s fight against Danny Jacobs in March.
What did you think of the stoppage? Let us know in the comments section below.
Photos by Ed Mulholland/HBO Boxing
