Janibek Alimkhanuly

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Janibek Alimkhanuly
Born (1993-04-01) 1 April 1993 (age 31)
Almaty, Kazakhstan
Other namesQazaq Style
Statistics
Weight(s)Middleweight
Height182 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Reach71+1⁄2 in (182 cm)
StanceSouthpaw
Boxing record[1]
Total fights15
Wins15
Wins by KO10
Medal record
Men's amateur boxing
Representing  Kazakhstan
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2013 Almaty Middleweight
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place 2013 Amman Middleweight
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Incheon Middleweight

Janibek Alimkhanuly (also spelled as Zhanibek Alimkhanuly,[2] born 1 April 1993) is a Kazakh professional boxer and unified middleweight champion who has held the WBO title since 2022, and the IBF title since October 2023. As an amateur, he won gold medals at the 2013 World Championships, 2013 Asian Championships and 2014 Asian Games. He also represented Kazakhstan at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the middleweight division, losing in the quarter-finals.[3] He won the WBO Interim middleweight title on May 21, 2022, before being elevated to full champion on August 30, 2022, and he then won the IBF title on October 14, 2023.

Early life[edit]

Alimkhanuly began boxing at the age of six because of his father and grandfather's love of the sport. His first fight was at six and he lost that match.[4]

Professional career[edit]

Early career[edit]

Alimkhanuly made his professional debut against Milton Núñez, a former opponent of Alimkhanuly's fellow countryman Gennady Golovkin,[5] on 29 October 2016 in his home city of Almaty, Kazakhstan. He won the bout via first-round technical knockout.[6]

Ahead of his fight with Issah Samir on 21 March 2020, the world was struck with COVID-19. Alimkhanuly's fight was canceled but he said it's not a big deal that his bout was canceled and that there were more pressing concerns. "We just lost the fight date, someone lost the family. It’s not easy. We will fight when everything calms down but nobody will not return them to their family. I wish all patients a quick recovery.”[7]

In his toughest test yet, Alimkhanuly faced former WBA (Regular) champion Rob Brant as the co-featured bout to Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Masayoshi Nakatani on 26 June 2021 in Paradise, Nevada.[8] He knocked Brant down in the sixth round en route to an eighth-round corner retirement victory.[9]

Alimkhanuly faced the former two-time world middleweight champion Hassan N'Dam N'Jikam on 20 November 2021, on the Terence Crawford vs. Shawn Porter undercard.[10] He won the fight by an eight-round technical knockout. Alimkhanuly was ahead on the scorecards at the time of the stoppage (with scores of 70–62, 70–62 and 70–61) and had knocked N'Jikam down in the third round.[11]

WBO middleweight champion[edit]

Alimkhanuly vs. Dignum[edit]

On 30 November 2021, the WBO ordered their middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade to make a mandatory title defense against Alimkhanuly.[12] Three months later, on 21 March 2022, the sanctioning body allowed Andrade to move up in weight and face Zach Parker for the interim super middleweight title instead, while allowing him to keep the middleweight championship as well.[13] Andrade later withdrew from the fight, as he suffered a right shoulder injury during training camp.[14] As such, Alimkhanuly faced the undefeated Danny Dignum for the vacant WBO interim middleweight title on 21 May 2022, in the main event of an ESPN broadcast card, which took place at the Resorts World Event Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.[15] He made quick work of his opponent, stopping Dignum with an uppercut near the end of the second round. Alimkhanuly landed 21 of 33 power punches and 34 of 94 overall, while Dignum managed to land only 6 out of 45 total punches.[16]

On 20 July 2022, the WBO once again ordered their Demetrius Andrade to defend his title against Alimkhanuly, giving the pair 30 days to come to terms.[17] Andrade officially vacated his middleweight title on 30 August. Alimkhanuly was promoted to the WBO Champion that same day.[18]

Alimkhanuly vs. Bentley[edit]

On 22 September 2022, it was revealed that Alimkhanuly would make a voluntary title defense against the #14 ranked WBO middleweight contender Denzel Bentley. The title bout was booked as the headliner of an ESPN+ broadcast card, which took place at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 12, 2022.[19][20] Alimkhanuly retained his title by unanimous decision, with two judges scoring the bout 116–112 in his favor, while the third judge awarded him a wider scorecard of 118–110.[21] He outlanded Bentley 187 to 159 in total punches and 137 to 125 in power punches, landing 35% of all the strikes he threw, compared to Bentley's 25.9%.[22]

Alimkhanuly vs. Butler[edit]

On 20 November 2022, the WBO formally ordered Alimkhanuly to make a mandatory title defense against the former junior middleweight champion Jaime Munguia.[23] On 2 December, it was revealed that Munguia's team had declined to proceed with the mandatory title fight.[24] On 22 February 2023, Alimkhanuly was ordered to make a mandatory title defense against the former WBO light-middleweight champion Liam Smith.[25] As Smith was contractually obligated to face Chris Eubank Jr in an immediate rematch, Alimkhanuly instead made his second title defense against the sixth-ranked WBO middleweight contender Steven Butler on 13 May 2023.[26] He won the fight by a second-round knockout.[27]

Unified middleweight champion[edit]

Alimkhanuly vs. Gualtieri[edit]

Alimkhanuly faced the IBF middleweight titleholder Vincenzo Gualtieri in a championship unification bout on October 14, 2023, at the Fort Bend County Epicenter in Rosenberg, Texas.[28][29] Prior to the fight, Alimkhanuly began training with Brian Viloria, having previously trained under Buddy McGirt.[30] In the fifth round, he dazed Gualtieri with a hard left uppercut that he recovered from; after dazing Gualtieri again with a left uppercut in the sixth round, the referee stopped the fight and awarded Alimkhanuly the victory by TKO. With this victory, he became the second boxer from Kazakhstan to earn the unified middleweight championship.[31]

Personal life[edit]

Alimkhanuly is an avid reader. He enjoys books on nutrition and pottery. He is learning the English language and enjoys watering his plants on weekends.[32]

Professional boxing record[edit]

15 fights 15 wins 0 losses
By knockout 10 0
By decision 5 0
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
15 Win 15–0 Vincenzo Gualtieri TKO 6 (12), 1:25 14 Oct 2023 Fort Bend Community Center, Rosenberg, Texas, US Retained WBO middleweight title;
Won IBF middleweight title
14 Win 14–0 Steven Butler KO 2 (12), 2:35 13 May 2023 Stockton Arena, Stockton, California, US Retained WBO middleweight title
13 Win 13–0 Denzel Bentley UD 12 12 Nov 2022 Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, US Retained WBO middleweight title
12 Win 12–0 Danny Dignum KO 2 (12), 2:49 21 May 2022 Resorts World Event Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, US Won vacant WBO interim middleweight title
11 Win 11–0 Hassan N'Dam N'Jikam TKO 8 (10), 2:40 20 Nov 2021 Michelob Ultra Arena, Paradise, Nevada, US Retained WBC Continental Americas and WBO Global middleweight titles
10 Win 10–0 Rob Brant RTD 8 (10), 3:00 26 Jun 2021 Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, Paradise, Nevada, US Retained WBC Continental Americas middleweight title
9 Win 9–0 Gonzalo Coria KO 2 (10), 2:59 9 Oct 2020 MGM Grand Conference Center, Paradise, Nevada, US Retained WBO Global middleweight title
8 Win 8–0 Albert Onolunose KO 6 (10), 2:31 9 Nov 2019 Chukchansi Park, Fresno, California, US Retained WBC Continental Americas middleweight title
7 Win 7–0 Stuart McLellan KO 5 (10), 2:51 17 Aug 2019 Banc of California Stadium, Los Angeles, California, US Retained WBC Continental Americas and WBO Global middleweight titles
6 Win 6–0 Cristian Olivas UD 10 12 Apr 2019 Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, US Won vacant WBC Continental Americas and WBO Global middleweight titles
5 Win 5–0 Steven Martinez TKO 5 (8), 0:21 2 Feb 2019 The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas, US
4 Win 4–0 Vaughn Alexander SD 8 3 Nov 2018 Don Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas, US
3 Win 3–0 Carlos Galvan UD 6 28 Sep 2018 Oracle Arena, Oakland, California, US
2 Win 2–0 Gilberto dos Santos UD 6 9 Sep 2017 Saryarka Velodrome, Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan
1 Win 1–0 Milton Núñez TKO 1 (6), 2:25 29 Oct 2016 Almaty Arena, Almaty, Kazakhstan

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Boxing record for Janibek Alimkhanuly". BoxRec.
  2. ^ "BoxRec: Zhanibek Alimkhanuly". boxrec.com. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  3. ^ "Janibek Alimkhanuly - Amateur career". boxrec.com. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  4. ^ Blaine Henry (17 March 2020). "Qazaq Style: Janibek Alimkhanuly". Fight-Library.com.
  5. ^ "Golovkin vs. Nunez for WBA middleweight interim title on August 14th ⋆ Boxing News 24". Boxing News 24. 3 August 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  6. ^ "Zhanibek Alimkhanuly to make pro debut on Saturday". The Ring. 27 October 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  7. ^ Blaine Henry (17 March 2020). "Qazaq Style: Janibek Alimkhanuly". Fight-Library.com.
  8. ^ Stumberg, Patrick L. (27 May 2021). "Rob Brant vs. Janibek Alimkhanuly officially joins Lomachenko-Nakatani on June 26th". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  9. ^ "Janibek Alimkhanuly handles Rob Brant with ease on Loma card". The Ring. 26 June 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  10. ^ Morilla, Diego (16 November 2021). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Takes On Hassan N'dam N'jikam On Crawford-Porter Undercard". ringtv.com. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  11. ^ Idec, Keith (20 November 2021). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Chops Down, Stops Hassan N'Dam in Eight". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  12. ^ Stumberg, Patrick L. (30 November 2021). "WBO orders Demetrius Andrade to face Janibek Alimkhanuly". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  13. ^ Christ, Scott (19 March 2022). "Zach Parker vs Demetrius Andrade official for May 21, interim WBO super middleweight title". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  14. ^ Esco, Wil (2 May 2022). "Demetrius Andrade suffers shoulder injury postponing May 21 fight against Zach Parker". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  15. ^ Calfa, Jim (21 May 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly fights Danny Dignum for interim WBO 160-lb title". thesidelinecritic.com. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  16. ^ Montero, Michael (21 May 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Destroys Danny Dignum In Two, Wins Interim 160-pound Title". ringtv.com. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  17. ^ Stumberg, Patrick L. (20 July 2022). "WBO re-orders Demetrius Andrade vs Janibek Alimkhanuly". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  18. ^ Ring TV (30 August 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Upgraded To WBO 160-pound Titleholder, Replaces Demetrius Andrade". ringtv.com. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  19. ^ Idec, Keith (22 September 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly-Denzel Bentley To Headline November 12 Show On ESPN+". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  20. ^ Stumberg, Patrick L. (3 October 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly vs Denzel Bentley official for November 12th in Las Vegas". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  21. ^ Idec, Keith (13 November 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Tested, Wins Decision Over Denzel Bentley in Tough Fight". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  22. ^ Compubox (13 November 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. Denzel Bentley - CompuBox Punch Stats". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  23. ^ Donovan, Jake (20 November 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly-Jaime Munguia Mandatory Title Fight Ordered By WBO". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
  24. ^ Donovan, Jake (2 December 2022). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Seeks New Foe, After Jaime Munguia's Team Declines WBO Title Fight". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  25. ^ Stumberg, Patrick L. (22 February 2023). "WBO orders Janibek Alimkhanuly vs Liam Smith". badlefthook.com. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  26. ^ Idec, Keith (20 March 2023). "Janibek Alimkhanuly-Steven Butler Main Event Set For May 13 On ESPN; Venue TBD". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  27. ^ Henry, Blaine (13 May 2023). "Janibek Alimkhanuly Stops Steven Butler In Two, Defends WBO Middleweight Title". ringtv.com. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
  28. ^ Idec, Keith (17 August 2023). "Janibek Alimkhanuly-Vincenzo Gualtieri Middleweight Title Unification Bout Nearly Set For 10/14". boxingscene.com. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
  29. ^ Hits, Random (1 September 2023). "Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. Vincenzo Gualtieri Unification Lands at Fort Bend Epicenter, October 14". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  30. ^ Donovan, Jake (14 October 2023). "Janibek Alimkhanuly On Trainer Switch To Brian Viloria: You'll See A New Side Of Me". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  31. ^ Baby, Ben (14 October 2023). "JAlimkhanuly unifies belts with TKO of Gualtieri in 6th". ESPN.com. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  32. ^ Blaine Henry (17 March 2020). "Qazaq Style: Janibek Alimkhanuly". Fight-Library.com.

External links[edit]

Sporting positions
World boxing titles
Vacant
Title last held by
Avtandil Khurtsidze 		WBO middleweight champion
Interim title
May 21, 2022 – August 26, 2022
Promoted 		Vacant
Preceded by WBO middleweight champion
August 26, 2022 – present 		Incumbent
Preceded by IBF middleweight champion
October 14, 2023 – present
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