Murat Gassiev stopped Peter Kadiru in the sixth round and retained the WBA title in Moscow
Murat Gassiev successfully made the first defense of his WBA heavyweight world title on July 11, 2026, stopping Peter Kadiru in the sixth round of the main event at IBA Pro 19 in Moscow's VTB Arena. The German challenger's corner threw in the towel after one minute of the sixth round, when the champion drove Kadiru toward the ropes with a series of precise and powerful punches and left him without an effective response. The official result was recorded as a technical knockout victory for Gassiev due to a corner stoppage. The Russian boxer thereby improved his professional record to 34 wins and two losses, including 27 victories by stoppage, while Kadiru fell to 23 wins and two losses. According to original reports from the event, approximately 10,000 spectators watched the fight, although the IBA did not publish a final attendance figure in its official report.
Patient pressure instead of a quick hunt for the knockout
Gassiev did not start recklessly, even though he entered the fight as the clear favorite. According to the official report of the International Boxing Association, he took the center of the ring, gradually reduced the available space and began investing in body punches early. Kadiru relied on a high guard, movement and attempts to keep the champion at long range with his longer arms, but by the second round he was already finding it increasingly difficult to avoid the right hand and left hooks. At the same time, Gassiev was careful not to create unnecessary openings in his defense, allowing his advantage to grow without taking major risks. Instead of looking for a single punch that would immediately end the match, he built his victory through combinations to the body and head, forcing the challenger to spend more and more time against the ropes.
That approach proved particularly important because Kadiru was the physically larger opponent. At the official weigh-in, Gassiev weighed 104.205 kilograms and Kadiru 116.7 kilograms, a difference of almost 12.5 kilograms. The German boxer was also taller, so his basic tactical option was to work with the lead hand, move laterally at all times and avoid exchanges at medium and close range. However, Gassiev persistently closed off his escape routes, punched beneath the elbows and followed attacks to the body with shots to the head. Kadiru occasionally responded with straight punches and short counters, but he was unable to create enough space to impose his own rhythm.
The IBA singled out the fifth round as the challenger's best period. Kadiru was more active at that point, initiated exchanges more frequently and briefly managed to make the fight more even. Nevertheless, the cleaner and more powerful punches continued to come from Gassiev, and the champion showed no signs of losing control of the pace. The decisive attack followed at the beginning of the sixth round. Gassiev drove his opponent into his own corner, landed a combination highlighted by a right uppercut and continued with a series of punches while Kadiru was no longer able to respond safely. His team judged that continuing carried too great a risk and stopped the fight after 1:00 of the round.
Kadiru accepted the biggest opportunity of his career at the last moment
Peter Kadiru was not originally scheduled to be the challenger. Gassiev was supposed to fight French Olympic champion Tony Yoka, but Yoka withdrew because of a back injury suffered during preparations. The organizers then had to find a replacement at very short notice, and Kadiru's team accepted the opportunity approximately one week before the event. The WBA announced that Gassiev's team had requested special approval for the change of opponent and that the Championships Committee and Ratings Committee had reviewed Kadiru's results, license and medical fitness. The fight was officially approved on July 8, only three days before they entered the ring.
In its explanation, the WBA stated that Kadiru had a sufficiently strong professional résumé to compete in a title fight and that he held the organization's continental belt at the time. He won that title on May 15, 2026, by defeating Senad Gashi, after beating Mauricio Nicolas Barragan by unanimous decision in March. He therefore arrived in Moscow with a record of 23-1 and 13 victories by stoppage, but without a full training camp tailored to Gassiev's style. A late change of opponent in boxing can disrupt the plans of both fighters, but in this case the considerably heavier burden fell on the challenger. In only a few days, he had to adjust his sparring, tactics, travel and final preparations for a fighter known for powerful pressure and body punches.
Despite the defeat, Kadiru's performance was not without value for the continuation of his career. The 29-year-old boxer from Hamburg has a notable amateur background, including gold at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games, European titles in junior age categories and silver at the Youth World Championships. German reports before the fight emphasized that he had been considered one of the country's more prominent heavyweight talents for years. In Moscow, he was unable to seriously threaten the champion, but he accepted a fight that many boxers would not have taken without full preparation. His next step will depend on whether he returns to fights at European and continental level or attempts to remain quickly within the circle of candidates for larger international bouts.
Gassiev confirmed the style that took him to the top of the world
The victory over Kadiru fits the pattern of Gassiev's most successful performances: patient closing of the distance, powerful body work and a gradual increase in intensity. In the lower cruiserweight division, he built a reputation as one of the most dangerous punchers of his generation. He won the IBF title by defeating Denis Lebedev and then stopped Yuniel Dorticos in the semifinal of the World Boxing Super Series, unifying the IBF and WBA belts. His rise in that division was halted by Oleksandr Usyk, who defeated him by unanimous decision in Moscow in the 2018 tournament final. That defeat showed how many problems Gassiev can have against an exceptionally mobile opponent who controls the distance, but it did not diminish his power or his ability to finish a fight once he succeeds in closing the space.
After moving up to heavyweight, Gassiev's career did not progress in an entirely straight line. He experienced periods of inactivity, changes of plans and a split-decision loss to Otto Wallin in September 2023. Nevertheless, he continued to accumulate victories, and the key moment came in December 2025 in Dubai, where he knocked out Kubrat Pulev in the sixth round and won the WBA title then designated as "regular." After Oleksandr Usyk relinquished the belts in June 2026, the WBA began recognizing Gassiev as its full-fledged heavyweight world champion. The Moscow bout therefore had a higher status than the originally planned defense of a secondary belt and represented his first appearance after his administrative promotion to the top of the WBA hierarchy.
The manner of victory was just as important as the result itself. Kadiru was bigger, physically strong and disciplined enough not to enter an open exchange in the first round, but Gassiev did not allow that difference to force him into rushing. His body punches gradually reduced his opponent's mobility, while attacks in combinations limited the possibility of counterattacks. From a tactical standpoint, the champion delivered the match expected of him: he took the initiative, did not lose control and finished the fight as soon as a clear opportunity appeared. Against the best and more mobile heavyweights, he will need even greater variation, but against a late replacement he left no room for an upset.
Ambitions to unify the belts, but no confirmed next opponent
After the victory, Gassiev said that he wanted to rest and spend time with his family before continuing his path toward title unification. IBA Pro promoter Al Siesta described his performance as a demonstration of precision, composure and power, and said that his team wanted the biggest fights possible. In an interview after the event, he mentioned Daniel Dubois and Agit Kabayel among the potential opponents, but as of July 13, 2026, no next match had been officially agreed. IBA President Umar Kremlev also supported the idea of a fight against one of the other heavyweight champions. Such statements confirm the direction of Gassiev's ambitions, but unification negotiations depend on mandatory challengers, television contracts, promoters and the availability of the holders of the other belts.
Derek Chisora attracted additional attention when he entered the ring after the main event and stood face to face with Gassiev. The scene prompted speculation about a possible match, especially because the experienced British heavyweight is known for major events and fights against a series of champions. However, simply appearing in the ring does not constitute an official announcement, and the WBA rankings and sporting priorities could direct Gassiev toward another opponent. A fight with Chisora could have commercial value for the champion, while a unification match would carry considerably greater sporting stakes. For the time being, the only confirmed fact is that Gassiev retained the belt after his first defense and further strengthened his negotiating position.
The Moscow event produced another important heavyweight result
The main event was the final part of the extensive IBA Pro 19 program, which combined professional boxing and bare-knuckle fights. In the co-main event, Artem Suslenkov achieved the biggest victory of his career by stopping former Olympic silver medalist Joe Joyce in the 11th round. The IBA stated that Suslenkov gradually took control through pressure and shorter, more precise punches, after which Joyce indicated that he could not continue. That result further changed the balance of power among boxers attempting to secure major heavyweight fights. The event was broadcast internationally through DAZN, while in Russia it was also available through national television coverage.
For Gassiev, however, the most important thing was that he avoided the kind of trap often presented by a late replacement. A change of opponent can leave the champion with a preparation plan designed for a completely different style, while the favorite simultaneously enters the fight with little to gain in public perception: a convincing victory is considered expected, whereas any difficulty would be interpreted as a warning sign. Gassiev handled the task professionally, without unnecessary drama and without allowing the physically larger challenger to impose a slower fight at long range. The sixth-round stoppage confirmed his punching power, but also his more important tactical discipline. His next fight will show whether he can transfer such a performance to an opponent from the very top of the division, with a full training camp and a broader range of offensive solutions.
Sources:
- International Boxing Association - official report and results of the IBA Pro 19 event, round-by-round description of the fight and the result of the co-main event (link)
- World Boxing Association - decision approving the replacement challenger, Kadiru's eligibility and the date of the fight's official approval (link)
- World Boxing Association - information about Gassiev winning the WBA title against Kubrat Pulev in December 2025 (link)
- World Boxing Association - official profile and overview of Gassiev's professional fights, including appearances against Lebedev, Dorticos, Usyk and Wallin (link)
- Boxing Insider - stoppage time, professional records, post-fight statements and plans related to title unification (link)
- DAZN - information about the boxers, the context of the late replacement and Kadiru's results before the fight (link)
- Match TV - the boxers' official weights and the circumstances of the weigh-in in Moscow (link)
- Associated Press / ABC News - confirmation of the result, Gassiev's record and the change in the status of the WBA title after Usyk relinquished the belts (link)
- dpa / WELT - Kadiru's amateur background, winning the continental belt and the circumstances of accepting the fight at short notice (link)
- Yahoo Sports / Uncrowned - confirmation of the face-off between Derek Chisora and Murat Gassiev after the fight (link)
- Channel One - confirmation of the television broadcast of the event in Russia and the announcement of the main event at VTB Arena (link)