AIBA World Boxing Championships 2019 - Light-Welterweight and Welterweight
(Photo by Valery Sharifulin\TASS via Getty Images)
In the second instalment of my series recapping this year’s AIBA World Boxing Championships, we move on to the light-welterweight and welterweight divisions; two weight classes with very different landscapes. Whilst podium places at light-welterweight were largely contested between a handful of outstanding fighters, welterweight was far more unpredictable with medals up for grabs in a division lacking dominant contenders. I’ll be taking a look at the most noteworthy fights from these divisions, as well as evaluating some of the fighters that caught my eye.
Light-welterweight (63kg)
Gold - Andy Cruz Gomez (Cuba)
Silver - Keyshawn Davis (U.S.A)
Bronze - Manish Kaushik (India), Hovhannes Bachkov (Armenia)
Top seed Andy Cruz Gomez of Cuba, the reigning light-welterweight world champion, was the man to beat in Russia and has gone from strength to strength since winning gold in 2017. With silver medallist Ikboljon Kholdarov moving up to welterweight, Cruz dominated the 63kg division and looked bereft of real competition.
But new challenges had emerged in 2019, in the form of 2017 lightweight world champion Sofiane Oumiha of France, who moved up to light-welterweight this year in search of gold at a second weight-class, as well as 20-year old American standout Keyshawn Davis - one of the most gifted young talents in amateur boxing. Davis, seeded at #7 in Russia, had previously met Cruz earlier this year in the final of the 2019 Pan-American Games. Whilst the Cuban’s greater experience prevailed in a tight contest, Davis showed exactly why Team U.S.A has such high hopes for him and proved that he could compete with anyone in the division. The American’s meteoric rise over the past year was one of the most interesting stories in amateur boxing this year, and there was every indication that Davis was ready to announce himself on the world stage in Ekaterinburg.
#3 Hovhannes Bachkov of Armenia, who beat France’s Oumiha to claim victory at the European Games in June, was also in contention for gold having had to settle for bronze in 2017. Outside of these select few however, virtually no fighters had a realistic chance at becoming world champion in Russia with a very clear gulf between the level of the division’s best and the rest of the field. #4 Chinzorig Baatarsukh of Mongolia and #5 Otar Eranosyan of Georgia are fine boxers, but in all truth wouldn’t pose a challenge for a fighter of Andy Cruz’s calibre. Instead, England’s Luke McCormack and Enrico Lacruz of the Netherlands, both unseeded, looked to be the best bet for an outside shot at a medal in Russia and the most likely to pull off a few upsets. In all honesty, light-welterweight was always going to come down to four men; Cruz, Oumiha, Davis and Bachkov.
Andy Cruz benefitted from being in a very favourable half of the 63kg bracket (arguably the weakest for a #1 seed in the entire tournament) and coasted to the final with dominant victories over Kazakh veteran Zakir Safiullin, #8 Ilia Popov of Russia and India’s surprise semi-finalist Manish Kaushik. The other half, however, was far more interesting. In the quarter finals, #3 Hovhannes Bachkov beat #6 Leonel De los Santos to advance to the last four, but it was young upstart Keyshawn Davis who stole the show by outclassing #2 seed Sofiane Oumiha in their matchup. Davis bossed the much more experienced Frenchman, making full use of feints and lightning-fast counters to keep Oumiha tentative as well as displaying a well-schooled shell guard. It was the type of performance that cemented Davis as a serious gold medal contender, and he followed up with another strong showing to beat the relentless #3 Hovhannes Bachkov in the semi-finals by 4:1 split decision. The final was set; a rematch between two remarkable talents, the American prodigy against the Cuban virtuoso. Davis versus Cruz.
And the final delivered on its promise in a high-level chess match, with Davis looking to keep the fight on the outside, throw single jabs and land to the body. The thought behind the American’s strategy was that if he threw in combination against Cruz, he would very likely be caught with counters; by throwing single shots instead, Davis would be able to quickly dart back outside rather than spending too long at mid-range. He executed near-flawlessly throughout, frustrating Cruz with sharp jabs and giving the Cuban scarce opportunities to counter. Davis’ use of feints and level changes, as well as the threat of a counter from his shell guard, also kept Cruz reluctant to attack. But the brilliance of Cruz is that, even when fighting against an outstanding young fighter with a great game-plan, he managed to come out on top.
Cruz wasn’t the more reasoned of the two fighters, but he was the more reactive, and for a boxer as talented as Cruz that was just about enough. The Cuban quickly discovered that Davis’ single-punch approach limited his countering opportunities, but when they came, he took them. Cruz had success slipping under Davis’ jab and landing his own to the body, as well as catching Davis with clean shots whenever he stayed in range for too long. The main problem for Cruz however was his hesitance to pursue Davis when the latter moved out of range, allowing the American to re-establish his favoured distance and return to centre-ring. Davis’ shell guard and feints projected the image of a skilled counter-puncher, but in all truth this was illusory. When Cruz did commit to pressing, Davis immediately looked to circle out and evade rather than engage on the ropes and looked uncomfortable when forced to do so. It took Cruz two rounds to realise this, but in such a close contest, that made the difference in the crucial third. Cruz’s flurries when Davis was trapped against the ropes exposed the limitations of the American’s confidence in his shell, as he immediately changed to a more traditional high guard that Cruz could sneak shots through. In a fight of inches, those clean punches were decisive and saw Cruz edge the final round to take his second world championship gold at 63kg by UD. I agreed with the judges, scoring the fight 29-28 in favour of the Cuban.
For the 20 year-old Davis, his run at the world championships and performance in the final was very impressive, and with a few different decisions in key moments he could have left Russia a world champion. The American is tactically astute beyond his years, possesses a great jab, impressive movement and has a real understanding of the shell guard - no mean feat considering the complexity of truly understanding this old-school defensive technique. Whilst Davis’ inside game, comfort at mid-range and use of his shell against the ropes require refinement, he’s young enough to have ample time to develop these areas and has a style that I think would translate very well to the professional ranks. Davis is a future star for American boxing, and could be a special fighter if he continues to progress and hone his craft.
But with his second successive world championship triumph, Andy Cruz proved why he is nicknamed ‘El Fenomeno’ (the Phenomenon) and the brightest jewel in Cuban boxing’s crown. Cruz is incredibly talented, boasting one of the best jabs in the sport along with surgical accuracy, exceptional evasive movement, dazzling reflexes and sharp counters. It’s a testament to Davis that he wasn’t outclassed in the final, because almost every other fighter at 63kg would have been. Whilst Cruz is capable of making adjustments, he’s not a particularly tactical boxer and relies more on instinctive feel and ability, as well as a flawless technique, to beat opponents. When frustrated however, Cruz has a tendency to lose his composure - watch in the final how his technically perfect footwork falls apart when he loses patience with Davis and pressures frenetically, making a number of mistakes. Whilst Cruz’s athleticism often bails him out of trouble before his opponents can exploit this, it underlines how he’s prone to lapses of focus. But when he’s at his scintillating best, Cruz is a cheat-code; so slick, accurate and fast.
The 63kg division is home to some of the best amateur boxers in the sport, but it’s very top heavy; this tournament only served to reaffirm my view that only a select few are capable of winning gold in Tokyo next year. Cruz will once again be the favourite, with Davis right there with him, and it’ll be interesting to see whether Oumiha can recover from a crushing one-sided loss in the quarter-finals. Bachkov, who had success against Davis in the semi-finals, will be encouraged by his performance and look to build on that should they meet in Tokyo, whilst shock bronze medallist Kaushik, who surprised everyone with his performance in Russia, will also be out to prove he can consistently compete at the highest level. But for me, another instalment in the Cruz-Davis rivalry would be the fight at 63kg in Tokyo, especially given how close their previous contests this year have been.
Fights to watch at 63kg - Cruz vs Davis, Davis vs Oumiha, Cruz vs Popov, Davis vs Bachkov
Welterweight (69kg)
Gold - Andrey Zamkovoy (Russia)
Silver - Pat McCormack (England)
Bronze - Ablaikhan Zhussupov (Kazakhstan), Bobo-Usmon Baturov (Uzbekistan)
The welterweight division was wide open at the world championships this year, with 2017 world champion Shakhram Giyasov having switched to the pro’s along with divisional elite Abass Baraou. As a result, plenty of fighters were looking to capitalise on their absence and establish themselves at 69kg with a deep run. Longstanding amateur veteran Roniel Iglesias of Cuba was the #1 ranked seed, having secured silver in 2017 and gold at the Pan-Ams this year, but the Cuban hasn’t looked particularly dominant at welterweight and there was little to separate him and #2 seed Pat McCormack of England. McCormack, who exited the 2017 world championships after a controversial loss to eventual champion Giyasov in the quarter finals, had a strong year in 2019 and won his second consecutive European championship (beating 2016 Olympic silver medallist Lorenzo Sotomayor along the way). Despite not facing stellar competition, he had also gone undefeated since losing to Giyasov and was clearly a tier above the competition in Europe. As a result, I predicted McCormack to win gold at 69kg.
#3 seed Bobo Usmon Baturov of Uzbekistan, the reigning Asian Champion at 69kg, was another contender for gold although he was relatively untested at the elite level. Baturov’s best wins were a split decision over fellow Uzbek Ikboljon Kholdarov (who was making only his second appearance at welterweight) and emerging American welterweight Delante Johnson, but neither was a particularly strong indication of how he would perform against world-class welterweight opposition. I picked Baturov to medal in Russia, largely due to being in an overall weak division, but didn’t think he was in the same class as McCormack or Iglesias.
23 year-old #4 Ablaikhan Zhussupov of Kazakhstan sought to upgrade his world championship bronze in 2017, but the Kazakh had often come up short against the division’s best and had yet to prove he could clear that hurdle. Also in the mix were #5 Rohan Polanco (who, at 20 years-old, had ran Iglesias close at the 2019 Pan-American games), unseeded Cuban-born Azerbaijani Lorenzo Sotomayor as well as home favourite Andrey Zamkovoy of Russia. #8 seed Zamkovoy, who won a silver medal at the 2009 world championships in Milan ten years prior, had endured a rough spell in previous years having been knocked out of Rio 2016 in the first round. But the Russian had bounced back in the past year, scoring notable victories over Roniel Iglesias and Arisnoidys Despaigne in a return to form. Zamkovoy looked to ride his momentum in the 2019 world championships, bolstered by the support of his home nation.
Despite a somewhat shaky start in the early stages of the tournament, where he narrowly beat Ireland’s Aidan Walsh and #7 seed Seronwets Okazawa of Japan, McCormack proved his class in the semi-finals against #3 seed Bobo Usmon Baturov to advance to the 69kg final. In a meeting between the reigning European and Asian champions, the English #2 seed outclassed his opponent with a mature performance which showcased the range of his abilities. McCormack’s timing, movement and impressive defence were on full display (with the use of the check left-hook being particularly notable) yet it was his composure against such a wild opponent that stood out. Baturov often lunged in with reckless shots and looked to employ dirty tactics to rile McCormack, hoping to entice the Brit into a brawl. But McCormack remained calm and focussed throughout, landing crisp shots of his own whilst avoiding the Uzbek’s counters by utilising both movement and effective use of his shoulders to block shots. The bout showed McCormack’s maturity as a fighter, and underlined just why I had backed him to take gold.
On the other side of the bracket, Russian #8 Andrey Zamkovoy progressed to the final with an impressive run that saw him upset #1 seed Roniel Iglesias in the quarter finals before squaring off against #4 Ablaikhan Zhussupov in the semi’s. In an ugly fight, the awkward Zamkovoy prevailed by almost exclusively throwing 1-2’s, which were punctuated by either moving out of range or tieing his opponent up. When Zhussupov pressured Zamkovoy against the ropes, he did much of the same - countering the Kazakh then looking to clinch when his distance was threatened. Zamkovoy tends to take his head offline when he throws, making him difficult to counter, and a natural sense of timing allows him to catch opponents clean mid-exchange. Zamkovoy’s movement and use of holding tactics gave Zhussupov very few opportunities to get any offence going, and he would typically push Zhussupov back towards the centre where he was more comfortable. It was the type of performance that, whilst not particularly eye-catching, underlined the fact that Zamkovoy was going to be a difficult fighter to beat clean. McCormack had the ability to do so, but he’d need a career-best performance to have any chance of winning in Russia against the home favourite.
But it wasn’t meant to be for McCormack, as the Brit got off to a poor start in the final which would later prove costly. Zamkovoy’s length troubled McCormack who often found himself in range of his opponent’s punches, but conversely struggled to land his own work due to Zamkovoy moving narrowly out of range. The Russian southpaw’s counters were similarly causing problems - a particularly notable moment being in the first minute of the opening round when Zamkovoy countered a McCormack jab with a perfectly timed 1-2 combination that landed flush and knocked the Brit’s mouthguard out. Whilst McCormack had sporadic moments of success feinting the jab then connecting with a straight right to the body, whenever he pushed Zamkovoy back towards the corner he was too cautious (perhaps wary of the veteran’s counters) and let his opponent get off first, which allowed Zamkovoy to take the fight back to the centre. Yet in the final minute of the round you could see that McCormack was adjusting, using his check left hook and making Zamkovoy miss counters with footwork and head movement. He also began to take the initiative when the Russian was backed up, landing a sharp 1-2 of his own in the final 30 seconds. Whilst he had lost the round, the signs were there that McCormack was growing in confidence.
The second round started evenly, with McCormack using quick footwork to avoid Zamkovoy’s shots and constantly looking for that check left hook. But shortly after landing a jab-right cross, McCormack’s momentum stalled as he clashed heads with Zamkovoy whilst trying to close the distance. The referee immediately called time as a vicious cut had opened just under McCormack’s eyebrow, trickles of blood running down his face. The fight carried on, but despite boxing well, brief lapses of concentration cost McCormack and allowed Zamkovoy to sneak straight lefts through his guard when the Brit stayed in range. Watch how, at 8:49 in the video below, Zamkovoy paws with his right hand to create a hypnotic rhythm that McCormack follows - only to break rhythm and catch him off-guard with a straight left. The severity of McCormack’s cut meant that, with every shot Zamkovoy landed clean, blood continued to flow freely. Eventually the doctor called a halt to the fight just before the halfway point of the second round, sending the bout straight to the cards due to the cut being caused by an accident rather than intention. Zamkovoy prevailed by 4:0 UD, with the fifth judge scoring the final a draw. Whilst the Russian was a deserved victor, consistently finding the target with his southpaw left, the anti-climatic finish led to the 69kg tournament concluding on a bitter note.
Becoming a world champion in front of his home crowd must have been a brilliant feeling for the 32 year-old Zamkovoy, and a testament to his longevity considering his silver medal at 69k a decade ago. His inconsistent form between 2013-2017 gives me pause in picking Zamkovoy to triumph in the 2020 Olympics, but at his best Zamkovoy is a difficult fight for any current welterweight.
Despite a disappointing ending to his world championships, McCormack should take real encouragement from a remarkable 2019 in which he proved himself as a force into be reckoned with in Tokyo. The Brit demonstrated that he was clearly a class above two-time reigning Asian Champion Baturov in their semi-final, and although he fell short in the final, plenty of top fighters (such as Errol Spence) have struggled with the tricky Zamkovoy. If he can learn from his experience in the final and come back stronger, don’t be surprised to see McCormack claim Olympic gold next year before he embarks on his professional career.
#1 seed Roniel Iglesias, who exited the tournament at the quarter-final stage to Zamkovoy, will be desperate to perform strongly in next year’s games - especially to take advantage of the fact that the welterweight field looked fairly weak on the whole in Russia. Zhussupov once again failed to step up against top competition, having to settle for bronze, and whether Usmonov will be even be present in Tokyo next year depends on whether he can see off stiff competition from domestic rival Kholdarov for the chance to represent Uzbekistan. Kholdarov could be an interesting addition to the mix, especially considering Baturov showed his level in these world championships. For now though, Andrey Zamkovoy rules the welterweights - with Pat McCormack right on his heels.
Fights to watch at 69kg - Zamkovoy vs McCormack, Baturov vs McCormack, Zamkovoy vs Iglesias, Zhussupov vs Polanco
Stay tuned to The Fight Site for more coverage of the 2019 World Amateur Boxing Championships.