Kovalev vs Mikhalkin

Who won Kovalev vs Mikhalkin?

Sergey Kovalev beat Igor Mikhalkin by technical knockout in the 7th round on Saturday 3rd March 2018 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 175 pounds (12.5 stone or 79.4 KG).

This contest was for the WBO light heavyweight championship of the world.

Kovalev vs Mikhalkin stats

Back in March 2018, Sergey Kovalev stepped into the ring with a record of 31 wins, 2 loses and 1 draw.

Igor Mikhalkin made his way to the ring with a record of 21 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws.

Sergey Kovalev was the older man by 3 years, at 35 years old.

Mikhalkin had a height advantage of 1 inch over Kovalev. That also extended to a 3-inch reach advantage.

Sergey Kovalev fought out of the orthodox stance, while Igor Mikhalkin was a southpaw.

Kovalev was arguably the more experienced fighter, having had 12 more fights, and made his debut in 2009, 1 year and 7 months later than Mikhalkin, whose first professional fight was in 2007. He had fought 3 more professional rounds, 194 to Mikhalkin's 191.

Igor Mikhalkin was ranked number 4 by the WBO in the 175lb division.

Kovalev vs Mikhalkin form

Kovalev had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 2 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Vyacheslav Shabranskyy on 25th November 2017 by technical knockout in the 2nd round in their WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at Madison Square Garden, New York, United States.

Previous to that, he had been beaten by Andre Ward on 17th June 2017 by technical knockout in the 8th round in their WBA Super World Light Heavyweight, IBF World Light Heavyweight, WBO World Light heavyweight and The Ring Light Heavyweight championship fight at Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas.

Going into that contest, he had lost to Andre Ward on 19th November 2016 by unanimous decision in their WBA Super World Light Heavyweight, IBF World Light Heavyweight and WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas.

Before that, he had defeated Isaac Chilemba on 11th July 2016 by unanimous decision in their WBA Super World Light Heavyweight, IBF World Light Heavyweight and WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at DIVS, Ekaterinburg, Russia.

He had beat Jean Pascal on 30th January 2016 by technical knockout in the 7th round in their IBF World Light Heavyweight, WBA Super World Light Heavyweight and WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at Bell Centre, Montreal, Canada.

Mikhalkin had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 1 of them, going the distance 4 times.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Mickael Diallo on 2nd December 2017 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at La Palestre, Alpes-Maritimes, France.

Previous to that, he had won against Thomas Oosthuizen on 19th May 2017 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Barclaycard Arena, Hamburg, Germany.

Going into that contest, he had beat Patrick Bois on 12th March 2016 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Palais des sports Marcel Cerdan, Levallois-Perret, France.

Before that, he had defeated Hugo Kasperski on 9th October 2015 by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Maison des Sports, Clermont-Ferrand.

He had won against Hakim Chioui on 14th March 2015 by knockout in the 9th round at Salle Dubois-Crance, Charleville-Mézières.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Sergey Kovalev had been fighting more than Igor Mikhalkin.

Going to this contest, Sergey Kovalev had last fought 3 months and 6 days ago, while Igor Mikhalkin's last outing had been 3 months and 1 day ago.

Kovalev's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 1 month and 1 day, meaning he had been fighting on average every 5 months and 1 day. In those fights, he fought a total of 41 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 8.2 rounds on average.

Mikhalkin's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 17 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 7 months and 5 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 57 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 11.4 rounds on average.

What time did Kovalev vs Mikhalkin start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 10:00 PM EST / 7:00 PM PST at Madison Square Garden, New York, United States, which was around 3:00 AM GMT in the UK.

Who broadcast Kovalev vs Mikhalkin?

Kovalev vs Mikhalkin was broadcast on HBO in the US, while the fight was broadcast in the United Kingdom by BoxNation.

What were the odds on Kovalev vs Mikhalkin?

Sergey Kovalev was a 1/20 (-2000) favourite going into the contest, while Igor Mikhalkin made his way into the ring at 8/1 (+800) with oddsmakers.