Joshua Kelly edges Bakhram Murtazaliev to win IBF light-middleweight title

Newcastle had an exciting experience in boxing with Britain’s Joshua Kelly winning the IBF light-middleweight title in a majority decision over Bakhram Murtazaliev on Saturday.

Kelly, in front of 4,000 cheering fans, gave an oily and fearless performance, dancing around the ring with kill-you speed and a high ring IQ.

Both men landed on the canvas in the fight, Murtazaliev in the fourth round and Kelly in the ninth.

Kelly had two more knockdowns, which were called slips. The judges voted 115-111 and 114-113 in favour of Kelly, with the third judge giving a draw of 113-113.

The first world champion, Kelly, ran to go embrace his trainer, Adam Booth, then lifted the belt among the people. Murtazaliev (23 fights, never beaten) found it difficult to keep up with the elusive Kelly, especially given that it had been 16 months since he was last in the ring.

“It feels like a dream. I envisioned this,” Kelly said. “I was praying a couple of days ago, envisioned the fight, and I had deja vu of the knockdown in the tenth round. I had to concentrate – I feel overwhelmed. I need to take a second backstage to gather myself. I’m mentally exhausted.”

The tactical move at the right moment made Kelly earn respect following the bruising left hook and a knockdown in the fourth round.

Kelly finished the fight on the offensive, demonstrating his resilience and class, despite a late rush by Murtazaliev.

The 31-year-old continues his eight-match winning streak and joins six other current world champions of the males in the UK, including Fabio Wardley and Lewis Crocker.