We get our second free title fight in the last two weeks when PBC Boxing Rances Barthelemy (23-0, 13 KOs) takes on Denis Shafikov (36-1-1, 19 KOS) for the vacant IBF World Lightweight title.
In the undercard, Isiah Thomas (15-0, 6 KOs) and Murat Gassiev (22-0, 16 KOs) should be a tremendous fight at 200 pounds.
Scroll on down for the live blog. Keep reading for preview information.
This is the preview from PBC’s website.
Forget about actually defeating Rances Barthelemy—just winning a couple of rounds against the 29-year-old boxing savant has proven more difficult than finding competent batch of presidential candidates.
Not only is Barthelemy 23-0 with 13 knockouts, but all 10 fights that have gone the distance ended with “Kid Blast” winning by unanimous decision—and those decisions have generally been lopsided.
Russian southpaw Denis Shafikov (36-1-1, 19 KOs) will become the latest opponent to attempt to solve the Barthelemy puzzle when the two square off for a vacant 135-pound title December 18 at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas (Spike TV, 9 p.m. ET/PT).
Barthelemy will be gunning for his second world championship, the first being a 130-pound title that he earned with a 12-round unanimous decision over Algenis Mendez on July 10, 2014. In what turned out to be one of his most challenging fights, the Cuba-born, Las Vegas-based fighter won seven of the 12 rounds on all three scorecards.
Three months after taking down Mendez, Barthelemy successfully defended his crown with a 12-round whitewash of Fernando David Saucedo. From there, he moved up in weight to score victories this year over Angino Perez on March 26 (second-round TKO at 137½ pounds) and Antonio DeMarco on June 21 (10-round shutout at 139½ pounds).
In Shafikov, Barthelemy will be facing a veteran opponent who is riding a three-fight winning streak consisting of a ninth-round TKO of Rustam Nugaev in August 2014, an eight-round unanimous decision over Miguel Angel Mendoza in December 2014 and, most recently, a third-round TKO of Roy Mukhlis in July.
A lifelong resident of Miass, Russia, Shafikov’s only defeat came in February 2014, when he dropped a 12-round unanimous decision to Miguel Vasquez in a battle for a 135-pound championship.
“This is my second world title fight, and while I have a great deal of respect for Barthelemy, I will be victorious on December 18,” says the 30-year-old Shafikov. “My trainer Abel Sanchez and I have been working hard for the past couple of months, and we will have a great game plan on fight night.”
It might have to be the perfect game plan to take down the 5-foot-11 Barthelemy, who will enter the ring not only with the superior boxing skills, but with a six-inch height advantage and a 4½-inch edge in reach.
“Shafikov is a very tough opponent, and at this level everyone is dangerous, so I’m taking this fight very seriously,” Barthelemy says. “But on December 18, I’m going to make history by adding another world title to my collection.”
The fights are on Spike TV at 9 p.m. Should be some good ones, including a couple of Floyd Mayweather prospects going at it first. Watch them with me.
