Boytsov stops Bidenko

World Boxing Association Inter-Continental heavyweight champion Denis Boytsov (25-0, 20 KOs) stopped Ukrainian Taras Bidenko (26-3, 12 KOs) in the 6th round. Boytsov, 23, hurt Bidenko, 29, with an uppercut in the 6th and then unleashed a flurry of shots that Bidenko somehow took without going down.
 

However, seconds later after it looked as if Bidenko was out of trouble, Boytsov attacked him and landed a short left uppercut that sent Bidenko down. He immediately got to his feet, but staggered around the ring, causing referee Terry O’Connor to step in and halt the bout at 2:00 of the 6th.
 

Boytsov, ranked number #5 in the WBA and #7 in the WBO, got the better of Bidenko in the first round landing sharp combinations. Bidenko, 6’4”, was able to use his reach for most of the round, jabbing Boytsov on the outside and making it hard for the Russian to get his shots off.
 

However, Boytsov was able to land just enough power shots to win the round, but Boytsov’s short 6’1” height made it a lot harder than it might have been if he were a taller heavyweight. Bidenko controlled the 2nd round with his hard jab, hitting Boytsov over and over again while on the inside. Boytsov landed some nice combinations but he ate a lot of jabs in the round from Bidenko.
 

In the 3rd round, Boytsov began to put much more pressure on Bidenko, walking through his jabs and getting in close to pound him with uppercuts and hooks to the head and body. Bidenko fought reasonably well until late in the round when Boytsov began to hammer him with big right hands to the head at close range. Bidenko tried to escape but Boytsov caught him on the ropes and teed off on him for the remainder of the round.
 

In the 4th round, Boytsov’s big shots and heavy pressure began to wear Bidenko down, as Boytsov was able to land a lot of hard during the round. For his part, Bidenko continued to mostly jab, but he was throwing fewer jabs at this point. The 5th round was all Boytsov, with him pounding a beaten and tired looking Bidenko around the ring with heavy shots.
 

In the 6th, Bidenko looked worn out, both eyes reddened and slightly swollen from the hard shots from the shorter Boytsov. Near the end of the round, Boytsov caught Bidenko with a hard right uppercut to the head that hurt Bidenko. Boytsov then landed a flurry of uninterrupted punches, some 21 punches, which ended with a left uppercut to the head that sent Bidenko down. The fight was then stopped by the referee. Time was 2:00.

Boystov retained his WBA Intercontinental title and added the WBO Europa title.












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