Israil Madrimov is putting himself through the final 50 days of preparation before taking on WBC interim junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. on February 22 challenge the Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 card in Riyadh. The event can be seen live on DAZN PPV.
Former WBA 154-lb champion Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs) will use what he learned from his recent 12-round unanimous decision loss to Terence Crawford to challenge popular Vergil Jr. (22-0, 21 KOs) to beat. ).
Ortiz Jr’s relentless pressure
Israil lost the Crawford fight because he failed to stand in the trenches and throw leather in the last three rounds, from the 10th to the 12th. Terence’s pressure made him look tired and scared, which was odd considering he had the advantage of strength, size, and amateur experience.
Ortiz Jr. will likely try to overwhelm Madrimov with pressure like Crawford did in the championship rounds, but he will do so from round one. If Madrimov can’t fight like that, he will lose a wide decision, or he could be knocked out. It comes down to stamina and courage. If he falls short in one of these categories on Feb. 22 in Riyadh, Vergil Jr. beat him and make him look bad.
Madrimov, 29, has the superior boxing skills to earn a decision against Ortiz Jr. (26) to win, but it may not be enough for him to prevail.
Beterbiev vs Bivol 2 Card
Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker
Carlos Adames vs. Hamzah Sheeraz
Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs. Israel Madrimov
Shakur Stevenson vs. Floyd Schofield
Zhilei Zhang vs. Agit Kabayel
Joshua Buathi vs. Callum Smith
DAZN PPV Undercard Debate
Interestingly, the Ortiz vs. Madrimov fight was placed under the Adames-Sheeraz fight. Sheeraz is not highly regarded in the US, mainly after choosing not to challenge Janibek Alimkhanuly for his IBF and WBO middleweight titles. Vergil-Madrimov should probably be the co-feature on the Beterbiev vs. Bivol 2 card to be because it is a better fight than those above them in this card.
Adames is also not well known in the US and is seen as the weakest link among the champions at 160. As such, this Adames-Sheeraz should be among the Ortiz Jr. vs. Madrimov fight to be positioned, towards the bottom of the card. The real talents should be near the top rather than hype tracks and paper champions.
In Vergil Jr’s highly controversial 12-round majority decision win over Serhii Bohachuk on August 10th, we saw that Madrimov may need to make the rounds one-sided or a knockout.
Fighting on the outside gives Madrimov the edge if he can do it for the entire fight, but again, it’s doubtful he can defeat the A-side fighter Vergil by boxing him.
The infighting and activity level favor Vergil. Popularity-wise, Ortiz has a big edge as he has a large fan base on the West Coast of the US, especially in the Los Angeles area.
Vergil Jr. has better stamina than Madrimov, who was knocked out in the later rounds in his loss to Crawford.
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐬𝐫𝐦 @IsrailMadrimov is ready for next month 💫#BeterbievBivol2 | #Riyadh Season | Feb 22, live on DAZN | @Turki_alalshikh pic.twitter.com/uCbikr0LY7
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) January 3, 2025
