Lee Rogers (7-0, 2 KOs) outboxed Erick Omar Lopez (20-35-3, 12 KOs) over six rounds in the super bantamweight division, using a sharp jab, lateral movement and clean counters. Lopez pressed forward, absorbed shots and stayed busy, but Rogers’ timing and footwork dictated each exchange. Judges returned a 60-54 shutout as Rogers moved to 8-0.
Bradley Casey defeated Lee Roberts on points after four rounds, with a steady jab, inside work and close control. Casey moves to 4-0, 1 KO. Roberts drops to 1-4. Scorecards consistently favored Casey in the cruiserweight opening card.
Josh Kelly says Bakhram Murtazaliev doesn’t rattle him. He sounds relaxed, and staying loose is good for the walk to the ring, but it won’t matter much once the fight is over.
Kelly talks about intimidation as a mental thing, but Murtazaliev relies on pressure, distance control and forcing opponents to stay close. He takes away space and makes opponents work at close range, where his power shows. Kelly has been there before.
In 2021, David Avanesyan stayed with him. Kelly didn’t fold or panic and tried to work through the pressure, but the fight never opened up. The shots kept landing, the damage piled up and Kelly took more than he could sustain. By the fifth round, it showed. A lap later he saw enough corner.
Murtazaliev is that same problem, just with more weight behind his punches. He applies pressure and deals damage as soon as he gets close. His interruption of Tim Tszyu last October made that clear. Tszyu hadn’t been handled like this before, and the fight ended quickly once Murtazaliev closed distance.
Kelly’s seven-fight winning streak since that loss has been a solid rebuild. It restored trust, but it did not answer the same question. None of those opponents were punchers who could force him to fight at close range for long periods of time.
Being calm helps when a fighter paces and controls space. It helps less than staying close becomes the struggle. Against Murtazaliev, those moments tend to favor one side.
Kelly doesn’t lose because he stops believing. He runs into trouble when he gets stuck in territory he can’t manage, and Murtazaliev is built to keep opponents there.
Fight details
Josh Kelly vs Bakhram Murtazaliev
IBF junior middleweight title fight
Saturday, January 31
Newcastle, England
Broadcast: DAZN
Main card starts 11:00 a.m. ET
Murtazaliev vs Kelly running order
- Leo Atang vs Amine Boucetta, heavyweights, 4 rounds
- Elif Nur Turhan vs Taylah Gentzen, lightweights, 10 rounds, for Nur Turhan’s IBF title
- Josh Padley vs Jaouad Belmehdi, super featherweights, 12 rounds, for vacant European title
- Bakhram Murtazaliev vs Josh Kelly, super welterweights, 12 rounds, for Murtazaliev’s IBF title
