Bakhram Murtazaliev aims to impress in Atlantic City

The fastest rising star under the joint banner of Krusher Promotions and Main Events plans to get some attention in Atlantic City on the undercard of the Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev vs. Eleider "Storm" Alvarez card at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino’s Etess Arena on Saturday, August 4.

Junior middleweight Bakhram Murtazaliev (12-0, 10 KOs) of Grozny, Russia faces the hard-hitting Fernando Carcamo* (23-8, 18 KOs) of Ciudad, Mexico in ten rounds. It is Murtazaliev’s second defense of the IBA Junior Middleweight World Title he won at The Garden in November 2017.

Murtazaliev, 25, has quickly made a name for himself since coming to the United States in 2016. Sanctioning bodies are taking notice. The WBO now ranks Murtazaliev in the Top Ten at #10. The IBF has Murtazaliev among its top contenders as well, ranked #13. Sitting at the top of these divisions respectively are Jaime Munguia (WBO) and Jarrett Hurd (IBF).

Murtazaliev says the rankings are his ticket to getting the kind of fights he craves, both for himself and for the fans. "The first goal for me was to get good rankings. It gives me a chance to get good opponents and have big fights." His main target is the WBO champion, the 21-year-old Munguia of Tijuana, Mexico who has made a splash with two recent victories over Sadam Ali and most recently a tough Liam Smith. "It will be an interesting fight for me, but not for him!" declared the confident Murtazaliev. "I guarantee it, 101 percent."

Murtazaliev seeks first to extend his seven-fight knockout streak and improve his already impressive 83% knockout ratio (10 KOs in 12 wins) against Carcamo. The young Russian says he is "completely ready" for his opponent. "That’s all I’m going to say, I am completely ready.

"I’ve watched his fights," said Murtazaliev. "He fights Mexican style. I like this, I know he’s going to come forward, and I know everything will work as we’ve planned. I like when boxers really fight. I don’t like when the fighters are running around, like in a circus. I like real fights, I like to fight."

Murtazaliev says the most important thing now is for him to get those fights and continue rising up the rankings. But a win is not enough for him. He wants to impress the fans as well as the sanctioning organizations. "You need to win a nice fight ... This is how you become the best fighter in your division," said Murtazaliev.

Murtazaliev relies heavily on the guidance of trainer Abror Tursunpulatov, who also trains his stablemate and promoter Sergey Kovalev. "I really like and understand my coach ... He know what I need, every step, even after training. Training is only a couple of hours a day. But Abror controls the entire day," which Murtazaliev gratefully accepts.

While getting prepared for his upcoming bout, Murtazaliev hasn’t had as much time to communicate with his fans via social media as he likes. Fortunately his training videos are available for viewing now on his Instagram account atwww.instagram.com/team_bakhram_murtazaliev_/

Bahkram promises a special message to fans before the fight. "To my fans in Russia and all over the world, I know you’re missing me. I’ll make sure you see a lot up to the fight. I’m really happy I have these kind of fans. I’ll show what kind of boxer I am, and I won’t disappoint you for sure. Please follow me."

It would be wise for Jaime Munguia and Jarrett Hurd to follow him, too.

*CORRECTION: In an earlier release, Carcamo was incorrectly named as the opponent of Madiyar Ashkeyev. Ashkeyev’s correct opponent is Eduardo Flores of Ecuador (24-29-4, 14 KOs).

About Kovalev-Alvarez: In the first boxing event at the newly opened Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ, Sergey "Krusher" Kovalev will defend his WBO Light Heavyweight World Title against undefeated contender Eleider "Storm" Alvarez on Saturday, August 4, 2018. In the co-main event, WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol will defend his title against Isaac "Golden Boy’ Chilemba. Tickets range between $50 and $200 and are on sale now through HardRockHotelAtlanticCity.com and Ticketmaster.com. The event is promoted by Main Events and Krusher Promotions in association with Groupe Yvon Michel and World of Boxing and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.