The Astana Arlans took a 4-1 lead in to the second leg of their WSB semi-final encounter versus the British Lionhearts at the prestigious York Hall in London.
First up at flyweight (52kg) debutant Niall Farrell took on Olzhas Sattibayev. Not much of note was landed by either man in a tentative opening round but Farrell didn’t seem overawed. At times Farrell stayed in the pocket a bit too long allowing Sattibayev to score with combinations but the Lionhearts youngster finished round 2 strongly and was still in the fight. Farrell had great success with the right hand in round 3 before Sattibayev edged a close 4th with the fight still in the balance. There was lots of endeavour from both boxers in the last round but it was Sattibayev who gained the split decision in a highly enjoyable bout where Farrell made a real impression and announced himself as a talent for the future. In a now must win scenario at lightweight (60kg) Kiwi Chad Milnes was up against experienced operator Zakir Safiullin. Milnes made a confident start but Safiullin’s punches began to have an effect and a beautiful right hand put Milnes down near the end of the opening round. The Kazak upped the tempo and utterly dominated his opponent in round 2 and Milnes was wisely pulled out before the third, giving Safiullin the victory and securing the Arlans spot in the WSB final. There were still 3 bouts left and India’s Manoj Kumar faced Aslambek Shymbergenov at welterweight (69kg). Shymbergenov won the opening stanza scoring well with the jab and the right hand. Despite a small cut and the occasional success from Kumar Shymbergenov continued to control the action over the next 2 rounds. Kumar put forth a real big effort and pulled Shymbergenov in to a toe-to-toe scrap in round 4 before Shymbergenov responded in the 5th to claim the unanimous decision. The penultimate contest was at light heavyweight (81kg) with Tom Whittaker-Hart squaring off against Arman Rysbek. Rysbek started quickly before Whittaker-Hart managed to establish the distance in the second half of the first round. Whittaker-Hart moved well to begin round 2 but Rysbek landed some solid shots in the later stages. The Kazak built on his success and bullied the Lionheart in round 3. Whittaker-Hart produced more movement and good footwork to take the 4th and although Rysbek never stopped applying pressure it wasn’t enough with Whittaker-Hart prevailing via split decision to give the Lionhearts their first win of the evening. The final fight of the night saw Super heavyweights (+91kg) Patrick Mailata and Nursultan Amanzholov take to the ring. Mailata’s quick hands saw him win the opening round and the man from New Zealand easily out landed his Kazak opponent in round 2. Amanzholov had no answers and a big left hand from Mailata put him down and the corner brought a halt to the contest in round 3. The Arlans won 7-3 after both legs and will face either the Cuba Domadores or the Colombia Heroicos in the final.
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