Hockey India League review: The hits, the misses and how it can get better
February 5, 2025
Daniil Medvedev parts ways with coach Gilles Simon
February 5, 2025
Janibek Alimkhanuly will defend his IBF and WBO middleweight titles vs. Anauel Ngamissengue on April 5 in Astana, Kazakhstan, sources told ESPN on Wednesday.
The fight will be a homecoming for Alimkhanuly. He competed in Kazakhstan in his first two bouts, but hasn’t since. Alimkhanuly (16-0, 11 KOs) is ESPN’s No. 1 middleweight, while Ngamissengue is No. 7. The 31-year-old Alimkhanuly will be making his fifth title defense.
Alimkhanuly is coming off a ninth-round TKO of Andrei Mikhailovich in October. Top Rank promotes Alimkhanuly in the U.S., and the fight will be streamed on ESPN+, while Kazakhstan-based Nomad Promotions will stage the event.
Gennadiy Golovkin, the most famous boxer from Kazakhstan, fought in his homeland only once and that took place before he was a full-fledged world champion.
France’s Ngamissengue, who was born in Congo, will challenge for his first world title and compete in his first scheduled 12-rounder.
Although he is ranked in ESPN’s top 10 at 160 pounds, Ngamissengue is untested at the top level. The 29-year-old’s most recent outing was a third-round TKO of Sandro Jajanidze (12-32-2) in June. Six of his 14 fights came against opponents with losing records.
Now, Ngamissengue will step up to the top level as Alimkhanuly continues to call for a unification bout with Erislandy Lara or the Feb. 22 winner of Carlos Adames vs. Hamzah Sheeraz.