Unbeaten IBF light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev (13-0, 13 KOs) held onto his title after a scare, with a fourth round KO over previously unbeaten yet lightly regarded challenger Callum Johnson (17-1, 12 KOs) last night at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago. Beterbiev caught Johnson between the ropes at the end of the first, scoring a strange looking knockdown. In haste to finish the job at the beginning of the second, Artur walked onto a huge left hook from the challenger which handed the champion his first trip to the canvas. Johnson fought aggressively throughout the remainder of the second through the third, again drawing confidence from his early success.. Bloodied and tired, the Brit gamely stood his ground into round 4, until a short right hand to the temple dropped Johnson to save Beterbiev’s unblemished knockout streak..
The champion paid a great tribute to his brave challenger after the bout, summing up the fight as “I hit him, he hit me, then I hit him again.. he was a great fighter..” explaining his first trip to the canvas as “That’s boxing, another thing experienced, but I get the win.. “
Disappointment for Callum Johnson, and even though he was nothing to lose, he came mighty close to scoring upset of the year in that second round, showing that there is a whole lot more to come in this young mans career..
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