Despite the low number of fights, Janibek Alimkhanuly has already unified the WBO and IBF middleweight titles and is set to face an exciting young prospect. Here is our Alimkhanuly vs Mikhailovich prediction.
Alimkhanuly vs Mikhailovich Prediction: Janibek Wanted a Better Opponent
Janibek Alimkhanuly Preview
The 31-year-old Kazakh has spent his entire life in the ring. He had his very first fight at the age of six. Unlike most active boxers, Janibek spent most of his career as an amateur and only debuted among the pros in 2016.
In over 15 years as an amateur, he amassed an unbelievable 300-8 record. In 2013, he won the Middleweight World Championship representing Kazakhstan and then the Asian Championship as well. He turned pro after the 2016 Olympics. Since 2018, he has been promoted by Top Rank Boxing.
Fifteen fights later and Alimkhanuly is a unified world champion with a perfect record and 10 knockouts. He won the WBC Continental Americas and WBO Global middleweight titles in his 6th fight and quickly found himself among the elites.
His big break was in 2021 after he beat former world champions Rob Brant and Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam. He won the WBO Interim middleweight title in 2022 and was later promoted to regular champion. His last fight was against Vincenzo Gualtieri in October 2023, in which he unified the WBO and IBF titles.
Janibek expressed his desire to face Erislandy Lara for his WBA title multiple times but since he did not respond to the challenge, the Kazakh has to defend against a lesser-known fighter. Therefore, before we give our Alimkhanuly vs Mikhailovich prediction, let’s take a closer look at the Russian.
Andrei Mikhailovich Preview
Andrei has an interesting past. He was born in Saint Petersburg but was given to an orphanage with his twin brother. Both were adopted by a couple from New Zealand and were raised there. This is why ‘Renegade’ spent most of his early days fighting in NZ.
Unlike his opponent, he became a pro when he was 17 and he already has more fights behind him. His record is 20-0 and he has 12 knockouts. Since 2018, he won multiple local titles in NZ and regional belts like the IBF Pan-Pacific and WBO Global middleweight titles.
Interestingly, he last fought all the way back in April 2023. He was scheduled to face Denis Radovan for the position of a mandatory challenger but the negotiations failed. In the end, he did not fight at all but still got a title shot. Can he beat the champion?
Our Janibek Alimkhanuly vs Andrei Mikhailovich Prediction: Possible Knockout in the Early Rounds
Janibek has a better chance of winning by decision than his opponent. Alimkhanuly is more technical than his opponent and can consistently box at the same pace until the final bell. The Kazakh is used to 12-round bouts, and this will be the first such fight for Mikhailovich.
Andrei knows Alimkhanuly’s strengths and has already defeated Southpaws many times in his career. But he has a serious problem – he is clearly inferior to Janibek in almost every component.
Mikhailovich will bet on explosive combos and try to win early. But Janibek will take advantage of any mistake by Andrei and we think that his chances for an early KO are much higher overall. He loves a quick scrap and this makes the under 6.5 market very attractive.
But just to be safe, we would rather go for a knockout with our Alimkhanuly vs Mikhailovich prediction. The Russian may be talented but he has years before he reaches his peak. He is not ready for the overwhelming power and speed of the champion.
