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Nick Parkinson
Agit Kabayel edged closer to a world title fight against Oleksandr Usyk after he ruthlessly dispatched Damian Knyba in three rounds on Saturday.
Kabayel (27-0, 19 KOs), 33, left Knyba on shaky legs after he repeatedly landed right hands in the third round to prompt the stoppage in at the Rudolf Weber-Arena in Oberhausen in his native Germany. It marked a successful first defence of the WBC interim heavyweight title, which is secondary to the WBC world title held by Usyk.
Kabayel’s sixth successive stoppage may have been a bit premature but the end seemed inevitable for Knyba once Kabayel started landing accurate right hands that were leaving the Polish fighter on wobbly legs.
Kabayel has claimed some big scalps recently — Zhilei Zhang, Frank Sanchez and Arslanbek Makhmudov — and although Knyba might not have a big reputation, the way Kabayel efficiently dealt with him was impressive.
“I hoped to make a statement that German boxing is alive and well,” said Kabayel, who is the biggest boxing star to be based in Germany since the Ukrainian brother Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko defended their world heavyweight titles for over a decade there.
When Kabayel asked the crowd who he should face next, the 12,000 crowd replied as one: “Usyk.”
“I beat three monsters in the Riyadh Season, now give me the world title fight,” Kabayel said.
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WBC, WBA and IBF world champion Usyk is being linked to a fight against former WBC champion Deontay Wilder next, so Kabayel may have to wait to face the Ukrainian in the second half of this year.
But this win makes a fight against the Ukrainian more likely in 2026, presuming Usyk does not opt to face former champion Tyson Fury instead.
Kabayel, who won the WBC interim title when he knocked out Zhang in February last year, resisted a fast start from little-known Knyba (17-1, 11 KOs) to then open up and hurt the Pole, who fell apart in the third round.
Knyba, 29, from Poland but based in New Jersey, had not fought beyond eight rounds or had a scheduled 12-round bout before he climbed through the ropes to face former European champion Kabayel.
But six-foot-seven Knyba, who is four inches taller than Kabayel, did not look out of place in his biggest test yet when he confidently attacked Kabayel in Round 1 as he landed a series of right hands and uppercuts.
Knyba left his mark on Kabayel in the first round, with the German suffering some damage around an eye.
But after Knyba’s fast start, Kabayel settled into his rhythm in Round 2 and then began unloading heavy right hands through Round 3. In the final minute of Round 3, Knyba’s legs turned to jelly following a right hand to his temple and after more right hands landed, the referee jumped in to stop the fight.