On Wednesday, August 10, at the historic Garden Theater in Midtown Detroit, two of the hardest punchers in all of boxing will return to the ring against dangerously powerful opponents, as Salita Promotions will continue leading the resurgence of Motown boxing with a special mid-summer, mid-week edition of their popular Detroit Brawl series, featuring IBF #4, WBA #13, WBO #11 and RING #7 super lightweight slugger Shohjahon Ergashev and WBO #12-, IBF #11-, WBC #7-ranked light heavyweight powerhouse Ali Izmailov in separate main events.
Willing to take on any opponent, anywhere, Ergashev (21-0, 19 KOs) of Detroit via Rakhmon, Uzbekistan, will face fellow knockout artist Angel “El Furioso” Martinez Hernandez (14-1-2, 14 KOs) from Baja California, Mexico, in a 10-round shootout between sleep-inducing super lightweight punchers. Izmailov (8-0, 6 KOs), meanwhile, will put his perfect record on the line in a high-stakes 10-round battle with also undefeated puncher Eric Murguia (14-0, 12 KOs) of Mission Hills, California.
30-year-old southpaw, Ergashev now lives and trains in Detroit at the Kronk Gym under world-famous trainer SugarHill Steward. A former amateur star, as a professional, Ergashev has produced a number of impressive performances on national television, including a fourth-round knockout of veteran Abdiel Ramirez, a third-round knockout against then top-10-rated Sonny Fredrickson, a 10-round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Mykal Fox, a highlight-reel first-round demolition of normally durable and capable veteran Adrian Estrella in January 2020, and his most recent appearance, an eight-round unanimous decision over South American Champion Luis Alberto Veron in May of this year.
“I’m very happy to be back in the ring and back at training camp with Sugarhill, learning and getting better every day,” said the eager Ergashev. “I am focused on every opponent, with an eye on my world title. Regis Prograis, Josh Taylor, Jack Catterall… Who wants to go first? Line them up, one-by-one. I look forward to making a statement on August 10.”
Originally from Malgobek, 29-year-old Izmailov works and resides with all-star trainer John David Jackson in Florida. A former amateur standout, having won multiple international tournaments, Izmailov is a thudding and aggressive counter puncher with anvil fists that batter opponents into submission. Showing continued improvement under Jackson’s tutelage, Izmailov was last seen demolishing formerly undefeated Chilean Abraham Tebes in three brutal rounds last April.
“I’m excited to fight a fellow undefeated boxer, said the humble Izmailov. “He is skilled, a solid boxer and a good puncher, but that’s good because I want to fight the best and show my dominance. An impressive victory will get me one step closer to a world title. I want to show the public why I will soon win the light heavyweight crown.”
Event promoter Dmitriy Salita says both main event fighters he guides, Ergashev and Izmailov, are on the cusp of title fights and looking to gauge their perfectly honed abilities against dangerous, high-level foes.
“On September 10, boxing fans will see two top-rated contenders in Ergashev and Izmailov,” said Salita, “and both have power-punching contenders in front of them, which will be good indicators of where they are. I believe both are a fight or two away from the world title. Our Detroit Brawl series just keeps getting better. Detroit is well on the way to being one of the hubs of professional boxing in the United States.”