Russian heavyweight boxer Arslanbek Makhmudov showed off his serious eye injury after losing to Guido Vianello on Saturday at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City.
The ringside doctor had to stop the bout on Makhmudov’s behalf because the swelling around his left eye became worryingly worse in the eighth round.
Days after the TKO loss, the Mozdok native took to Instagram to show off the damage he sustained, detailing how he had taken “multiple blows to the head” in the lead-up to his defeat.
“After several blows to my head, my left eye was completely closed, so I could no longer see the attacks from the right. The doctor stopped the match in the eighth round,” he wrote.
“Alhamdulillah, in whatever position,” Makhmudov added.[I] “I did everything I could.”
Arslanbek Makhmudov showed off his serious eye injury after losing to Guido Vianello on Saturday
The photo shows Makhmudov’s eyes completely closed, while a mosaic of black and blue bulged from his face due to swelling.
Vianello landed a steady right hand throughout the match, causing the Russian knockout artist’s eyes to close completely.
At the end of the seventh round, Makhmudov looked visibly hurt and shaky. At 2:58 of the eighth round, the doctor stopped the fight to prevent further damage.
The loss would be the second of his career. His first came in December in a TKO loss to Agit Kabayel, which he avenged in May with a second-round knockout of Miljan Rovcanin.
Vianello targeted the Russian’s left eye, forcing the doctor to stop the fight in the eighth round
The referee allowed Makhmudov to continue fighting despite being hit at the end of the seventh round
Makhmudov now has a record of 19-2 with 18 finishes.
On May 17, 2019, he won the WBC Continental Americas heavyweight title in his eighth professional fight. Five months later, Makhmudov won the WBC-NABF heavyweight title and fought nine consecutive title fights, winning all of them before losing to Kabayel in Saudi Arabia.
