Brilliant Bin Lyu Successfully Defends His APB Light Flyweight Championship Against Birzhan Zhakypov

The APB World Championship Matches opened in style on Friday night at the Guizhou Arena in Guiyang, China, when Light Flyweight (49 kg) Champion Bin Lyu (CHI) successfully defended his title against Birzhan Zhakypov (KAZ).

Lyu had previously defeated Zhakypov in APB, and looked full of confidence as he made an entertaining entrance to the ring.

Zhakypov, the 2013 AIBA World Champion, had won five matches in a row prior to this bout, but struggled in the opening round as Lyu opened up on the front-foot.

Round two followed a similar pattern to the first, where only the exemplary head movement and defence from Zhakypov enabled him to avoid damage from Lyu’s speedy shots.

Growing in confidence, Lyu began to fight with more aggression in round three, but the clever Zhakypov won his first round of the bout after he exploited the emerging gaps and sat down on his punches.

Lyu soon returned to the style which had proved so effective in the early stages, and proceeded to dominate the middle stages of the bout.

Although Zhakypov was enjoying success in the first 90 seconds of each round, he struggled to maintain his momentum in the second half, which was where his Chinese rival excelled.

APB World Championship Light Flyweight (49 kg) Champion Bin Lyu

By the time the eighth round had finished, both fighters were about to fight in unchartered waters, and though Lyu was vastly ahead on points, he was beginning to get caught by Zhakypov’s fierce bodyshots.

The 31-year-old Kazakh is a tenacious campaigner, and soaked up his fatigue by winning the ninth and tenth rounds to give himself a fighting chance of victory as the spectacular bout neared its conclusion.

Buoyed by the huge support he was experiencing inside the packed venue, Lyu stemmed the tide by controlling the eleventh round, before confirming his deserved triumph with an exceptional final three minutes of the match.

Clad in the flag of his beloved China, Lyu was awarded the unanimous decision victory on all three scorecards, much to the delight of the fans in Guiyang.

Three further matches featured on the undercard, beginning with a TKO triumph for Anton Pinchuk (KAZ) over Dragos Ghionea (ROU).

Elsewhere, Thulasi Tharumalingam (QAT) defeated Tianlong Ding (CHI) by split decision, while Yong Chang (CHI) outpointed Ilyas Suleimenov (KAZ).

Lyu And Zhakypov Battle For The Light Flyweight title In Guiyang, China

LIGHT FLY 49 KG – FRIDAY, 11 SEPTEMBER (19:10 GMT +8)
Location: Guiyang – Venue: Guizhou Arena

APB World Championship Matches begins on Friday night when Lyu and Zhakypov battle for the Light Flyweight title

The first of the eagerly awaited APB World Championship Matches will take place on Friday night at the Guizhou Arena in Guiyang, China, as Light Flyweight (49 kg) Champion Bin Lyu (CHI) defends his title for the very first time against Birzhan Zhakypov (KAZ).

Boxing fans around the world can view this historic event from 19:10 (GMT +8) on https://www.youtube.com/user/AIBAproboxingTV, and will also be broadcasted by Guizhou TV, Shenzhen TV Sports Channel and LeTV.

Lyu became the Inaugural Light Flyweight Champion last February when he defeated compatriot Zhonglin Wu over eight rounds, while Zhakypov is currently on a five fight winning streak in APB.

Sublime Cycle I victories over Patrick Lourenco (BRA) and Carlos Quipo (ECU) have firmly established Zhakypov as the number one contender, and he has no issues about fighting in China, as both of those triumphs emanated from Guiyang.

Zhakypov’s lone loss in this competition came against Lyu in the very first week of action, so the 31-year-old AIBA World Champion is desperate to make amends for that defeat and claim the title.

Lyu will enjoy home advantage however and believes that the support he shall experience in the arena will help tremendously.

“Because I will defend my title at home in front of boxing fans from my country, I have a stronger motivation to win the match,” he remarked in an interview with AIBAProBoxing.com.

The first meeting between the two fighters produced six rounds of scintillating action, where Lyu convincingly outpointed the decorated Zhakypov, who is a decade older than the Chinese Champion.

“From the first fight with Zhakypov, I learnt that I need to have strong self-confidence to be successful. His strengths are that he has rich competition experience, good understanding, good timing, and he controls the distance,” said Lyu.

Ever since that initial defeat last October, Zhakypov has looked in ominous form, with his impressive body shots proving effective against both of his Cycle I opponents.

Lyu And Zhakypov Battle For The Light Flyweight title In Guiyang, China

Zhakypov’s watertight defence enable constant control of the ring, but questions remain on how he will be able to combat the exciting and aggressive style that Lyu possesses.

Accuracy and strength are two of Lyu’s biggest weapons, and his unerring discipline allows him to maintain his tactics through a bout no matter what his opponent is doing.

Unlike their first match, this key title rematch will take place over 12 rounds, a distance neither man has ever fought over competitively before.

Zhakypov may have a slight advantage having twice fought over eight rounds this year, while Lyu has not competed in APB since his triumph over Wu seven months, as he has been waiting for a title challenger to emerge.

Both men have been training hard for the match, and as neither boxer has experienced stamina issues before, the stage is firmly set for an incredible match.

Three further matches will take place on the undercard, including Anton Pinchuk (KAZ) vs Dragos Ghionea (ROU), Tianlong Ding (CHI) vs Thulasi Tharumalingam (QAT) and Yong Chang (CHI) vs Ilyas Suleimenov (KAZ).