China Dragons Conjure Up Superb 4-1 Home Win Over Group A Leaders Ukraine Otamans In Sanya

Group A leaders Ukraine Otamans travelled to China high on confidence after a thrilling win over Group A rivals Cuba Domadores a fortnight ago, but the China Dragons carved out one of the performances of the season so far to win 4-1 on Saturday night to the delight of the home crowd. The hosts leap-frogged Turkiye Conquerors to go third in the group after the European side lost 5-0 in Havana, a result that sent the Cubans top.

In the first bout of the day, China Dragons’ He Junjun was in determined mood against Nazar Kurotchyn, his well-timed jabs repeatedly finding their target early on. The Dragons’ star grew stronger as the bout wore on and the crowd erupted as Kurotchyn was floored in the fifth round and counted out of the contest.

At 1-0 up, the WSB Athlete of Week 1, Xu Boxiang, looked composed in front of his home fans against Otamans’ Oleh Dovhun. An even contest exploded into life in the fifth and the Dragons’ man powered through to take the round 10:8 on all three scorecards and give the hosts a commanding 2-0 lead.

China Dragons’ light welterweight Meng Caicheng then delivered a superb performance against Ukraine Otamans’ 20-year-old Denys Pesotskyy to earn his first WSB win and give his side an unassailable 3-0 lead. Working from distance in the tight early rounds, Meng then found his rhythm closer in during the fourth, and despite a concerted fight back from Pesotskyy in the fifth, the Dragons’ hero had already done enough to earn the judges’ decision and a precious win for the team.

Dragons’ inexperienced Hanati Ayiben then had a tough challenge in the form of Otamans’ 2015 European Games competitor Valerii Kharlamov, but the southpaw’s stamina saw him through to record a memorable victory. At 4-0 down, the visitors finally got on the scoreboard in the final bout of the night as Ukrainian heavyweight Dmytro Lisovyi turned up the heat against Dragons’ debutant Zhang Zhe, but the victory was already assured and the China Dragons had caused the upset of the weekend on a night to remember for their home fans.

Can The Lionhearts Tame The Dragons To Begin WSB Season V?

After seven long months, the World Series of Boxing (WSB) returns on Thursday, 15th January, and the first match of Season V is a mouthwatering battle between two Franchises returning to the competition.

London’s York Hall is one of the most iconic boxing venues in the world, and its humble location in East London is the home-base for British Lionhearts who compete in Season V after missing last season.

Their opponents are China Dragons, who are back aiming to replicate the success of the Beijing Dragons Franchise which competed in the first two WSB seasons.

Boxing fans in Britain can view the event live at 8.00pm GMT on the BT Sport 2 television channel, while the rest of the world can watch free, live and on demand at AIBABoxingTV.com.

Light Welterweight (64kg) Askhat UALIKHANOV Astana Arlans Kazakhstan (R) vs Yasnier TOLEDO Cuba Domadores (L). Credit AIBA World Series Of Boxing

Kicking off the action at Light flyweight (49 kg) is an intriguing contest between Commonwealth Games bronze medalist and British Lionhearts representative Ashley Williams and 2014 China Open Tournament silver medalist He Junjun.

The Light flyweights are the quickest boxers in WSB, and this opening clash will be exciting from beginning to end.

Eight medalists from the 2014 Commonwealth Games are in the British squad, including Bantamweight (56 kg) Qais Ashfaq who won a silver medal in the competition, and he squares off against China’s Diao Jianhao in match two.

In the third fight of the evening, Sam Maxwell is in action, and the Light welterweight (64 kg) has valuable WSB experience having competed for the Lionhearts in Season III.

His opponent is China’s Sairike Tuoliaowutayi who won the Chinese Youth National Championships in 2011.

Anthony Fowler has emerged as one of the best Middleweights (75 kg) in the world over the past two years, and the Commonwealth Games gold medalist and the AIBA World Championships bronze medalist won his lone WSB match in Season III by stoppage.

China’s Zhou Di will be in the opposite corner, and Di made the quarter-finals of the 2014 Asian Games.

The regulations of WSB state that all teams must select at least one overseas boxer for every match, so therefore the Heavyweight (91 kg) match which closes the evening is a match between Romania’s Ionut-Mirel Jitaru representing the Lionhearts, and Croatia’s Mediterranean Games silver medallist Josip Bepo Filipi who is an honorary Dragon for China.

Heavyweight boxing in WSB has to be seen to be believed, as the heavy-hitters always look for the knockout, and this fight has the capabilities to be the most entertaining scrap on a night of pure quality.