Heyman Out of Ahmedov Fight

Max Heyman was scheduled to face the undefeated light heavyweight Gayrat Ahmedov this Friday. But, according to New Mexico Boxing, Heyman injured his left hand in training and has had to pull out of the fight.

Ahmedov-Heyman Preview

Max Heyman takes on WBA light heavyweight International champion Gayrat Ahmedov this Friday at the South Point Hotel, Casino, and Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada. If Heyman wins, it would jumpstart his career. A win for Ahmedov is a necessary step on his way up.

Though both men are 32 years old, Heyman (24-11-4, 14 KOs) is the more experienced of the two. The New Mexico-native turned pro in 1997, while Ahmedov did so in 2004. Heyman, who works as a fireman, has faced world class opposition, including Adrian Diaconu in 2006 and Chris Henry the following year. Both Diaconu and Henry have been top ten light heavyweights and both were undefeated when they stopped Heyman.

The question is whether or not Ahmedov (16-0-1, 11 KOs), who is from Andijan, Uzbekistan and fights out of Las Vegas, has what it takes to be world class. Ahmedov has one-punch knockout power. Four of his last seven opponents were KOed in the first round and another in that stretch was stopped in the second. Ahmedov, who is calm and confident in the ring, has wicked power to the body.

To win in impressive fashion, Ahmedov will have to deal with Heyman's awkward style. After taking two and half years off following the Henry fight, Heyman has fought three times at cruiserweight against limited opposition. The Henry bout was the last time Heyman has fought at light heavyweight.

For Heyman to win, he will have to be in excellent shape. His goal should be to to take Ahmedov into the later rounds. Ahmedov has never been passed eight rounds and has only fought passed the sixth round once. Heyman will have to keep his hands busy in order to put rounds in the bank and hope to keep Ahmedov off balance so that Gayrat can't connect with a knockout blow.

The bout is scheduled for ten rounds.

Melson, Seldin Win

Last night at the Oceana in Brooklyn, New York, two Jewish prospects improved on their undefeated records. Boyd Melson earned a second round TKO against Zach Schumach, while Cletus Seldin won a four round unanimous decision over Hector Rivera.

Melson (5-0, 3 KOs) has stopped his last three opponents. Schumach (2-3-1), a genuine junior middleweight with extensive experience in combat sports, was a slight step up for the undefeated New Yorker. It was also the first time Melson had participated in a scheduled six round bout. Melson weighed 153.25 pounds, while Schumach came in at the junior middleweight limit of 154. The bout was stopped by referee Steve Willis at 2:23 of the second round.

Seldin (2-0, one KO) won for the second time in two weeks, coming off of a KO win on July 9 in his debut. All three judges scored last night's fight in favor of Seldin, 40-35. Rivera (2-9, one KO) had been knocked out in first round of his previous bout against Melson on May 19. Before that contest, Rivera had never weighed more than 140 pounds for a fight. He came in at 151.5 lbs. for this one, while Seldin was 148. Seldin is scheduled to fight on September 10 at the Aviator Sports Complex in Brooklyn, New York.

Frenkel to Face Licina

Alexander Frenkel is now planning on facing the experienced Enad Licina. The date and place for this cruiserweight contest is still to be determined. Frenkel was originally scheduled to face Silvio Branco later this month, but Branco backed out.

Frenkel (23-0, 18 KOs), who is the European champ at cruiserweight, hasn't fought since last September's stoppage of Enzo Maccarinelli. Licina (20-3, 11 KOs), a Serbian-born resident of Germany, has fought twice in 2011, including a loss to IBF world champion Steve Cunningham on February 12.

Our source for all things Alexander Frenkel, Per Ake Persson of BoxingScene.com, postulates that the winner is likely to get a world title shot. Both men are promoted by Sauerland, as is most of the top of the cruiserweight division.