Oleksandr Gvozdyk: “I must fight intelligently against Beterbiev”

When the WBC light heavyweight champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk won his world crown, he had to fight smartly and cautiously,  in order to defeat former champion Adonis Stevenson, taking into account the power of the southpaw champion.

Gvozdyk says he will fight similarly on Friday when he faces Russian Artur Beterbiev in their unifying match, since the Russian has knocked out all his 14 opponents and is considered one of the most dangerous punchers of today.

Oleksndr of Ukraine (17-0, 14 KOs) has won 82 percent of his professional fights by KO, so exchanging blows with Beterbiev will be a cagey tactic.

“First of all, I must have a really focused strategy to fight intelligently. My opponent is a hard puncher but I have all the tools to be able to counteract. I must not remain as a target and also not fall into his game of trading. My  team and I have designed a great fight plan for that night, which will bring me victory, ” Gvozdyk commented.

Teddy Atlas, coach of Gvozdyk, commented: “We have done a great job for two months. Gvozdyk is a very intelligent and disciplined fighter, so the fight plan we have is going to work.”

Beterbiev, 34, and Gvozdyk, 32, will face off in a fight that will be broadcast on ESPN at the Liacouras Center at Temple University, Philadelphia. The broadcast, which will begin at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT will also include a 10-round welterweight fight between Luis Collazo of Brooklyn (39-7, 20 KOs) and Kudratillo Abdukakhorov of Uzbekistan (16-0, 9 KOs).