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SportsTranscript
00:00All right, guys, so everything up here is good.
00:07Everything up here is good.
00:08Got that?
00:09Okay.
00:10Protect yourself at all times and obey the command at all times.
00:11Touch them up.
00:12Good luck, guys.
00:13Come on.
00:14Time now for our tale of the tape for our co-feature, Imam Hatayev and Ezekiel Moderna.
00:23See Moderna will enjoy a height advantage but not a reach advantage in this one.
00:28Imam Hatayev, about 5'10", but with a longer reach than you would expect for someone of
00:34his frame.
00:35Hatayev is someone that looks like he could be a factor in the 175-pound title picture
00:41sooner rather than later.
00:43Hatayev, who top rank is described as a human wrecking ball, Camila Cephan has said that
00:50they have him on the fast track, and again, Ezekiel Moderna is a guy that you match your
00:57prospect with when he is on a fast track because he is a pretty reliable indicator
01:02of whether or not you are ready to fight somebody.
01:05Moderna having some moments here in the early going, a couple of good body shots, a stiff
01:09right hand snaps the head back of Hatayev.
01:12We realize this is not a bodybuilding contest, but Moderna looks much better, much tighter,
01:17much stronger, much more fit than we have ever seen him look.
01:20That includes how he looked a year and a half ago when he knocked out Carol Itamah over
01:24in London.
01:26Prior to that Itamah fight, Moderna said that he finally started preparing like a professional
01:32athlete.
01:33He views that as kind of a turning point in his own physical fitness, and if anyone is
01:37going to test your physical fitness, it's this man, Imam Hatayev.
01:42Just a rugged, dogged pressure fighter.
01:46He's trained by Anton Khodushin, his long time amateur coach, but also in his corner
01:52and part of his team, Morgan, Johnny Lewis, who had a lot to do with the development of
01:57Kostazou and Jeff Fennec.
01:59And what do you think about when you hear those two names?
02:01Stunningly conditioned breakers of men, and that's what Hatayev fashions himself as inside
02:07the ring.
02:08Also, if you could take 126 pound Jeff Fennec, pump him up to 175 pounds and give him a beard,
02:17he would be Imam Hatayev.
02:23Hatayev forcing Moderna against the ropes.
02:27Coming off an extremely impressive win over Ricard Milotniks on the Lomachenko-Kambosas
02:33undercard.
02:34Hatayev also a part of that Kambosas camp.
02:39Now here we see Moderna trying to do what he does well in the sense that he's not super
02:49fast.
02:50His arms are sort of longer than you look on paper, but he has a well-timed jab and
02:55a well-timed right hand, a well-timed left hook.
02:58And so if you think you're just going to dive in and get the job done, right there he caught
03:04Hatayev on the temple with that long right hand.
03:07It's not super fast, but he has the timing, he has the distance.
03:14We saw Imam's brother Shamil struggle mightily here at the Montreal casino earlier this year.
03:20Imam hoping to not have a repeat of that.
03:25Moderna certainly had his moments here in the opening round, but Hatayev very much on
03:30the front foot for the Volkovic.
03:38Let's take a look at the keys to victory as provided by our French colleague Matt Casavant.
03:45We see for Hatayev applying intelligent pressure, closing the gap intelligently on him, targeting
03:52his body with power shots, keeping his hands up, protecting his chin at all times.
03:57We didn't see him do that throughout the entire round in round one.
04:01For Moderna, maintaining a strong jab, countering Hatayev's jab with a right hand and using
04:08his lateral movement to keep Hatayev guessing.
04:13We've seen some of those elements at play already in the first three rounds of this contest.
04:18Absolutely, something to keep in mind about Imam Hatayev is that despite his, you know,
04:25he's an archetypal stocky strong guy, but you watch him fight, he is very effective
04:31with the left jab, which a lot of muscle-bound short guys are not.
04:37Round two begins.
04:39He's also not necessarily a one-punch knockout artist, but he does hit hard and that damage
04:46builds up over rounds.
04:48This is what Moderna has to be cognizant of.
04:52Hard body shot there from Hatayev of Moderna.
04:54Again, coming over the top with that right hand, the lead hand of Hatayev.
04:58He carries it relatively low, and you see Matt Cazabon giving that opening round to
05:03Ezekiel Moderna, who's a plus 15-50 underdog coming into this fight.
05:08Moderna also is cut over the right eye.
05:11I don't know if that was from a puncture from an accidental head.
05:14That left hook wouldn't help matters.
05:16That one wobbled Moderna.
05:19And we're going to take a look at this cut, which looks alarming enough to the official
05:24to have a look at it immediately.
05:26Yeah, and you see the blood that has come from his eye has also gotten on Imam Hatayev's neck.
05:33You see the pantomime of Moderna saying, headbutt, headbutt.
05:36It looks like...
05:40And the cut is in a concerning spot.
05:42It's right over his eye.
05:43It's going to bleed into his eye if it continues bleeding.
05:46This one will continue, but I think we got affirmation from the official that that did
05:50come from a headbutt.
05:53Nonetheless, as long as this fight continues, it's going to benefit Imam Hatayev,
05:58particularly if he can land left hooks right on top of him.
06:07Ezekiel Moderna still throwing that check hook because he understands that Hatayev
06:11still has to come inside.
06:13And as long as Hatayev has to come inside, he's vulnerable to that check hook.
06:26Hard body shot there from Hatayev.
06:29Now starting to put his shots together.
06:31A little buckle in the knees of Moderna.
06:33Yeah, and that sequence right there, Corey, with vintage Hatayev.
06:36If you could boil his career down into a two and a half second clip,
06:40it's that right there.
06:41Well, that is a hideous gash that Moderna is dealing with right now.
06:55If we get to the end of this round, Morgan, the Moderna corner will certainly
06:59have some decisions to make.
07:01And Moderna himself as well.
07:04Certainly be a disappointing ending if they opted out.
07:07Moderna is still on the offense.
07:09A little bit of steam off of those punches right now, as you might expect
07:12from someone who's just cascading blood at the moment.
07:17We enter the final 20 seconds of round two.
07:27And Moderna is still on the offense.
07:29A little bit of steam off of those punches right now, as you might expect
07:32from someone who's just cascading blood at the moment.
07:36Hatayev looking to target the body once more.
07:41Sweeping left hook misses.
07:42The chop at right hand does not.
07:47Hard body shot again.
07:52Hatayev just maneuvering Moderna around the ring right now.
07:57Cut certainly working in his favor, but the physical dominance of Hatayev
08:02is showing up already in round two.
08:06And again, that's Hatayev at his best, starting with the body,
08:09then working up to the head.
08:12Throwing everything with authority.
08:27Let's see if we can see it, Corey.
08:30Let's see if we can see it, Corey.
08:31There's Hatayev right with the crown of his head,
08:35right across the eyebrow.
08:37And that's going to cause a cut 99 times out of 100.
08:46Unintentional headbutt, but the damage is the same.
08:50That is a bad, bad cut.
08:52That is about the width and the depth of a nickel.
08:55Yes.
08:56Yes, basically.
08:58That is just squirting blood down the face of Ezekiel Moderna.
09:05But Moderna will soldier on, at least for now,
09:09as the doctor will take another look at this cut.
09:27And this one will continue.
09:29There's a brief look of concern on the face of the physician,
09:33but this one will continue on,
09:35and Hatayev immediately lands a left hook right on that cut.
09:39Unofficial scorecard, tabulated by Matt Kacepan,
09:42giving that second round, as you might imagine,
09:45to Imam Hatayev.
09:51And not saying that the turnaround wouldn't have happened,
09:53Morgan, but the turnaround,
09:55as you might imagine,
09:56would not have happened,
09:57if it hadn't been for the headbutt.
09:59And that's just the way it is.
10:01It's just the way it is.
10:02It's just the way it is.
10:03It's just the way it is.
10:04It's just the way it is.
10:05It's just the way it is.
10:06It wouldn't have happened, Morgan,
10:07but the turnaround in this fight coincides
10:10with the appearance of that cut.
10:13Yeah, anything...
10:14When you have a fighter in front of you
10:16with a left hook like Hatayev,
10:18if there was anything that compromises the vision
10:20of the right eye,
10:21it's gonna give him a lot more opportunities
10:22to land a left hook.
10:27Moderna has to try to keep that right hand at home
10:29to protect against that left hook,
10:30but he needs to throw that right hand
10:32to keep Hatayev off balance.
10:37Watch your head!
10:39That was the same right hand that gave Itama fits.
10:42Yes.
10:43In his most recent best win,
10:46and the same shot that laid Itama out as well.
10:49And this is what we're saying about Ezequiel Maverna.
10:52When he's on his game,
10:53his right hand isn't super fast,
10:56but it is very accurate.
10:57He has very good timing with it.
11:00The question is whether Hatayev will let him
11:03and line up that punch and throw it.
11:10Sweeping right hand there from Moderna a moment ago.
11:12One thing that's definitely concerning
11:14is Moderna doesn't seem to have an answer
11:17for these body shots from Hatayev.
11:19He's kind of just allowing them
11:21to hit him in the midsection,
11:22and at some point,
11:24the tax is gonna be due.
11:26But this is how Hatayev fights seem to go.
11:29We have not yet found the person who has
11:31an answer for the body punishment
11:33that Hatayev delivers.
11:38Moderna's answer seems to be
11:39to try to keep Hatayev at the end of that long jab
11:42and try to throw enough right hands
11:43to keep Hatayev honest.
11:46To keep Hatayev from just walking in the front door
11:49and banging into the body.
11:51For this section of this round, it's working.
11:55I just don't know how it's gonna unfold
11:57as a long-term strategy.
12:00Hatayev almost taking a breather
12:01for about 20 seconds there.
12:04Backing off momentarily.
12:06Moderna back on that jab.
12:09Hatayev is certainly hittable,
12:11as we're learning here in this fight.
12:17Remember there, sort of pitching backwards,
12:20throwing that right hand
12:21and finishing the combination with the jab.
12:23Sort of like Miguel Cotto against Floyd Mayweather.
12:29♪♪
12:32-♪♪
13:03-♪♪
13:16-♪♪
13:22An apologies to our audience in Canada, the U.S.,
13:25and likely in Australia watching Imam Hatayev.
13:28They speak French in the corner.
13:29I'm a little bit helpful.
13:30They speak Spanish in the corner.
13:31I'm very helpful.
13:32They speak Russian in the corner.
13:34I am useless,
13:35so I don't know what they were telling Imam Hatayev.
13:37Yeah, I can't help with that.
13:38We do know big left hook there.
13:39Simultaneous left hooks,
13:40but we see who's had more impact.
13:44Hatayev said to expect some tough
13:46and beautiful boxing here tonight.
13:49The boxing's certainly been tough.
13:51It might not be as beautiful as Hatayev
13:53or his corner might have wanted thus far.
13:57There's Hatayev taking a flush right...
14:00Again, that's the right hand that got Itauma out of there.
14:04Hatayev took it well,
14:06but the fact that he's taking so many of them
14:08maybe doesn't rise to the level of concern,
14:11especially given his style of fight.
14:12You know he's going to absorb some contact,
14:14but again, this is part of the reason
14:17why you bring in a guy like Maverino,
14:19because he is a test.
14:20He's not just somebody that you're going to walk through.
14:25Hatayev trying to step in with that left hook.
14:35And even right here,
14:39Maverino forced Hatayev not necessarily to retreat,
14:44but to move backwards.
14:45And up until this point in his career,
14:47Corey, I was not aware that Hatayev even had a backwards grip.
14:50But he did have to take a few steps back to regroup.
14:55Well, we did qualify this fight as a step-up fight,
14:58and indeed, Hatayev is facing challenges he has again.
15:01Oh, big right hand.
15:02And he got rocked by that right hand from Moderna.
15:11Imam Hatayev is in a real fight here tonight
15:14in our co-feature.
15:15Corey, if we are being honest with ourselves,
15:17with our audience,
15:18there has been a shift in the tenor of this fight,
15:20a shift in the mood here in the audience,
15:22because we all sort of expected Maverino to put up a fight,
15:27but for Hatayev to buzzsaw through him.
15:30And here's Hatayev.
15:31You saw it right there.
15:32He paused.
15:33He dropped his hands.
15:34He took a breath.
15:35He's having to think for maybe the first time
15:37in his career as a professional.
15:39Quite a few breaths being taken by Hatayev at the moment.
15:43He has a puzzle now that he has to solve.
15:46Footwork not quite as fleet from Hatayev.
15:53Tries to come over the top of the right hand.
15:55But he gets up.
15:56He ate a jab.
15:57He ate another jab.
15:58Back.
15:59This pesky jab from Ezekiel Moderna.
16:02We're inside the final 20 seconds of round four.
16:07And there's Hatayev sort of initiating clenches.
16:12A body shot from Hatayev and a big right hand over the top.
16:15But was that enough to win him the round?
16:19And there's Hatayev sort of initiating clenches.
16:24A body shot from Hatayev and a big right hand over the top.
16:27But was that enough to win him the round?
16:48And there's Hatayev sort of initiating clenches.
17:18And there's Hatayev sort of initiating clenches.
17:29Corey, the last two lines in my scouting report on Ezekiel Moderna.
17:34One, he's not fast, but he can time you if you stand in front of him.
17:38Two, he's a much tougher opponent if you let his confidence build.
17:42If you are in Imam Hatayev's corner, your concern has to be the last two and a half rounds.
17:47If you are in Imam Hatayev's corner, your concern has to be the last two and a half rounds.
17:50Have been a period in which Ezekiel Moderna, his confidence has built.
17:55And he fights a lot better when he knows or thinks he can win.
18:01Moderna has talked about having to resist a lot of fight offers on short notice, at higher weights.
18:07He said, resisting falling into the trap that a lot of Argentinian fighters fall into.
18:13Because they want the paydays.
18:16He's always said no to those fights.
18:18And it's caused, or allowed him, excuse me, to have some pretty admirable longevity.
18:24Remember, this is a guy who had close losses to Edwin Rodriguez and Tommy Ustausen,
18:28legit contenders, back in 2013.
18:31And he's still here in 2024, giving a legit top ten light heavyweight some problems here in the early going.
18:39Yeah, and what it's, even though, it's funny that you said that he has turned down a lot of fights.
18:45Because you look at his resume, he's still fought nearly everybody.
18:48But what he's been able to do is still guard his position as a test.
18:54And not fall into that pure opponent category.
18:56That pure road warrior that just goes wherever he has to on the planet to lose.
19:03And again, there's a reason why people book him as an opponent.
19:06You're seeing it tonight, Imam Khattab for the first time in his pro career.
19:09He really has to work, and not just work, but think.
19:13Solve a puzzle, solve problems, make adjustments on the fly.
19:16And might have been a little bit budged at one point in his fight from one of those right hands.
19:21From Moderna as well.
19:23And the pace has slowed to a pace where Moderna feels comfortable.
19:28Where Moderna feels comfortable, and again you see Khattab grabbing behind the head, initiating clinches.
19:33He wants a break in the action.
19:34This pace is very comfortable for Moderna.
19:36The tempo is what he wants, and Khattab now is the guy that needs to take a pause and regroup.
19:42Khattab has made a career to this point of keeping his opponents uncomfortable at all times.
19:55Khattab, nice counter left hook from Moderna.
20:00Moderna again, just bothering Khattab with the jab.
20:03Sometimes he stops and he stands him up with that jab.
20:11And Khattab's best bet is to go back to the body.
20:15Moderna's not letting him do that, not easy.
20:24Right hand ruled to be behind the back.
20:28Moved that a little bit too much.
20:35And all that said, Morgan, this is still going to be a shot that Moderna feels.
20:39Yes.
20:41Legal or illegal is one thing, but you can't undo that damage, that punch to the kidney.
20:46You can see the redness on the back of Moderna.
20:49It certainly did not land in a scoring area, but it will be something that will stay with Moderna as he heads into the corner.
20:57Khattab.
21:13And we take a look in the dressing room of The Wolf.
21:16Arthur B. Arslanov warming up for his first main event opportunity
21:22against the big underdog Tomas Khalidi of Hungary, taking this fight on short notice.
21:29The 10-0 prospect from Hungary
21:33taking a massive step up in opposition tonight.
21:37Tell him not to rush the shot, not to rush. Make accurate.
21:51Round 6 begins.
21:53They're in the corner of Iman Bataev. They want to tighten up his work a little bit.
21:58A little bit of pressure.
21:59Round 6 begins.
22:01They're in the corner of Iman Bataev. They want to tighten up his work a little bit.
22:06A little bit more accurate.
22:12He lands over the top a couple of times with that right hand.
22:16Big uppercut there.
22:18The uppercut, too, was one of these punches that we had seen Moderna land in the past.
22:23It's also a punch that we've seen Iman Bataev eat in the past.
22:29As one-sided as that Bolotnik's fight was, the one punch that Bolotnik landed was an uppercut on the inside.
22:34He caught Bataev sort of leaning in.
22:37Bataev finding a little bit of a rhythm here in the early going of round 6.
22:41A little bit more of a bounce in his step.
22:50And he's still trying to land that right hand on that quarter between the ribcage and the kidney.
22:57Yeah, and wisely he just keeps working.
22:59Yeah, until the referee tells him not to do it.
23:04Well, this is, you know, clearly something about the style, the strategy of Iman Bataev.
23:10You think of, obviously he's done good work offensively, Morgan.
23:14But, listen, a headbutt and a shot behind the back, those are working in concert to wear Moderna down also.
23:22He's willing to play on the margin, so to speak.
23:25Well, we had this discussion last time when his brother Shamil was fighting.
23:30And, you know, we made this distinction between the two of them.
23:33Shamil is an athlete and he's a sportsman and boxing is his sport of choice.
23:41Bataev is a fighter and boxing is his chosen form of fighting.
23:46Yeah, it's his way to express that aggression.
23:48Big difference between the two.
23:51Taiev says he regrets not turning professional earlier.
23:55At 30 years of age, getting a late start in his pro career.
24:01Nonetheless, had a whole lot of success.
24:03Yes, as an amateur.
24:04As the amateur, or as an amateur.
24:06Over 300 fights, only losing to Ben Whittaker in the semifinals of the 2020 Olympics where he represented Russia.
24:15Quick tight combination on the inside.
24:17That's more of what the Hatayev corner wants.
24:20But this fight, in different ways, is reminding me of the last fight we watched.
24:25The Mary Spencer fight.
24:26It's the sense that you've got multiple people in the corner trying to get on the same page
24:31about what message to convey between rounds.
24:35But are also clearly frustrated with their fighter's progress.
24:39And you also see Hatayev, in short spurts, doing the things that he needs to do.
24:43But having trouble, Jordan, sort of just sustaining that success.
24:52Our body shot there from Hatayev.
24:55At the same time, you do have to wonder, Hatayev is winding up and landing a lot.
24:59Will there be a point where Madrona's body starts to turn a corner?
25:05Yes, especially at his age.
25:07We understand that he's in the best shape of his life.
25:09He's working with the nutritionists.
25:11He's stronger than he's ever been.
25:13But, yeah, at a certain point, Corey, the damage builds up.
25:17Simultaneous right hand.
25:20Hatayev finishes that one with that combination with the left hook.
25:23There's Hatayev over the top with the right hand.
25:25Maybe his best punch of the round.
25:30Finishes that combination with the left hook.
25:32But again, the look on his face, Hatayev's body language,
25:35Doesn't seem nearly as aggressive or maybe committed is too strong of a word.
25:40But aggressive as he was early in this fight.
25:44The first two rounds of this fight.
25:46You see him sort of resign to a long fight.
25:49Tough night at the office.
25:54Round seven begins.
25:57And he's got a lot of power.
25:59He's got a lot of power.
26:01He's got a lot of power.
26:03Round seven begins.
26:06And again, it should be pointed out that Hatayev is being graded,
26:11I think by us, probably by the audience, and certainly by himself.
26:14Yes.
26:15To point out his body language.
26:17It's graded based on expectations.
26:19Yes.
26:20That this is a guy who could, in short order, become a threat to the heavyweight title.
26:24He's being called the next Archer better BF.
26:27And so, when you're pointing out flaws,
26:30or when he's seeing flaws in his performance,
26:32it's because of what the expectations are.
26:35Any other prospect who just downed Ezekiel Moderna,
26:40we're talking positively,
26:42but he's breaking this guy down,
26:44and he has just broken him down.
26:46That is it.
26:52So, lessons to be learned for Imam Hatayev.
26:56But ultimately, the result is the same.
26:59Another knockout victory.
27:02Well, as we were saying on the way into this fight, Corey,
27:05he's maybe not a one-punch knockout puncher,
27:08but he throws with authority.
27:10Everything he throws is with authority.
27:12And the damage builds up over the course of rounds,
27:15especially because he's a committed body puncher.
27:17And you see, a lot of times in fights,
27:20a committed body puncher,
27:22he's not necessarily going to drop you with one punch,
27:24but you get three, four, five, six, seven rounds into the fight,
27:27and you just reach a point where you can't respond.
27:29And here is Ezekiel Moderna holding his own,
27:33but he reached the point where he put his foot on the accelerator.
27:35There was no gas left in the tank.
27:37You saw what happened.
27:40But to your other point, Corey, yes,
27:41if this was not somebody that we were already thinking of
27:45as a potential top five light heavyweight,
27:47we think of him as winning a hard-fought,
27:52but pretty definitive win.
27:54But because we think of this guy as heir apparent,
27:57somebody on the fast track to the better BF and BVOL level,
28:01yeah, you sort of regard it differently.
28:03Yeah, and you are seeing the good and the bad,
28:05but frankly, the fun of Hataya,
28:07which is that clearly his approach in the ring is,
28:10you better hurt me quicker than I'm going to hurt you.
28:13Yes.
28:14Because I'm going to keep throwing heat.
28:16Because even when he's not,
28:17like, even if you wouldn't call this his best performance,
28:20it's still exciting.
28:22It's fun to watch.
28:23It's competitive.
28:24Because he comes in the front door and he does take contact,
28:26there is some give and take.
28:28Tight left hook catches Moderna on the chin.
28:31A jab on the way.
28:32And again, I thought I would see more jabs from Hataya.
28:37But again, it wasn't from any one specific shot.
28:40It was just the buildup, round by round,
28:43just draining Moderna.
28:45Well, and we asked that question prior to this round,
28:48based on what Moderna was looking like going back to the corner.
28:51Hey, yeah, he's having some success here,
28:54but for how long can he endure this
28:56to land a couple right hands per round?
28:59Right.
29:00And the idea, too, that he can summon enough energy
29:03to keep making those right hands hurt,
29:06round after round after round.
29:08It's just the physical cost to facing Imam Hataya
29:12that you have to be willing to pay.
29:16And willingness and having the physical resources to do it
29:20are very different things.
29:22Yes.
29:23As Ezekiel Moderna learned here tonight,
29:25very willing to stand in there and take that punishment.
29:28But at a certain point, all the miles on those tires,
29:32the 37-year-old tires caught up with him
29:37as Imam Hataya scores another knockout victory.
29:42And it looks like we are about ready
29:44to make this one official.
29:50Ladies and gentlemen, official time,
29:5245 seconds of round number 7.
29:55Referee Junior Padullo stops the fight,
29:58declaring the winner by knockout.
30:01Ladies and gentlemen, official time,
30:0345 seconds of round number 7.
30:05Referee Junior Padullo stops the fight,
30:07declaring the winner by knockout.
30:10The winner by TKO,
30:13and still the NABF Light Heavyweight Champion,
30:19Imam Hataya!
30:28So Imam Hataya with a bloody victory
30:31over Ezekiel Moderna.
30:35He maintains his undefeated record,
30:37his knockout streak.
30:41And certainly ensures that people
30:43are going to want to continue
30:45to watch this fast-track journey.
30:47Yeah, and now you might be watching this
30:49and asking yourself how a Russian guy
30:51who now lives in Australia
30:53is the North American Boxing Federation Champion.
30:57And the answer to that question is,
30:59don't ask that question.
31:00It's just boxing.
31:01The important part is, Corey,
31:03we are 14 hours behind Australia.
31:05They're 14 hours ahead.
31:06This fight started right around lunchtime
31:09for the people who tuned in
31:10to watch Imam Hataya.