Abraham defeats Wilczewski to secure world title shot:
Arthur Abraham (34-3, 27 KOs) secured another world title shot with a clear points victory over Piotr Wilczewski (30-3, 10 KOs). Fighting in front of a sell-out crowd of 6,000 fans in Kiel and over seven million viewers on German ARD TV, the 31-year-old German dominated the fight from the first bell, pressuring his spirited opponent with hard series of punches throughout.
In the 11th, he landed the biggest shots of the fight, which got Wilczewski in trouble, but the bell saved him from further punishment.
At the end, Abraham was ahead 119-108, 118-109, 118-109. “He was a tough opponent who could really take a lot of shots,” Abraham said. “I tried to go for the KO but couldn’t knock him out. But this was a good fight for me, the kind of fight I need to become world champion again. I am satisfied and will now keep up the hard work to accomplish my goal of winning the world title again.”
Abraham will now face the winner of the Stieglitz-Groves fight. “It was all or nothing for Arthur tonight,” promoter Kalle Sauerland said. “He did well to shake off the pressure and dominate Wilczewski. Now we will wait and see who the opponent will be. I have no doubts that Arthur will be world champion again.”
Hall-of-Fame-Promoter Wilfried Sauerland was also happy about Abraham´s performance. “This was a very good test for him,” he stated. “He started aggressively and used his jab well in the early rounds. I think he is at 80 percent. He will get the additional 20 percent in practice and then win the world title again in his next fight.”
Coach Ulli Wegner said: “Arthur controlled and dominated him, no doubt about it, but someone with Arthur´s potential and knock-out power could have done better tonight. There are still a lot of things that need to be improved and we will keep working hard on it.”
In the co-featured main event, Eduard Gutknecht (24-1, 9 KOs) defended his European Light Heavyweight Title with a split decision against Tony Averlant (17-6, 4 KOs). After Gutknecht knocked his opponent down early with a big left, a close fight unfolded. Two judges scored it 115-113 and 114-113 for Gutknecht, while the third one had it 115-113 for Averlant. Up-and-coming Polish cruiserweight hopeful Mateusz Masternak (26-0, 25 KOs) also clinched the next KO, stopping Felipe Romero in the 10th round.
