Breakdown: Murat Gassiev vs. Krzysztof Wlodarczyk fight preview and prediction

The quarterfinal round of the World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight tournament comes to an end this weekend – here are the details.

This Saturday, the World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight (200 lb.) tournament sees the last match of the quarterfinal round. Looking to take the last semifinal spot and a showdown with Yunier Dorticos will be IBF champion Murat Gassiev (24-0; 17 KO) and challenger Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (53-3-1; 37 KO). Gassiev vs. Wlodarczyk takes place this Saturday, October 21 in New Jersey. The card has a fight time of 9:30 p.m. ET and if you’re lucky you can find it on Audience in the US, Super Channel in Canada, SAT.1 in Germany, and you can visit worldboxingsuperseries for possible streaming options.

How do these two stack up?
Gassiev: 24 years old | 6’3” | 76″ reach | orthodox stance
Wlodarczyk: 36 years old | 6’1″ | 75″ reach | orthodox stance

What have these two done recently?
Gassiev: W – Dennis Lebedev (SD) | W – Jordan Shimmell (KO) | NC – Isaiah Thomas
Wlodarczyk: W – Noel Gavor (SD) | W – Leon Harth (UD) | W – Kai Kurzawa (TKO)

How did these two get here?

Russia’s Gassiev is only 24 years old, but is already a 6 year pro and undefeated world champion who has made it up to #2 on the Ring Magazine Cruiserweight ranking list. He started fighting in the US in 2015, and has faced good competition, culminating in a fight last December with the highly accomplished Denis Lebedev. That was the biggest fight of Gassiev’s career, and he rose to the occasion, taking a hard fought split decision win to claim Lebedev’s IBF title and his biggest career win to date. This is his first fight since.

Wlodarczyk has the significant experience edge, as he’s been a fixture of this division for years. He’s a 17 year pro, and a former champion, with a four year run as WBC champion a few years back. He lost that belt in 2014, and is just 4-0 in the 3 years since. If you were making a list of all time great Cruiserweights, you would likely put Wlodarczyk above Gassiev. But at 36 years old, he seems on the way down. Ring Magazine currently ranks him at #8 in the division.

What can fans expect?

It would be unfair to call a fight between two top 10 fighters a mismatch, but I think it’s clear that at this moment in their careers, this fight is all Gassiev. We don’t yet know what his ceiling is as a fighter, but the Lebedev win showed us that it’s higher than the 2017 version of Wlodarczyk. Gassiev is a -1800 favorite, and he should be. All that said, Wlodarczyk will likely bring it and make for a fun stylistic match-up.
Prediction: Murat Gassiev, KO

Who should watch?

The Cruiserweight tournament is going to seriously heat up next round. If you’re not on board yet, this is your chance to get in and get ready for a terrific run to the finish. And you might get a big KO in the process.

The quarterfinal round of the World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight tournament comes to an end this weekend – here are the details.

This Saturday, the World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight (200 lb.) tournament sees the last match of the quarterfinal round. Looking to take the last semifinal spot and a showdown with Yunier Dorticos will be IBF champion Murat Gassiev (24-0; 17 KO) and challenger Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (53-3-1; 37 KO). Gassiev vs. Wlodarczyk takes place this Saturday, October 21 in New Jersey. The card has a fight time of 9:30 p.m. ET and if you’re lucky you can find it on Audience in the US, Super Channel in Canada, SAT.1 in Germany, and you can visit worldboxingsuperseries for possible streaming options.

How do these two stack up?
Gassiev: 24 years old | 6’3” | 76″ reach | orthodox stance
Wlodarczyk: 36 years old | 6’1″ | 75″ reach | orthodox stance

What have these two done recently?
Gassiev: W – Dennis Lebedev (SD) | W – Jordan Shimmell (KO) | NC – Isaiah Thomas
Wlodarczyk: W – Noel Gavor (SD) | W – Leon Harth (UD) | W – Kai Kurzawa (TKO)

How did these two get here?

Russia’s Gassiev is only 24 years old, but is already a 6 year pro and undefeated world champion who has made it up to #2 on the Ring Magazine Cruiserweight ranking list. He started fighting in the US in 2015, and has faced good competition, culminating in a fight last December with the highly accomplished Denis Lebedev. That was the biggest fight of Gassiev’s career, and he rose to the occasion, taking a hard fought split decision win to claim Lebedev’s IBF title and his biggest career win to date. This is his first fight since.

Wlodarczyk has the significant experience edge, as he’s been a fixture of this division for years. He’s a 17 year pro, and a former champion, with a four year run as WBC champion a few years back. He lost that belt in 2014, and is just 4-0 in the 3 years since. If you were making a list of all time great Cruiserweights, you would likely put Wlodarczyk above Gassiev. But at 36 years old, he seems on the way down. Ring Magazine currently ranks him at #8 in the division.

What can fans expect?

It would be unfair to call a fight between two top 10 fighters a mismatch, but I think it’s clear that at this moment in their careers, this fight is all Gassiev. We don’t yet know what his ceiling is as a fighter, but the Lebedev win showed us that it’s higher than the 2017 version of Wlodarczyk. Gassiev is a -1800 favorite, and he should be. All that said, Wlodarczyk will likely bring it and make for a fun stylistic match-up.
Prediction: Murat Gassiev, KO

Who should watch?

The Cruiserweight tournament is going to seriously heat up next round. If you’re not on board yet, this is your chance to get in and get ready for a terrific run to the finish. And you might get a big KO in the process.