Avtandil Khurtsidze
Avtandil Khurtsidze (Georgian: ავთანდილ ხურციძე; born 2 May 1979) is a Georgian former professional boxer who competed from 2002 to 2017. He held the WBO interim middleweight title in 2017 and won the IBO middleweight tile in 2011. He also challenged for the interim WBA middleweight title in 2010.[1]
Avtandil Khurtsidze | |
---|---|
Statistics | |
Nickname(s) | Tazman |
Weight(s) | Middleweight |
Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) |
Reach | 185 cm (73 in) |
Nationality | Georgian |
Born | Kutaisi, Georgia | 2 May 1979
Stance | Orthodox |
Boxing record | |
Total fights | 37 |
Wins | 33 |
Wins by KO | 22 |
Losses | 2 |
Draws | 2 |
Professional career
Khurtsidze vs. Saunders and cancellation
In early February 2017, mandatory challenger Khurtsidze took a 'step-a-side' fee to allow Billy Joe Saunders to pursue a bigger fight.[2] On 28 February, it was announced that Khurtsidze would fight British boxer Tommy Langford for the vacant interim WBO title in April.[3]
After retaining his belts against Jacobs, Gennady Golovkin stated that he wanted to unify the middleweight division and hold all the available belts. Golovkin said, "My goal is all the belts in the middleweight division. Of course, Billy Joe is the last one. It is my dream." Rumours suggested that the fight was expected to take place in Golovkin's home country, Kazakhstan, in June, during the EXPO 2017.[4] On 20 March, Golovkin said that he would fight Saunders in Kazakhstan or the O2 Arena in London.[5]
Saunders wrote on social media that despite not having seen Golovkin's fight with Jacobs, he was ready to fight him.[6] Saunders claimed to have signed the contract and gave Golovkin a deadline to sign his.[7] On 29 March, Frank Warren also stated that Golovkin would have ten days to sign for the fight.[8] Saunders later claimed to have moved on from Golovkin, until Warren said the deal was still in place.[9] Over the next week, Saunders continued to insult Golovkin through social media.[10] On 7 April, Warren told iFL TV that Golovkin had a hand injury, which was the reason the fight had not been made. In the interview, he said, "At the moment, they’re saying that Golovkin’s injured. So we’re waiting to see where this is all going. But as far as I’m concerned, we agreed [to] terms." It was also noted that he would wait until 6 May, for any updates.[11] On 11 April, it was reported that the fight would not take place; Golovkin ultimately fought Canelo Alvarez, in September 2017.[12]
On 22 April 2017, Khurtsidze knocked Langford out in round 5 with a left hook to secure his next fight against Saunders.[13] A day later the fight between Saunders and Khurtsidze was announced as taking place at the Copper Box in London on 8 July 2017.[14] On 8 June, Khurtsidze was arrested in New York along with 32 others, linking him in a Russian and Georgian crime syndicate. Racketeer charges and conspiracy to commit fraud were the two alleged charges, promoter Lou DiBella said that, while the fight would not be completely called off, it would be postponed.[15][16] Due to the fight being a mandatory defence, Saunders's promoter, Frank Warren, said that he was unable to make a voluntary defence and would be taken off the card.[17]
RICO indictment
On June 8, 2017, prosecutors from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York indicted Khurtsidze on charges of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) Act and conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a Russian organised crime syndicate operating in the New York City area. According to the indictment, Khurtsidze is alleged to have paid $17,800 for three cases of purportedly stolen cigarettes.[18][19]
In 2018, Khurtsidze was convicted of racketeering and wire fraud conspiracy and sentenced to ten years' imprisonment.[20]
Professional boxing record
37 fights, 33 wins (22 knockouts), 2 losses (1 knockout), 2 draws | |||||||
Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
Win | 33-2-2 | Tommy Langford | TKO | 5 (12), 0:27 | 2017-04-22 | Leicester Arena, Leicester, Leicestershire | Won interim WBO Middleweight title. |
Win | 32-2-2 | Antoine Douglas | TKO | 10 (10), 0:33 | 2016-03-05 | Sands Bethlehem Event Center, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | Won WBO International Middleweight title. |
Win | 31-2-2 | Melvin Betancourt | TKO | 1 (8), 2:22 | 2015-08-07 | Bally's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey | |
Win | 30-2-2 | Phillip Penson | TKO | 4 (8), 1:00 | 2015-02-20 | Hilton Westchester, Rye Brook, New York | |
Win | 29-2-2 | Eddie Hunter | TKO | 5 (8), 2:13 | 2014-10-30 | Florentine Gardens, Hollywood, California | |
Win | 28-2-2 | Allen Conyers | TKO | 1 (8), 1:23 | 2014-07-23 | BB King Blues Club & Grill, New York City | |
Win | 27-2-2 | Ossie Duran | MD | 12 | 2011-12-18 | Sport Palace Yunost, Zaporozhye | Won vacant WBC Silver Middleweight title. |
Win | 26-2-2 | Jason LeHoullier | TKO | 2 (10), 2:37 | 2011-10-03 | Sports Complex "Freestyle", Kyiv | |
Win | 25-2-2 | Dionisio Miranda | KO | 1 (12), 2:37 | 2011-06-11 | Sport Palace, Kyiv | Retained IBO Middleweight title. |
Win | 24-2-2 | Mariusz Cendrowski | UD | 12 | 2011-03-13 | Sport Palace, Tbilisi | Won vacant IBO Middleweight title. |
Loss | 23-2-2 | Hassan N'Dam N'Jikam | UD | 12 | 2010-10-30 | Palais des Sports Porte de Versailles, Paris XV, Paris | For interim WBA Middleweight title. |
Win | 23-1-2 | Sergey Khomitsky | RTD | 6 (10), 3:00 | 2010-07-31 | Club Reaktor, Minsk | |
Win | 22-1-2 | Mihaly Kotai | TD | 8 (12) | 2010-05-21 | Sports Complex "Freestyle", Kyiv | |
Win | 21-1-2 | Kuvanych Toygonbayev | TD | 8 (12) | 2009-11-20 | Budivelnik, Cherkasy | Retained WBA Inter-Continental and EBA Middleweight title. |
Win | 20-1-2 | Jamel Bakhi | RTD | 5 (12), 3:00 | 2009-07-18 | Sportpalace, Odessa | Retained WBA Inter-Continental Middleweight title. |
Win | 19-1-2 | Attila Kovacs | MD | 12 | 2009-03-28 | Budivelnik, Cherkasy | Retained WBA Inter-Continental Middleweight title. |
Win | 18-1-2 | Antonio Valentin Ochoa | UD | 12 | 2008-09-27 | Sport Palace, Kyiv | Retained WBA Inter-Continental Middleweight title. |
Win | 17-1-2 | Javier Alberto Mamani | MD | 12 | 2008-07-05 | Sportpalace, Odessa | Won vacant WBA Inter-Continental Middleweight title. |
Win | 16-1-2 | Ferenc Olah | TKO | 2 (10) | 2008-05-17 | Sportpalace Lokomotiv, Kharkov | |
Win | 15-1-2 | Jurijs Boreiko | TKO | 4 (12) | 2008-03-23 | Sportpalace Meteor, Dnipropetrovsk | Won vacant EBA (extinct) Middleweight title. |
Win | 14-1-2 | Tagir Rzaev | TKO | 2 (8) | 2008-02-21 | Sport Palace, Kyiv | |
Win | 13-1-2 | Volodymyr Borovskyy | UD | 8 | 2007-11-17 | SC Voskhod, Kyiv | |
Win | 12-1-2 | Ruslan Semenov | TKO | 5 (8) | 2007-09-13 | Sport Palace, Kyiv | |
Win | 11-1-2 | Maksym Velychko | UD | 6 | 2007-07-14 | Ukrainian House, Kyiv | |
Win | 10-1-2 | Taras Boyko | RTD | 5 (8), 3:00 | 2007-06-09 | Sport Palace, Kyiv | |
Win | 9-1-2 | Denis Balandin | TKO | 6 (6) | 2007-04-26 | SC Voskhod, Kyiv | |
Win | 8-1-2 | Serhiy Petryk | TKO | 3 (4) | 2007-02-27 | Sport Palace, Kyiv | |
Loss | 7-1-2 | Tony Marshall | TKO | 7 (8), 1:33 | 2005-05-13 | Saratoga Gaming and Raceway, Saratoga Springs, New York | |
Win | 7-0-2 | Calvin Shakir | TKO | 3 (6), 2:45 | 2005-03-18 | New Alhambra, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
Win | 6-0-2 | Chris Hall | UD | 6 | 2005-01-28 | Tropicana Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey | |
Draw | 5-0-2 | Carlos Antonio Escobar | PTS | 6 | 2004-11-12 | New Alhambra, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
Win | 5-0-1 | Leo Edwards | TKO | 6 (6), 2:17 | 2004-10-15 | New Alhambra, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
Win | 4-0-1 | Fred Drayton | TKO | 1 (4) | 2004-07-16 | Hampton Beach Casino, Hampton Beach, New Hampshire | |
Win | 3-0-1 | Jon Gaddis | UD | 4 | 2004-06-18 | New Alhambra, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
Draw | 2-0-1 | Orazio Robinson | PTS | 4 | 2004-04-08 | Wyndham Inner Harbor Hotel, Glen Burnie, Maryland | |
Win | 2-0 | Kenny Kingsley | TKO | 1 (4), 0:54 | 2004-02-20 | Ballys Park Place Hotel Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey | |
Win | 1-0 | George Kanchaveli | TKO | 3 (4) | 2002-10-11 | Sport Hall, Variani | |
References
- "Avtandil Khurtsidze". boxrec.com. December 25, 2015.
- "Khurtsidze expected to take step-aside money for Saunders - The Ring". The Ring. 2017-02-07. Retrieved 2017-04-24.
- "Khurtsidze vs. Langford set for interim title". Bad Left Hook. 2017-02-28. Retrieved 2017-04-24.
- "Golovkin: Billy Joe Saunders is The Last One, It is My Dream! - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 2017-04-07.
- "Billy Joe Saunders could fight Gennady Golovkin in London". Evening Standard. 2017-03-20. Retrieved 2017-04-07.
- ""I'm ready!" – Saunders wants Golovkin unification". www.boxnation.com. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
- Ltd, Vitalnetwork. "Vital Boxing | Saunders Gives Golovkin a Deadline". www.vitalboxing.com. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
- "Frank Warren Hits Golovkin With Deadline To Ink Saunders Deal - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
- "Saunders' Promoter: We Have NOT Moved On From Golovkin - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
- BoxingNewsAndViews (2017-04-03). "Billy Joe Saunders T-Shirt Message For Gennady Golovkin - Boxing News". Boxing News and Views. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
- "Warren: Golovkin Injury Holding Up Getting GGG-Saunders Done - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 2017-04-08.
- "Report: Gennady Golovkin to skip June return and focus on Canelo Alvarez". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- "Tommy Langford beaten as Avtandil Khurtsidze sets up Billy Joe Saunders bout". BBC Sport. 2017-04-22. Retrieved 2017-04-24.
- "Billy Joe Saunders vs. Avtandil Khurtsidze on July 8, Copper Box - Boxing News". www.boxingscene.com. Retrieved 2017-04-24.
- "Avtandil Khurtsidze indicted on racketeering charges - The Ring". The Ring. 2017-06-08. Retrieved 2017-06-11.
- "Billy Joe Saunders bout cancelled after Avtandil Khurtsidze arrest". BBC Sport. 2017-06-08. Retrieved 2017-06-11.
- "SAUNDERS V KHURTSIDZE UPDATE". Frank Warren. 2017-06-09. Retrieved 2017-06-11.
- "Members And Associates Of Russian Crime Syndicate Arrested For Racketeering, Extortion, Robbery, Murder-For-Hire Conspiracy, Fraud, Narcotics, And Firearms Offenses". www.justice.gov. Retrieved 2017-06-09.
- "Boxer Avtandil Khurtsidze indicted on federal racketeering, fraud charges". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2017-06-09.
- "Avtandil Khurtsidze: Former boxing champion jailed for 10 years". BBC. 2018-09-07. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
External links
International championships | ||||
Vacant Title last held by Sebastian Sylvester |
WBA Middleweight Champion Inter-Continental title July 5, 2008 – October 30, 2010 Lost bid for interim world title |
Vacant Title next held by Martin Murray | ||
Preceded by Antione Douglas |
WBO International Middleweight Champion March 5, 2016 – April 22, 2017 Won interim world title |
Vacant Title next held by Artur Akavov | ||
World boxing titles | ||||
Vacant Title last held by Hassan N'Dam N'Jikam |
WBO Middleweight Interim Champion April 22, 2017 – June 14, 2017 Stripped |
Vacant |