Kubrat Pulev's Great 5: The Cobras' Most Impressive Triumphs
There are not many people who would dispute who is the most successful professional Bulgarian boxer. Especially when we talk about the heaviest ones. Today's Kubrat Pulev is a two-time contender for the world title, but unfortunately for Bulgaria, he lost the decisive fights against Wladimir Klitschko and Anthony Joshua. But before getting to the fights with the Ukrainian and the Great Briton, the Cobra had to jump over many other talented boxers. In the professional boxing ring, Pulev has a total of 28 victories, and one of the greatest of them is against Tony Thompson.
In 2011, the 2008 European champion in Liverpool won his first championship belt. After a judge's decision, the Cobra dealt with the American Travis Walker and hung the IBF International Title on his shoulder. 3 successful defenses followed. Two of them were meetings of impressive boxers such as Alexander Dimitrenko and Alexander Ustinov. Both by knockout in the 11th round. But the next opponent is from a completely different school. Instead of the Russian one, there is a test from the American one.
Until 2013, Thompson had a defeat of only two boxers. One is Eric Kirkland defeating him in one of his first pro matches. The other is the phenomenal Wladimir Klitschko. We make the clarification that the Ukrainian defeated the American twice, for which, however, he needed a total of 17 rounds. Both matches are for a world title.
The second defeat was followed by two wins against the strong British David Price. It just goes to show the world that the 41-year-old pro from Washington has a lot of boxing left in him. But Kubrat looks more than ready for the match. The Bulgarian took control of the match from the very beginning, although some of the first 7 parts were equal. Pulev landed absolutely all of the more impressive shots in the match. A knockout seems a matter of time, but Cobra knows there's no point in taking any chances. The statistics at the end of the match speak volumes. In the last 4 rounds alone, the statistics of successful shots is 80:28. Overall scores are 145 vs 114.
Success makes Kubrat one of the main contenders for the heavyweight world title. The dream fight with Wladimir Klitschko already seems a matter of time. The defeat marked the end of Thompson's career. The Tigers lose 3 of their next 5 games. Although they were up against strong opponents like Carlos Takam and Luis Ortiz, less than 3 years after the loss to Pulev Toni ended his impressive career.