KZBlog

Beibut Shumenov doesn’t have it easy. His job involves getting beaten up on purpose. He was shooting for 9 bouts and 9 wins last year when he lost to Gabriel Campillo, the WBA World and IBA light heavyweight champion. But then there was a scandal! Campillo allegedly locked himself in the men’s shower room with his trainer for eleven minutes directly after the match, instead of going to the drug testing room. The WBA ruled that Campillo had broken the rules and scheduled a rematch, which took place on 29 Jan in Las Vegas. This time Shumenov won on a split decision, 2 judges for Shumenov and 1 for Campillo. And this time Campillo complained, calling for the judges to be investigated.

However, Shumenov, who was born in Shymkent, has prevailed: The WBA has rejected a request for a third bout. In only 10 matches (9 wins to 1 loss, 6 KOs) Shumenov has become the world and international boxing light heavyweight champion. Congratulations!

Some coverage of the second fight and the fans who flew all the way from Shymkent to see him box:

In case you were wondering how to say “Kazakhstan is Number One in Boxing” in Kazakh!