Guido Vianello TKO8 Arslanbek Mahkmudov ... Italian Olympian Guido Vianello (20-6-1 including the World Series of Boxing) registered the most important win of his career by upsetting [overrated] Arslanbek Mahkmudov (32-5 including the World Series of Boxing) via eighth-round TKO victory in the Quebec City co-feature on Saturday. The two met in the World Series of Boxing nearly 10 years ago, with Vianello retiring in the fourth due to an ear injury. This time, things were different. From the opening stanza, Vianello quickly landed an array of right hands. The straight right, however, was pivotal, as it caused Makhmudov’s left eye to swell by the third round.

 

Makhmudov tried to cut off the ring despite his impaired vision, but he was deducted a point in the sixth for punches behind the head. Vianello landed at will from the outside in the seventh. Makhmudov's glove touched the canvas at one point, although it wasn't ruled a knockdown. At the start of the eighth, the doctor deemed Makhmudov no longer fit to continue.

 

Vianello said, "I am a contender now. I am ready for the world level, and I proved that tonight. I thought I beat Efe Ajagba, and I came into this fight with a lot of confidence. I was in the best shape of my career, and that showed tonight. I dominated him and then knocked him out. I just had to stay composed. There was a knockdown that wasn’t called, but I knew if I stuck to my strategy, I would get the knockout.”