Denys Berinchyk has won an Olympic silver medal in boxing, is undefeated as a pro, and can now claim a victory in bare-knuckle boxing over a former UFC fighter.
The Ukrainian star defeated Artem Lobov by TKO in the main event of a Mahatch FC event in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Saturday. This was the first bare-knuckle bout for Berinchyk, while Lobov was competing in his fourth bare-knuckle bout after going 2-1 for the BKFC.
The bout was officially called between the fourth and fifth round after Berinchyk closed round four with a flurry that prompted the ref to initiate the second standing 10-count of the fight for Lobov. Though Lobov answered the count, Berinchyk was soon after declared the winner before the start of round five.
That's it. Denys Berinchyk stops Artem Lobov between rounds at the conclusion of R4 #MahatchFC pic.twitter.com/ikehcWtAmw
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 24, 2021
The story of the fight was Berinchyk’s speed and precision. After a mostly even first round, Berinchyk began to pull away, finding his range against Lobov and picking him apart with quick, accurate punches. Berinchyk’s clinch work was particularly impressive as he refused to allow the larger Lobov to bully him against the sandbags that comprise the Mahatch FC fighting area.
Berinchyk turned it up in the third and fourth rounds, deftly getting in and out while scoring to the head and body. A stretch of unanswered Berinchyk punches caused the referee to initiate the first standing 10-count for Lobov in the third and by the middle of the fourth, a visibly tired Lobov was swinging at air while Berinchyk continued to piece him up.
It's a dog fight between Artem and Berinchyk as expected but no surprise Denys is getting the better of these exchanges. Just got a standing 8 count in R3 after Artem was hurt bad to the body. #MahatchFC pic.twitter.com/nsJxQoqc7T
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 24, 2021
In the fourth round, Berinchyk maintained a furious pace and it wasn’t surprising when it was decided that a fifth round wouldn’t be needed.
This is the second win of 2021 for Berincyhk (15-0 in boxing), who successfully defended his WBO International lightweight title with a TKO of Jose Sanchez in March. It was after that fight that Berinchyk called for a matchup with Lobov.
For Lobov, this is his first fight since losing by corner stoppage to Jason Knight at BKFC 9 in November 2019. He was to compete in MMA at an Arena Fight Championship show in Paris last December, but that event was cancelled due to COVID-19 precautions.
The Mahatch FC event is available for replay on FITE TV PPV.