LAS VEGAS – Gabe Rosado had no other surprise left in his 36-year-old body on Saturday night.
Ali Akhmedov handled the gritty veteran the way the 7-1 odds suggested he would in their 10-round super middleweight bout at T-Mobile Arena. Kazakhstan’s Akhmedov landed the most effective punches more consistently in their Canelo Alvarez-Gennadiy Golovkin undercard fight and won a unanimous decision.
Akhmedov eliminated Rosado on the scorecards of judges Eric Cheek, Glenn Feldman and Don Trella, each of whom gave Akhmedov a 100-90 winner.
Akhmedov (19-1, 14 KOs), who is promoted by Golovkin’s company, has won three fights in a row since then-unknown Carlos Góngora stunned him via 12th-round knockout in December 2020. Rosado, by contrast, he has lost three fights in a row since his huge upset against hard-hitting prospect Bektemir Melikuziev, whom Rosado knocked unconscious in the third round of their June 2021 bout in El Paso, Texas.
Jaime Munguia, Shane Mosley Jr. and Akhmedov have outpointed Rosado (26-16-1, 15 KOs, 1 NC) in 12 rounds and a pair of 10 rounds, respectively, since beating Melikuziev.
Rosado tried to get the knockout he needed in the last round, but couldn’t hurt Akhmedov with any of his punches. A left hook thrown by Rosado had Akhmedov holding him up 40 seconds into the 10th round, but that was his best shot of the last three minutes of action.
A right hand from Rosado dropped Akhmedov with just over 1:20 left in the ninth round.
Akhmedov landed a right hand to the side of Rosado’s head about 45 seconds into the eighth round. Rosado’s right to the side of Akhmedov’s head with just over 20 seconds left in the eighth round.
Akhmedov and Rosado traded blows in a competitive seventh round.
Akhmedov landed a right hand to Rosado’s body and quickly got back on top with a right hand with just over 1:20 left in the sixth round. However, Rosado hit Akhmedov with a right hand, as Akhmedov pulled back with 15 seconds left in the sixth round.
Akhmedov knocked Rosado off balance with a flush right hand at the minute of the fifth round. Another right hand from Akhmedov caught Rosado about 30 seconds later.
A right uppercut from Akhmedov rocked Rosado with less than 30 seconds left in the fifth round as well.
Rosado gave Akhmedov a respectful nod as they returned to their corners after the fifth round.
Rosado’s left uppercut landed just before the middle of the fourth round and got Akhmedov back on his feet. Akhmedov and Rosado then exchanged heavy blows just before the bell rang to end the fourth round.
A flashy combination from Akhmedov caught Rosado’s eye with just over 1:40 left in the second round. Akhmedov drilled Rosado with a right hand in an exchange that came with about 10 seconds left in the second round.
Rosado landed a right hand that caused Akhmedov to walk away from him with just under 40 seconds left in the first round.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
