Sofia, Bulgaria (March 30, 2024) - Kubrat Pulev claimed the WBA International title over Igor Shevadzutsky by unanimous decision after giving the Ukrainian a boxing lesson.

In front of more than 8000 fan, Pulev outpointed his opponent in the main event with scores of 117-111 from all three judges. For Pulev, the victory marks his 31st win in 34 professional matches, with three losses. For Shevadzutsky, the defeat is only his second in 13 outings, with 11 wins to his credit.

The 42-year-old Pulev and 34-year-old Shevadzutsky started the match cautiously. In the first round, both fighters sized each other up, and although Pulev was the more active of the two, he struggled to hurt the hulking Ukrainian. However, things intensified at the beginning of the second round, with both fighters starting to engage. This immediately led to complaints from both fighters about their opponent's fouling.

Several rounds followed in which neither fighter had a visible advantage. The taller of the two, Pulev, relied on constant potshots to Shevadzutsky's head, while the Ukrainian kept looking for a fight-changing punch. In the sixth round, Shevadzutsky began to show signs of fatigue, often falling behind in the exchanges. Pulev, on the other hand, became more mobile with each passing minute and pressed his advantage.

One minute into the eighth round, Pulev landed a heavy right on Shevadzutsky, but the tough Ukrainian was unaffected. Shevadzutsky showed signs of awakening towards the end of the match. In the final three rounds, he attacked more boldly, prompting more exchanges. This made the fight much more interesting for the agreeable audience, who increasingly cheered on the Bulgarian hero. The heightened activity in both fighters led to several shots after the bell rang to end the 11th round, but the referee quickly took control of the situation. The twelfth round had the most activity, with decent action from both sides, which prompted the spectators to rise to their feet and cheer both boxers.

After the decision, Mahmoud Charr, who currenly holds the WBA Regular title, stepped into the ring and was booed by the crowd. It was Charr who was supposed to fight Pulev, but he claimed a last-minute injury, leading to Shevadzutsky's addition to the main event. The Ukrainian then raised the flag of Ukraine high at the end of the match, which divided the audience with a large part of them booing him while others cheered him.