By Cliff Rold - 29-year old 2008 Russian Middleweight Olympian Sergiy Derevyanchenko (6-0, 4 KO), 159, of Brooklyn, New York, won a lopsided decision in eight rounds over 34-year old former title challenger Elvin Ayala (28-7-1, 12 KO), 161, of New Haven, Connecticut in the main event on Friday night at Bally’s in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The referee was Sparkle Lee.
Derevyanchenko was workmanlike from the start. Jabbing and pressing the fight, he kept Ayala on the back foot and patiently upped the punishment through the first three rounds. Ayala would occasionally reply with salvos but they were too few.
Little changed in the rest of the fight. Ayala’s output wasn’t terrible but he wasn’t landing much. Derevyanchenko didn’t seem to be able to hurt him until late in the eighth when Ayala appeared to be fading as much from attrition as anything. Derevyanchenko won by earned scores of 80-71 (twice) and 80-72.
Ayala, who challenged Arthur Abraham for the IBF Middleweight bout in 2008, lasts the distance in defeat for the first time since 2009. His last two losses were first round stops at the hands of current IBF titlist David Lemieux and former title challenger Curtis Stevens.
26-year old 2012 Ukrainian Olympian and 2011 World Amateur Champion Ievgen Khytrov (11-0, 10 KO), 159, of Brooklyn, New York, continued his rise in the professional Middleweight ranks with a second straight tough night. After being forced the distance for the first time in his last outing, Khytrov was forced to come from behind and pulled it off with a stoppage in the final round on an intriguing clash with 27-year old Nick Brinson (17-4-2, 7 KO), 159, of Albany, New York. It was Brinson’s third loss inside the distance and third loss in his last four starts.
