2<\/p>\n The Russian struck the sweetest of shots to give the judges an early nightCredit: DAZN<\/p>\n Pulev fired off a tired one-two combo, which Gassiev read well.<\/p>\n But when Pulev went to throw the same combination again, Gassiev came prepared and timed his left hand to perfection.<\/p>\n The thudding punch left Pulev flat on his back and although he did his utmost to regain his footing, he failed to beat the count.<\/p>\n Gassiev’s knockout blow marked a major turnaround in the contest for the 32-year-old.<\/p>\n Read more boxing news<\/p>\n Despite being 12 years older than his rival, it was Pulev who looked to be in the ascendancy throughout the earlier rounds.<\/p>\n Although Pulev wasn’t throwing massively, he continually scored with his jab as Gassiev looked content to let his rival expend his energy.<\/p>\n It proved to be a wise tactic as Gassiev began to ramp up the intensity in the fifth before he landed the final blow in the following round.<\/p>\n The defeat marked the first time Pulev had been knocked out since December 2012, when he was stopped by British superstar Anthony Joshua<\/a> in the ninth round of their heavyweight bout.<\/p>\n Pulev’s loss also meant he relinquished control of his WBA ‘regular’ heavyweight crown to Gassiev.<\/p>\n As for Gassiev, the victory was his seventh since moving up to the heavyweight division from the cruiserweights.<\/p>\n 2<\/p>\n Pulev was left seeing stars thanks to Gassiev’s left hook from hellCredit: DAZN<\/p>\n Not only that, it continued his trend of stopping each and every one of his heavyweight rivals that he has beaten.<\/p>\n The only blemish on his record in the heavyweight division came courtesy of Sweden’s Otto Wallin<\/a>, who edged him in a split decision result in September 2023.<\/p>\n![\"Murat](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/NINTCHDBPICT001045351073.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Kubrat](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/NINTCHDBPICT001045351078.jpg\")
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