Erickson Lubin earned the mandatory spot to challenge Bakhram Muratazalev for his IBF junior middleweight title by knocking out Ardreal Holmes Jr. in the 11th round of a title eliminator last Saturday night at the Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee, Florida.
After the fight, Lubin (27-2, 19 KOs) called out Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs), telling him to “stop hiding,” and gave him a deadline until May 18th. Bakhram was likely hoping for something better than Lubin after knocking out former WBO 154-lb champion Tim Tszyu in the third round on October 19th last year. However, that performance and the IBF’s 10-lb rehydration rule scared away the division’s top contenders and other champions. Lubin is the best Murtazaliev can get, because at least he wants to fight him.
“Stop Hiding!”
“It’s a title shot next. I’m fighting for the IBF title. Bakhram, stop hiding! You got until May 18. Let’s sign the deal and get it done,” said Erickson Lubin in his post-fight interview after stopping Holmes Jr.
In other interviews, Lubin has hinted that he will box Murtazaliev and show him another side of his game. We saw some of that in his fight against Jesus Ramos.
Boxing fans on social media aren’t giving Lubin much chance of beating Murtazaliev because he’s folded in the past when fighting big punchers. Jermell Charlo and Sebastian Fundora stopped him. Since his loss to Fundora, he hasn’t fought anyone nearly as good.
Lubin didn’t look that great against Holmes Jr. He got hit a lot in the fight, and was lucky that his opponent wasn’t a big puncher. Both of Lubin’s eyes were badly swollen by the end of the fight, and you could tell that he really had to push himself to get the win.
Lubin has arguably lost two out of his last four fights because his 12-round unanimous decision win over Jesus Ramos in September 2023 was a questionable one that could have gone the other way. If the judges had gotten it right, Lubin’s record would be 2-2 going into a clash against Murtazaliev.
Last Updated on 05/11/2025
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