A much better performance was expected from Mohamed Elmaghraby at the Allianz Cloud in Milan. Instead, “Momo” delivered a disappointing showing, ultimately being saved by a controversial refereeing decision. The opening bout of the main card at the TAF-organized event ended in a Technical Decision in the sixth round in favor of the Egyptian-rooted boxer, who secured victory over Stiven Leonetti Dredhaj through an early reading of the scorecards. As a result, Elmaghraby claimed the IBF Mediterranean Light Heavyweight Title.
Neither fighter seemed particularly eager to ignite the action early on, making the first round one of the dullest ever, with Leonetti circling without throwing punches and Elmaghraby standing at the center of the ring without taking the initiative.
Encouraged by his opponent’s lackluster approach, Leonetti started using some blocking shots, and in the next two rounds, he occasionally managed to find the right timing to land cleanly. However, most of his punches lacked the determination needed to inflict significant damage.
Momo, for his part, was not doing much more. His only consistently used punch was a left jab to the body. The rounds dragged on tediously, with a sluggish pace and a complete lack of exciting exchanges from either side.
Perhaps frustrated by his own struggles to mount meaningful offensive actions, Elmaghraby resorted to theatrics in the fifth round, taunting his opponent with grimaces, gestures, and little dance moves. If his goal was to fire up the crowd, he would have had much better success by throwing more punches rather than dancing around.
The decisive moment occurred in the sixth round. During a rather reckless frontal attack, Momo was caught by a heavy counter right hand from Leonetti. The two then locked up in a chaotic clinch that lasted a few seconds.
Elmaghraby sustained a deep cut near his left eye, and the referee determined that it had been caused by an accidental clash of heads. As a result, the fight went to the judges’ scorecards to determine who had gained a partial lead.
To be completely honest, this writer does not believe that the judges’ decision to award victory to Momo was necessarily wrong. The fight was so lacking in action and significant moments that most of the rounds were nearly impossible to score, making the choice of winner somewhat arbitrary.
On the other hand, the replay of the decisive moments of the bout seems to suggest that the referee’s decision was mistaken. The cut on Elmaghraby appears to have been caused by the heavy punch he took in that area of his face, rather than by the minor head contact that followed. The fight should have ended in a TKO victory for Stiven Leonetti, who left the ring visibly and understandably frustrated.
Given the circumstances, a rematch should be granted to the defeated fighter, with the hope that both boxers adopt a more proactive approach and deliver a more exciting spectacle than the rather monotonous contest we witnessed this time.