Last night, we followed the Italian Super Featherweight Title bout live on Rai Sport, staged in Piazza Risorgimento in the city of Avezzano (L’Aquila). The event was organized by RC Cavini Production and featured hometown fighter Gianluca Valente (7-5-1, 3 KOs) against Mohamed Diallo (10-3, 8 KOs) from Lastra a Signa. Valente, who entered the fight as the underdog according to most predictions, claimed victory by technical knockout in the eighth round.
Fight Report
The opening round was entirely tactical, with both fighters studying each other. Neither man committed to an attack, preferring to move and assess the opponent.
In the second round, Diallo tried to control the center of the ring. Both boxers relied heavily on the jab, but neither was able to put together meaningful combinations to trouble the other.
The action finally picked up in the third round. Valente attempted to raise the pace, landing an effective one-two combination. As he pressed forward, Diallo responded willingly and exchanged punches in the center of the ring.
When the fourth round began, both fighters appeared confident and focused, but accuracy was lacking on both sides.
Valente’s straight right hand, however, continued to find its target consistently, and the pattern remained the same in the fifth round.
In the sixth, Diallo struggled to find the proper range. He managed to connect only once with a right hook that briefly shook the Avezzano fighter. Valente wobbled for a moment but quickly regained his balance and resumed landing his straight right hand. It became a battle between Valente’s straight right and Diallo’s right hook.
Diallo increased the pressure in the seventh round, launching a determined offensive. Valente halted the attack with a well-timed counter right hook.
Valente produced some excellent combinations in the eighth round, landing with consistency until he finally dropped his opponent. Diallo managed to beat the count, but Valente continued to land heavy shots. With Diallo no longer able to defend himself effectively, the referee stepped in and waved the contest off. Gianluca Valente was crowned the new Italian champion.
It was a disappointing outcome for Diallo, who had already fallen short in a previous attempt to win the belt. We wish him the best moving forward, but this simply did not seem to be his night: his guard was often too low, and he never found an answer to Valente’s straight right hand.
As for the future, the new champion stated that he definitely intends to make a title defense. We will see whether that defense could come against Valerio Nocera, should he win his semifinal bout. If so, Valente would have the opportunity to silence the controversy that followed his victory over Nocera last November, a result that some observers considered debatable.