Langford defeated by Khurtsidze
April 23, 2017Tommy Langford
Tommy Langford (18-1) was beaten by WBO No.1 Avtandil Khurtsidze (33-2-2) via a fifth-round stoppage as the Georgian set up a bout against WBO World middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders.
The fight was for the WBO World middleweight interim title, with the winner becoming Saunders’ mandatory challenger.
Langford previously stated his desire to face stablemate Saunders, but the dream was shattered when he was floored with a fierce left-hook by the 37-year-old at Leicester Arena, in front of the BT Sport cameras.
Bideford-born Langford was stunned by the Brooklyn-based Khurtsidze in the opening round, who is known as a ‘Mini Mike Tyson’ with 22 KO’s on his ledger.
In the following three rounds, Langford learnt to shift his f...