The rivalry had been building for weeks. Threats, sharp words and bold predictions made Borislav Velev’s meeting with Grigor Sarukhanian one of Bulgaria’s most anticipated fights of 2023. A packed SILA Hall in Plovdiv would see whether experience could withstand Roy’s youth and power.
On 2 June, Roy dropped Sarukhanian four times and stopped him in the eighth round at MaxFight 54 to win the organisation’s title. It was a decisive victory against an opponent who kept getting up.
Moving up two divisions
Sarukhanian was 36, twelve years older than Velev, and arrived with 19 professional wins, six losses and one draw. He relied on his speed, experience and confidence in such battles. Roy brought his reputation as a knockout artist and the desire to prove it against an opponent the Bulgarian crowd knew well.
To make the fight, Velev accepted a 76.2 kg limit — super middleweight. That was two divisions above the 69.9 kg super welterweight class in which he usually competed, with middleweight between them. In our negotiations, Sarukhanian was moving down from light heavyweight to super middleweight, while Roy accepted the challenge of facing a bigger opponent.
The weigh-in only intensified the tension
Even at the weigh-in, it was clear how personal the rivalry had become. Fans had their favourites, the words had already been spoken and there was no retreat from the bold claims. For our team, the key was for Roy to turn that adrenaline into precise action.
He started strongly. At the end of the first round, a left uppercut to the body sent Sarukhanian down. For us in the corner, the count felt endless — the finish seemed so close. But Grigor got up and brought the fight back to life. Plovdiv would see much more than a quick knockout.
Sarukhanian kept getting up; Roy kept attacking
Velev had the advantage in the sharp exchanges and dropped his opponent again in the fourth round. Sarukhanian found the strength to continue and made the fifth and sixth rounds more competitive. His resilience added weight to the task Roy still had to finish.
In the seventh, a combination of hooks brought the third knockdown. Grigor got back to his feet again. In the eighth, a series of left hooks dropped him for the fourth time and the referee stopped the contest. Roy had imposed his power without losing the persistence needed against such a stubborn opponent.
A breakthrough night for Roy
After so much tension, the joy in our team was enormous. Velev had accepted a higher weight class, withstood the public pressure and backed his words with eight rounds of work. The MaxFight belt was now his.
Sarukhanian also left his mark on the night with the courage to keep going. For Roy, Plovdiv became the fight through which more people saw his style: heavy punching, combinations and constant readiness to seek the finish. The same event also brought Vladimir Georgiev the national title after ten rounds with Zdravko Popov — another major Bulgarian battle.
Grigor Sarukhanian vs Borislav Velev · MaxFight 54
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