Uzbekistan’s Israil Madrimov is about to square off against Terence Crawford on August 3rd at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, headlining His Excellency Turki Alalshikh’s first event in the United States. However, the 10-0-1 boxer seems to have landed himself in a feud with unbeaten Vergil Ortiz Jr.

As it turns out, Madrimov was training for his fight against ‘Bud’ Crawford with Ortiz Jr., as the duo sparred with Robert Garcia overseeing the whole affair. You must be wondering, when did the feud begin? Well, the Uzbekistan boxer appeared in an interview with SnowQueenLA, where he made some comments about the sparring session and Ortiz, which didn’t sit well with the American.

Vergil Ortiz Jr. reveals Israil Madrimov didn’t show up again

In the interview, Madrimov shared his thoughts on Ortiz Jr., describing him as a “strong guy, good guy” and referring to their sparring session as a “good experience” for him. He elaborated on his initial impressions, stating, “In one word, he is a normal boxer.” When prompted about whether Ortiz Jr. impressed him in any way, Madrimov highlighted Ortiz Jr.’s notable strengths, particularly his volume punching and his ability to apply pressure on his opponents. 

He later added, “Our game plan was to play with him like Soviet amateur style”. Despite this relatively polite response, Ortiz Jr. seems to have taken offence at some of the things Madrimov said. Turning to X, the Dallas, Texas native wrote, “‘Our game plan was to play with him’ sounds like an excuse like ‘I wasn’t really trying’ when this normal boxer put it on his a**”. Also, adding that Madrimov “didn’t even show up” for their sparring session the next Monday without informing them.

While Vergil Ortiz Jr. is clearly unimpressed with the 29-year-old boxer, a British promoter has predicted Madrimov will ruin Saudi’s plans for Terence Crawford.

Eddie Hearn suggests Madrimov is being overlooked

The upcoming fight will be Crawford’s debut in the welterweight division, and His Excellency Turki Alalshikh has expressed high expectations from Crawford for the fight. However, in an interview with Matchroom Boxing’ YouTube channel, Eddie Hearn revealed his thoughts about the upcoming fight.

Hearn said, “Israil Madrimov is being massively overlooked, I actually sent His Excellency [Turki Alalshikh] a message yesterday, and I said, ‘I’m really sorry to ruin your plans for Terence Crawford’”. He added that people are speculating Crawford’s next fight against Canelo Alvarez and Jaron Ennis, but Hearn feels Madrimov would be Crawford’s biggest challenge to date.

“He’s a huge light middleweight super welterweight, punches very very hard, has tremendous movement, good boxing IQ and outstanding amateur pedigree as well”, Hearn added. Terence Crawford has been an undisputed champion in two weight divisions, having fought the likes of Errol Spence Jr., Shawn Porter, to name a few. So, only time will tell whether Hearn’s prediction holds any ground.

With that said, Israil Madrimov’s arrival in the States seems to have started with a spat with Vergil Ortiz Jr. But the question is, can he do the impossible? Can he beat Terence Crawford? Let us know in the comments below!