Imam Khataev vs Padraig McCrory Preview October 8th, 2026
Imam Khataev of Russia takes on Padraig McCrory of Belfast, Northern Ireland in a 10-round light heavyweight tilt this Thursday, October 8th. The fight takes place in Quebec, Canada, where Khataev now resides, and can be seen live in most nations on DAZN. Khataev last fought in June when he rose from the canvas and stopped Mickael Diallo in the first round to defend his NABF Light Heavyweight Title. McCrory last saw action in June as well when he halted Ondrej Budera in the second stanza.
Khataev vs McCrory Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Padraig McCrory +1000
- Imam Khataev -2500
My Pick
The 32-year-old Khataev was fighting out of Australia before moving to Canada, and makes the ring walk with a fine mark of 12-1 with 11 Ko’s. The hard hitter turned pro in 2021 and has boxed just 51 rounds since due to his power. He enjoyed an extensive amateur career and made it to the Olympic Games in 2021 where he was beaten in the Light-Heavyweight semi final by England’s Ben Whittaker. He also won a bronze medal at the 2013 World Championships, competed in the World Series of Boxing and was a Russian National Champion in 2019 and 2020.
Khataev possesses tremendous power as 91.7 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage. He’s gone the distance just once as a pro and that was on March, 2025 when he went 10 rounds with Durval Palacio in a wide 10-round unanimous decision. He has only met one legitimate contender in his pro career though and that was against former world champion David Morrell in July of last year. Khataev fought well but he fell just short as he dropped a controversial 10-round split decision despite dropping Morrell in the fifth round.
The Russian captured the vacant NABF Light Heavyweight Title in January, 2024 by stopping Michal Ludwiczak in the second round. Khataev also has wins over Ricards Bolotniks, Ezequiel Maderna, Yunior Menendez and Adam Deines. His victories over Maderna and Deines were also for the NABF Crown. Khataev measures just over 5-feet-10-inches tall with an unlisted reach and is known as a relentless, pressure boxer with extremely heavy hands.
As for Padraig McCrory, he’s now 38 years old and enters the ring with a mark of 20-2 with 10 Ko’s. He packs average power in his punches as 50 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage. He’s only stopped one of his last seven opponents though and is 2-2 in his last four fights. In addition, he was knocked out in his two defeats so his punch resistance seems to be weakening. He stands 6-feet-1-inch tall with an unlisted reach, so has a 2.5-inch height advantage on Khataev.
McCrory turned pro back in 2017 and has 116 rounds of experience since then. He enjoyed a successful amateur career and reached the semifinals of the 2015 Irish National Championships and the 2007 Under-21 National Semifinals. As a pro, McCrory has competed in the super middleweight and light heavyweight divisions. He won the WBC International Silver Super Middleweight in August, 2021 by beating Sergei Gorokhov via a fifth-round TKO.
He defended the belt three times and then added the vacant IBO Light Heavyweight Title in October, 2022 by stopping Leon Bunn in the sixth round. McCrory also has wins over Steve Collins Jr., Marco Antonio Periban, Leonard Carrillo and Diego Ramirez. His first defeat came at the hands of Edgar Berlanga by sixth-round KO in 2024. He was also stopped by a body shot by Craig Richards in the eighth round in March of last year.
Prediction…
McCrory originally retired from the ring after his last fight in June, but has apparently been enticed back into action. It may not be a good idea for the 38-year-old though as Khataev carries solid power and has fine skills to boot. Also, McCrory has been stopped in his two pro defeats. I’m going with Khataev here and I’m expecting him to win by stoppage even though McCrory may frustrate him for a round or two.
Khataev has too much power for McCrory. .
Play Khataev -2500 @ BetOnline.ag
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Imam Khataev betting • Padraig McCrory betting