Paddy Donovan vs Karen Chukhadzhian Preview May 15th, 2026
Karen Chukhadzhian of Ukraine takes on Ireland’s Paddy Donovan in an IBF Welterweight Eliminator in Mannheim, Germany this Friday, May 15th. Donovan last fought in September when he lost a split decision to Lewis Crocker in a rematch for the vacant IBF Welterweight Title. The two first met six months earlier with Donovan being controversially disqualified after the eighth round for hitting and dropping Crocker after the bell. Donovan was also deducted a point in the sixth and eighth rounds for head butting but was comfortably ahead on all three scorecards when the fight was stopped. Chukhadzhian last saw action in October when he stopped Joel Marcos Mafauad in the second round to capture the vacant IBF, and WBO International Welterweight Belts.
Donovan vs Chukhadzhian Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Paddy Donovan +136
- Karen Chukhadzhian -175
My Pick
Donovan is a 27-year-old southpaw who climbs into the ring with a mark of 14-2 with 11 Ko’s. He’s boxed 83 rounds since turning pro in 2019 and has quite a bit of power in his arsenal as 78.6 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage including his last five. Donovan had an extensive amateur career and fought at the 2016 World Youth Championships and won several national championships in the Republic of Ireland. His lone pro defeats were the disqualification and split decision losses to Crocker in his last two bouts.
Donovan, who resides in Limerick, has wins over Jose Luis Castillo, Danny Ball, Tom Hill and Lewis Ritson. He measures 5-feet-9-inches tall but unfortunately has an unlisted reach. He was dominating Crocker in their first fight but can only blame himself for the disqualification for his tactics. Donovan can ill afford to suffer another setback this weekend against Chukhadzhian as it would be his third consecutive defeat.
Chukhadzhian is 30 years of age and carries around a mark of 26-3 with 14 Ko’s. He’s got 187 rounds of experience under his belt since making his pro debut in 2015 following a brief amateur career. He measures just over 5-feet-9-inches tall and also has an unlisted reach so is just half-an-inch taller than Donovan. When it comes to power, Chukhadzhian comes in second best to Donovan as 54 per cent of his wins have been by stoppage and he’s halted three of his last seven opponents.
His first pro loss came at the hands of Andrii Velikovskyi by three-round split decision in his second pro bout in 2015 in a Super 8 Junior Middleweight Final. However he’s best known for his pair of defeats against Jaron Ennis. Chukhadzhian first met Ennis in January, 2023 for the interim IBF Welterweight Title with Ennis winning every round in a bit of a snoozefest. He then fought three times after that loss as he stopped Michel Marcono in two rounds in April, 2023; halted Pietro Rossetti in the ninth round in October, 2023 to defend his IBF Inter-Continental Belt and beat Harry Scarff by a 12-round unanimous decision.
The IBF then ordered a rematch between Chukhadzhian and Ennis in November, 2024 and he lost another unanimous decision after being dropped in the fifth round and deducted a point for holding in the 10th. Chukhadzhian also has wins against Ali Funeka, Jose Rosales, Yannick Dehez, Ryan Martin and Blake Minto. Chukhadzhian now fights out of Germany and has fought mainly in Ukraine, Russia and Europe. Since turning pro, Chukhadzhian has also captured the vacant WBO Youth Welterweight Title, the vacant WBC Youth Silver Welterweight Belt and the vacant WBA International Welterweight Crown.
Prediction…
Chukhadzhian and Donovan are both solid boxers but aren’t spectacular. Donovan possesses more power while Chukhadzhian has experience against better opposition and has slightly better boxing skills. He’s also fighting in Germany and I think it’s going to be hard for Donovan to outbox him. The Irishman has an outside chance of stopping him but that’s not a likely ending. I’m going with Chukhadzhian here in a close decision.
Chukhadzhian’s experience and hometown advantage should be the difference.
Play Chukhadzhian -175 @ BetOnline.ag
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Karen Chukhadzhian betting • Paddy Donovan betting