Oleg Maskaev

Oleg Alexandrovich Maskaev (; born March 2, 1969, in Zhambyl, Kazakh SSR) is a Russian professional boxer and a former WBC heavyweight champion. He is an ethnic Mordvin.

Boxing career

Maskaev, a former mine worker, began his career in the 1980s as an amateur boxer in the Soviet Union, where he held a victory over world champion Vitali Klitschko. He was the champion of the Soviet Army and later the national cup winner. His professional boxing career began in 1993.

Oleg is known for his powerful right-hand punch: he has knocked out former WBO heavyweight challenger Derrick Jefferson, contender Alex Stewart, and twice knocked out former WBC heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman. However, he is also noted for a weak chin that was evident in his knockout losses to contenders Oliver McCall, David Tua, Kirk Johnson, Lance Whitaker, Corey Sanders and journeyman Nagy Aguilera.

His most famous victories have been his two wins over Hasim Rahman. Maskaev knocked Rahman off balance, sending his rival out of the ring in the 8th round on November 6, 1999. This fight is also notable for the famous "chair incident", in which noted referee, Steve Smoger, who was backup referee for this fight, was struck in the head by a chair thrown by a fan who was later arrested.

<!-- Deleted image removed: -->He later fought Rahman again and defeated him for the WBC heavyweight title by knocking him out in the 12th round on August 12 2006. His second win over Rahman was preceded by a streak of...
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