UKRAINIAN heavyweight contender Vyacheslav Glazkov, 21-1-1 (13), injured his right knee throwing a shot in the third round of Saturday’s challenge for the vacant IBF title against new champion, Charles Martin, 23-0-1 (21), and sadly for the former 2008 Olympic bronze medalist, the damage is worse than first thought, ruling him out of action for as long as a year.

Fight night doctor Gerard Velotta initially diagnosed Glazkov as suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear, although a further visit to Dr. Benjamin Yukhanan earlier this week in Florida, where Glazkov has his training base, delivered the grim news that the injury is even worse than at first thought, and that after eventual surgery, he is highly unlikely to see a return to action this year.

“The doctor says my knee is much worse than we thought,” Glazkov said. “It’s not just the ACL. It’s also the meniscus [which is torn], and my whole knee was dislocated.”

He expects his leg to remain in a cast for a month, then do a month’s worth of therapy before he can have surgery. He will be out for 10 months at best.

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