Florian Marku is an Albanian professional boxer and former kickboxer[1] and mixed martial artist.

Florian Marku
Born (1992-09-29) 29 September 1992 (age 32)
Lushnjë, Albania
Other names
  • TNT
  • Albanian King
Height174 cm (5 ft 8+12 in)
DivisionWelterweight
Fighting out ofLondon, England
Years active
  • 2016–2017 (MMA)
  • 2018–present (boxing)
Professional boxing record
Total15
Wins13
By knockout8
Losses1
Draws1
Mixed martial arts record
Total3
Wins3
By knockout1
By submission2
Other information
Boxing record from BoxRec
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Professional career

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Marku made his professional debut on 1 December 2018, scoring a first-round technical knockout (TKO) victory against Nikola Janicievic at the Beste Event Halle in Ulm, Germany.[2]

In November 2020, after compiling a record of 7–0 (5 KOs), he signed a promotional contract with Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Sport.[3] The following month, Marku faced Jamie Stewart at The SSE Arena in London. The bout served as part of the undercard for Anthony Joshua vs. Kubrat Pulev and was televised live on Sky Sports Box Office. In a fight which saw Marku drop his opponent to the canvas with a punch to the body in the second round, the result was controversially announced as a draw, with referee Marcus McDonnell scoring the bout 76–76.[4][5]

Marku returned to The SSE Arena for his next fight, facing Rylan Charlton on 20 February 2021. Marku boxed well and controlled a lot of the fight but suffered a knockdown in the sixth round from a right hand by Charlton, Marku went on to secure an eighth-round TKO after Charlton's corner threw in the towel after their charge was on the receiving end of a sustained attack by Marku.[6]

Marku had been scheduled to challenge IBF International welterweight champion Maxim Prodan on 7 August 2021 as part of Matchroom's Fight Camp,[7] but the fight was postponed when Marku suffered an injury. On 25 August, it was announced that the bout would now take place on 25 September at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on the undercard of Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk which he won via split decision after 10 rounds against Maxim Prodan.[8]

On March 31, 2024 in London, Marku was scheduled to face Chris Kongo.[9]

Professional boxing record

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15 fights 13 wins 1 loss
By knockout 8 0
By decision 5 1
Draws 1
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
15 Loss 13–1–1 Chris Kongo UD 10 31 Mar 2024 The O2 Arena, London, England For vacant IBO Intercontinental welterweight title
14 Win 13–0–1 Dylan Moran TKO 1 (10), 0:54 2 Sep 2023 Manchester Arena, Manchester, England
13 Win 12–0–1 Miguel Parra Ramirez UD 10 25 Aug 2022 Arena Kombëtare, Tirana, Albania Won vacant WBC Silver interim welterweight title
12 Win 11–0–1 Chris Jenkins TKO 4 (10), 1:41 2 Apr 2022 Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle, England Retained IBF International welterweight title
11 Win 10–0–1 Jorick Luisetto PTS 8 20 Nov 2021 The SSE Arena, London, England
10 Win 9–0–1 Maxim Prodan SD 10 25 Sep 2021 Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, England Won IBF International welterweight title
9 Win 8–0–1 Rylan Charlton TKO 8 (10), 2:18 20 Feb 2021 The SSE Arena, London, England
8 Draw 7–0–1 Jamie Stewart PTS 8 12 Dec 2020 The SSE Arena, London, England
7 Win 7–0 Muma Mweemba TKO 1 (6), 1:41 10 Nov 2020 BT Sport Studio, London, England
6 Win 6–0 Nathan Bendon PTS 6 13 Dec 2019 Ice Planet, Altrincham, England
5 Win 5–0 Miroslav Serban PTS 6 20 Sep 2019 indigo at The O2, London, England
4 Win 4–0 Tommy Broadbent KO 4 (4), 2:32 13 Jul 2019 The O2 Arena, London, England
3 Win 3–0 Jan Marsalek KO 1 (6), 2:18 27 Apr 2019 York Hall, London, England
2 Win 2–0 Ivan Godor TKO 2 (4), 1:01 23 Mar 2019 York Hall, London, England
1 Win 1–0 Nikola Janicievic TKO 1 (4), 2:14 1 Dec 2018 Beste Event Halle, Ulm, Germany

References

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  1. ^ "Watch Florian Marku's homecoming clash on Sky Sports stream". Sky Sports. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  2. ^ "BoxRec: Florian Marku vs. Nikola Janicievic". BoxRec. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Florian Marku: Albanian welterweight signs with Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing". Sky Sports. 27 November 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  4. ^ Benson, Michael (12 December 2020). "'Are you joking?' - Angry Albanian Florian Marku goes on stunning rant after draw". Talksport. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  5. ^ Dixon, Tris (12 December 2020). "Joshua-Pulev undercard action: Welterweight Florian Marku held to controversial draw by Jamie Stewart". The Ring. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  6. ^ Lewis, Ron (20 February 2021). "Florian Marku Gets Off The Floor, Stops Rylan Charlton in Eight". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  7. ^ "Matchroom Fight Camp 2: Who is fighting? What are the main events? Dates, how to watch and more info | DAZN News Canada". DAZN. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Joshua vs Usyk: Lawrence Okolie, Callum Smith and Campbell Hatton added to bill". www.britishboxingnews.co.uk. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  9. ^ Iskenderov, Parviz (10 February 2024). "Florian Marku faces Chris Kongo on Wardley vs Clarke undercard". FIGHTMAG.
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