At the age of 37, Kubrat is a nine-year pro. The IBF’s No. 1-ranked mandatory heavyweight world title challenger and a superstar in Bulgaria, he was an international amateur standout before his debut – he was the super heavyweight gold medalist at the 2008 European Championships, and the super heavyweight representative for Bulgaria at the 2008 Olympic Games. He also competed in the amateur World Championships five times, and in other international tournaments had impressive amateur wins against Roberto Cammarelle of Italy (along with at least three documented losses), Odlanier Solis of Cuba (along with at least three documented losses), and Magomed Abdusalamov of Russia.
With his strong amateur background and pro debut at the late age of 28, Kubrat advanced relatively quickly as a professional.
He challenged WBA-IBF-WBO heavyweight world champion Wladimir Klitschko in November, 2014, but lost by fifth-round knockout. He has won six fights in a row since then, which include two IBF eliminators.
Kubrat was scheduled to challenge WBA-IBF heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua on October 28, 2017, but injured his shoulder in training and withdrew 10 days before the fight.
There is some history between Kubrat and Bogdan Dinu. They fought each other as amateurs – Kubrat won a 14-4 decision against Dinu in the quarterfinal round of the amateur 2007 Golden Belt Tournament in Constanta, Romania. Kubrat said that he and Dinu have had no interactions since then.
In his last fight on October 27, 2018, in Sofia, Bulgaria, Kubrat won a 12-round unanimous decision against Hughie Fury, Tyson Fury’s cousin, in an IBF eliminator.
The Ring’s Anson Wainwright reported [excerpts]: Kubrat Pulev showed no signs of ring rust returning from an 18-month hiatus to outpoint Hughie Fury in a meeting of once-beaten former heavyweight title challengers. This was an IBF final eliminator, hosted in front of a partisan crowd at the Arena Armeec, Sofia, Bulgaria.
Pulev advanced to win the right to face Anthony Joshua in an often scrappy bout by unanimous decision (118-110, 117-111 and 115-113).
The fight started slowly with both men tentative from the start. The first big moment came in the final moments of the second round when the Bulgarian landed a strong jab that re-opened a previous training injury to Fury’s left eyelid.
The injury threatened to curtail the action before the fight had really started. Thankfully, cut man Kerry Kayes did an outstanding job throughout, preventing the cut from becoming the story of the fight and even stopped the bleeding.
Fury started the third round like he knew the fight might not go the distance.
Pulev, 13 years Fury’s senior at 37, weathered what Fury threw at him and used his experience to push the traveling man onto the backfoot, where it was always going to be difficult for him to come back from on the road.
By the mid-rounds, Pulev, who weighed 240.5 pounds, his lightest in several years, had edged ahead though several rounds looked close. His greater activity and excellent jab kept him in control.
Although Pulev was landing and pushing Fury back more often, he was given a warning that he had to be careful, when Fury landed a right hand, catching the Bulgarian national hero coming in, forcing him to retreat and cover up.
To his credit, Pulev rebounded in a strong ninth round, schooling the younger man for much of the frame.
As the rounds passed, it was clear that Fury needed the knockout to win, but he also looked the more tired of the two, often taking solace on the ropes, hoping to time Pulev, who was too worldly for that.
At the conclusion of the contest Pulev was rightly awarded the decision. [End Wainwright item]
Team Pulev’s Ivalo Gotsev said, “Kubrat is a superstar in Bulgaria. He’s the most popular athlete there, by far. Let’s put it this way – he’s the number-one heavyweight in the world, a European champion, and he challenged for the world title. He’s larger than life, literally – he’s six-foot-four and towers over most athletes there – and has represented Bulgaria since he was 12 years old. He’s well-spoken and what we consider a patriot who loves his country. He does a lot of charity work in Bulgaria and is always in the public eye. He’s well-loved and highly-regarded.
“He’ll have an eight-week training camp for this fight. He started with five weeks at a high altitude sports training camp in Belmeken, Bulgaria, and is finishing with three weeks at the Top Rank gym in Las Vegas. He’s been sparring with Samuel Peter and a few young guys.
“On Saturday and Sunday, instead of resting we were visiting the community in Los Angeles. The Vice President of Bulgaria was here on a visit for our Independence Day, which happens to be March 3rd. We attended three different events.”
Kubrat added through an interpreter, “Uli Wagner has been my trainer for all of my fights since I fought Klitschko. He taught me how to pace myself better and have a better defense – how to keep my hands up. He taught me how to be better disciplined in a fight – when to take action, and when to be defensive.”
Regarding Bogdan Dinu, Kubrat said, “He is a skilled boxer and is motivated for this fight.”
In an earlier interview, Kubrat said, “I think my style is very versatile. Normally I try to win fights using my technical abilities and good tactics.”
Regarding his nickname, he said, “The name is related to my speed and quick reactions. I have had that name since my youth.”
AMATEUR, PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Kubrat said through an interpreter that he was born and raised in Sofia, Bulgaria, and grew up in a family with one brother and three sisters…his father, Venko Pulev, was a professional boxer and a Bulgarian heavyweight champion…Kubrat’s brother, Tervel Pulev, won a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games – now a pro cruiserweight, 36-year-old Tervel is currently 12-0, 11 KOs…
Kubrat said that he started boxing when he was 13, inspired to become a boxer by his father…he was drafted by the Bulgarian national amateur team when he 17…
He said he had around 280 amateur fights, with 12 losses…
From kubratpulev.com: His father, Venko Pulev, is former champion of Bulgaria in boxing super heavyweight. He grows up in the comfort of a large and close-knit family. He has three older sisters Annie, Boryana and Victoria. The youngest member of the family Pulevi – Tervel is a boxer as well.
Venko Pulev educates his children in the most precious human values – discipline, humility, responsibility to studying and sports as well as respect to the others. Patriotism is one of the most esteem features of Kubrat. As a result from his successes, he was offered German citizenship. His answer is instantaneous: “I am Bulgarian in my soul … not only in blood. That is impossible to be changed. I am happy for the people that support me. I am happy that I inspire them with courage, confidence, and strength. Our nation is a little bit depressed. We don’t have confidence. These victories of mine give wings to the people. If I become a German, I will have financial benefit. But will not make me happier. Sporting spirit and perseverance are part of the prerequisites for success in the amateurs and professionals.”
Kubrat Pulev is actively engaged in boxing at the age of 13. They both with his brother Tervel have been tempered before that by their father in basement of the block of flats thay’ve lived in. The stringent Venko shows how the techniques are performed to his sons. He destines the path of his children after taking them to the hall the boxing club of CSKA Sofia in 1994. Kubrat passes through very good specialist who take care for his sports development. [End kubratpulev.com item]
Kubrat was a sergeant in the Bulgarian military, and speaks Bulgarian and German…
He said that he is naturally right-handed…he is single and has no children…his girlfriend is in show business in Bulgaria, a former beauty queen described by BBC News as a “pop-folk superstar”: 32-year-old Andrea – real name Teodora Andreeva, of Sofia, Bulgaria; her hits include “Neblagodaren” (Ungrateful) and “S Teb da Bŭdem Pak” (Let’s Be Back with You)…
AMATEUR HIGHLIGHTS:
2009 AIBA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Milan, Italy, 201+ pounds: in his first fight on 9-1-09 he stopped Nelson Hysa of Albania in the 3rd round; in his second fight on 9-7-09 he won an 8-2 decision against Yousef Abdelghani of Israel; in the quarterfinals on 9-9-09 he lost a 12-6 decision against Roberto Cammarelle of Italy…
2008 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS – Liverpool, England, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 11-9-08 he had a 2-2 draw, but won the tiebreaker against Primislav Dimovski of Macedonia; in the quarterfinals on 11-11-08 he stopped Marko Tomasovic of Croatia in the 2nd round; in the semifinals on 11-13-08 he won a 6-4 decision against Roman Kapitanenko of Ukraine; in the finals on 11-15-08 he won a 9-2 decision against Denis Sergeyev of Russia…
2008 OLYMPIC GAMES – Beijing, People’s Republic of China, 201+ pounds: in his first fight on 8-13-08 he lost an 11-5 decision against Oscar Rivas of Colombia…
2008 BULGARIAN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS – Pleven, Bulgaria, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 4-22-08 he defeated Petar Ivanov; in the quarterfinals on 4-23-08 he defeated Ivaylo Boyanov; in the semifinals on 4-24-08 he defeated Ivan Ivanov; in the finals on 4-25-08 he won by walkover against Stanislav Spasov…
2008 EUROPEAN OLYMPIC QUALIFIER – Pescara, Italy, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 2-26-08 he won a 25-12 decision against Stefan Koeber of Germany; in the quarterfinals on 2-27-08 he won a 15-8 decision against Raitis Ritenieks of Latvia; in the semifinals on 2-29-08 he won a 14-6 decision against Jaroslavas Jaksto of Lithuania; in the finals on 3-1-08 he stopped Marko Tomasovic of Croatia in the 2nd round…
2008 STRANDJA MEMORIAL – Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) on 2-2-08 he stopped Georgios Hotz of Greece in the 1st round; in the finals on 2-3-08 he won a 20-9 decision against Robert Alfonso of Cuba…
2007 AIBA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Chicago, Illinois, 201+ pounds: in his first fight on 10-24-07 he won a 12-2 decision against Beka Lobzhanidze of the Republic of Georgia; in his second fight on 10-27-07 he won a 21-3 decision against Vladimir Prusa of Czech Republic; in his third fight on 10-31-07 he lost a 12-5 decision against Roberto Cammarelle of Italy…
2007 GOLDEN BELT TOURNAMENT – Constanta, Romania, 201+ pounds – SILVER MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 9-6-07 he won a 14-4 decision against Bogdan Dinu of Romania; in the semifinals on 9-7-07 he won a 13-6 decision against Erkan Teper of Germany; in the finals on 9-8-7 he lost by walkover against Razvan Cojanu of Romania…
2007 GRAND PRIX – Usti, Czech Republic, 201+ pounds: in his first fight on 5-16-07 he won a 22-8 decision against Krzysztof Głowacki of Poland; in the quarterfinals on 5-17-07 he was stopped in the 2nd round against Daniel Beahan of Australia…
2007 CHEMIE POKAL – Halle, Germany, 291+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 5-10-07 he stopped Boris Boshenko of Germany in the 3rd round; in the semifinals on 5-11-07 he won a 26-11 decision against Stefan Koeber of Germany; in the finals on 5-12-07 he stopped Erkan Teper of Germany in the 4th round…
2007 GEE-BEE TOURNAMENT – Helsinki, Finland, 201+ pounds – BRONZE MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 4-13-07 he won a 20-6 decision against Edvards Krasnevics of Latvia; in the semifinals on 4-14-07 he lost a 17-14 decision against Cathal McMonagle of Ireland…
2007 BEOGRADSKI POBEDNIK – Belgrade, Serbia, 201+ pounds: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 3-23-07 he lost a 14-13 decision against David Arshba of Russia…
2007 BULGARIAN SELECTION TOURNAMENT – Burgas, Bulgaria, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 3-7-07 he defeated Denis Demiryan; in the quarterfinals on 3-9-07 he defeated Yordan Popov; in the semifinals on 3-10-07 he defeated Yanko Dimitrov; in the finals on 3-11-07 he defeated Miroslav Hristov…
2006 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS – Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 201+ pounds – BRONZE MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 7-19-06 he stopped Csaba Kurtucz of Hungary in the 2nd round; in the semifinals on 7-21-06 he was stopped in the 3rd round against Islam Timurziev of Russia…
2006 CHEMIE POKAL – Halle, Germany, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 4-27-06 he won a 30-18 decision against Jaroslavas Jaksto of Lithuania; in the semifinals on 4-28-06 he won a 28-17 decision against Vyacheslav Glazkov of Ukraine; in the finals on 4-29-06 he stopped Magomed Abdusalamov of Russia in the 3rd round…
2006 GEE-BEE TOURNAMENT – Helsinki, Finland, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) on 4-8-6 he won a 15-6 decision against Zhang Zhilei of China; in the finals on 4-9-6 he won a 20-10 decision against Modo Sallah of Sweden…
2006 STRANDJA MEMORIAL – Pleven, Bulgaria, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the finals (his first fight) on 2-19-06 he won by walkover against Vyacheslav Glazkov of Ukraine…
2005 AIBA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Mianyang, China, 201+ pounds – BRONZE MEDALIST: in his first fight on 11-17-05 he stopped Steven Rudic of Australia in the 2nd round; in the quarterfinals on 11-18-05 he stopped Alen Beganovic of Serbia [round not reported]; in the semifinals on the 11-19-05 he lost a 25-11 decision against Odlanier Solis of Cuba…
2005 GRAND PRIX – Ostrava, Czech Republic, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) on 10-1-05 he won a 21-9 decision against Csaba Kurtucz of Hungary; in the finals on 10-2-05 he stopped Mohamed Samoudi of France in the 3rd round…
2005 EUROPEAN UNION CHAMPIONSHIPS – Cagliari, Italy, 201+ pounds – SILVER MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 6-6-05 he won a 30-11 decision against Grzegorz Kiełsa of Poland; in the semifinals on 6-9-05 he won a 33-9 decision against Csaba Kurtucz of Hungary; in the finals on 6-10-05 he lost a 24-18 decision against Roberto Cammarelle of Italy…
2005 BOX-AM TOURNAMENT – Lanzarote, Spain, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST [incomplete results]: in the finals on 5-22-05 he stopped Juan J. Ruiz of Spain in the 1st round…
2005 CHEMIE POKAL – Halle, Germany, 201+ pounds: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 4-14-05 he lost a decision against Sebastian Koeber of Germany…
2005 STRANDJA MEMORIAL – Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 201+ pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) on 2-12-05 he stopped Rustam Rygabaev of Kazakhstan in the 2nd round; in the finals on 2-13-05 he won a 26-15 decision against Islam Timurziev of Russia…
2003 AIBA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Bangkok, Thailand, 201 pounds: in his first fight on 7-6-03 he lost a 12-7 decision against Odlanier Solis of Cuba…
2003 CHEMISTRY CUP – Halle, Germany, 201 pounds – BRONZE MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) on 3-7-02 he lost a 14-6 decision against Odlanier Solis of Cuba…
2002 STRANDJA MEMORIAL – Plovidv, Bulgaria, 201 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) he defeated Valentinos Papalambros of Greece; in the finals on 2-24-2 he won a 25-20 decision against Odlanier Solis of Cuba…
2001 AIBA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Belfast, Northern Ireland, 201 pounds: in his first fight on 6-3-01 he won a 9-3 decision against Magomed Adamov of Kazakhstan; in his second fight on 6-6-01 he had a 15-15 draw, but won the tiebreaker against Jaroslavas Jaksto of Lithuania; in the quarterfinals on 6-7-01 he lost a 15-12 decision against Sultan Ibragimov of Russia…
2001 BULGARIAN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS – Burgas, Bulgaria, 201 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 4-18-01 he stopped Ivailo Boyanov in the 3rd round; in the quarterfinals on 4-19-01 he stopped Yancho Dimitrov in the 2nd round; in the semifinals on 4-20-01 he stopped Georgi Popov (no round reported); in the finals on 4-22-01 he won by walkover against Ivan Atanasov…
2001 GEE-BEE TOURNAMENT – Helsinki, Finland, 201 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the semifinals (his first fight) on 4-7-01 he stopped Balazs Varga of Hungary in the 3rd round; in the finals on 4-8-01 he won a 13-6 decision against Alexey Orabko of Ukraine…
2001 TROFEO ITALIA – Naples, Italy, 201 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 3-21-01 he won a 15-5 decision against Seat Bushati of Albania; in the semifinals on 3-23-01 he stopped Roberto Cammarelle of Italy in the 3rd round; in the finals on 3-24-01 he won a 9-1 decision against Andrey Pomozov of Kazakhstan…
2001 STRANDJA MEMORIAL – Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 201 pounds – SILVER MEDALIST: in the finals (his first fight) on 2-18-01 he lost a 7-5 decision against Emil Krastev…
2000 MULTI NATIONS TOURNAMENT – Liverpool, England, 178 pounds [incomplete results]: in his first fight on 3-22-00 he lost an 8-4 decision against Aleksy Kuziemski of Poland…
1999 EUROPEAN JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS – Rijeka, Croatia, 178 pounds: in his first fight on 9-13-90 he had a 5-5 draw, but lost the tiebreaker against Petro Romanov of Ukraine…
STRENGTHS: Has good skills and movement…is experienced against top opposition…had a strong amateur background…has a strong family boxing background…
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: 27 fights…187 total rounds…5 world championship rounds…
AVERAGE LENGTH OF BOUTS: 6.9 rounds…
KNOCKOUT PERCENTAGE: of total fights – 48 %…of wins – 50 %…
DISTANCE FIGHTS: 12 rounds – 5 (5-0)…11 rounds – 2 (2-0)…10 rounds – 0…
