By Kamel Messani

The WBA number #13 ranked middleweight contender Julian Marie Sainte (29-2, 21 KO) retained his French title in Aulnay Sous Bois, France after a ten round unanimous decision win (97-93, 97-93 and 96-94) over Affif Belghecham (19-6-1, 4 KOs). The fighters kept all of their promises and fought at a sensational pace without breaks and and virtually no intervention from the referee. With the win, Julien Marie Sainte approximates more of a chance to go for the European title. Belghecham is an experienced fighter and has already faced several top middleweight in the past (Hassan N'Dam, Andy Lee and Darren Barker).

In the co-feature, middleweight Mehdi Bouadla who was going to face Sebastian Sylvester on January 22 in Germany, won an eight round decision over Pavels Lotahs. Medhi proved he has a big heart. Although his grandfather passed away a few hours before the fight, Mehdi honored his promise to go forward with the fight. Mehdi is awaiting the final decision and details from Team Sauerland as to a new date to face Sylvester.