Imam Abdulayevich Khataev (; born 31 August 1994) is a Russian boxer. He competed in the men's light heavyweight event at the 2020 Summer Olympics, where he was defeated by Briton Benjamin Whittaker by a score of 4–1 in the semifinals.
Biography and career Imam Khataev was born on August 31, 1994 in Kulary village, Chechen Republic. His first professional trainer was Shamil Batsagov.
In 2015 he participated in the Russian Championship in Samara.
In 2017 he received the title of Master of Sports of international class.
He turned pro in 2021, but continued to compete in the amateur ranks alongside his pro career until 2023, when he won the bronze medal at the World Boxing Championships in Uzbekistan. Since then, he has fought exclusively as a professional.
Khataev won all of his first ten professional fights, including nine by KO. He eventually faced David Morrell on July 12, 2025, in New York City. A former WBA super-middleweight and light-heavyweight Regular champion, Morrell was considered a major step-up in class for Khataev. On July 8, the International Testing Agency, under the auspicies of the IBA, revealed that Khataev had tested positive for clomifene in April of that year. While Khataev was suspended for two years by the IBA, the bout was allowed to continue, evidently due to the IBA's limited jurisdiction.
Despite knocking Morrell down in the fifth round (the first knockdown of Morrell's career), Khataev lost a controversial 10-round split decision, handing him his first defeat.
Khataev is currently scheduled to face former world-title challenger Adam Deines on December 11, 2025, at the Lac Leamy Casino in Gatineau, Canada. Previously, he had been scheduled to face Richard Rivera, who dropped out due to an unspecified injury.
Professional boxing record
ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes1312-1Mickael DialloTKO1 (10), 3:004 Jun 2026Montreal Casino, Montreal, CanadaDefended NABF light-heavyweight title 12Win11–1Adam DeinesTKO3 (10) 11 Dec 202511Loss10–1David Morrell Jr.1012 Jul 202510Win10–0Druval Palacios1022 Mar 20259Win9–0Yunior MenendezTKO3 (10) 7 Dec 20248Win8–0Ezequiel MadernaTKO7 (10) 5 Sep 20247Win7–0Ričards BolotņiksTKO6 (10) 11 May 20246Win6–0Michał LudwiczakTKO 2 (10) 13 Jan 20245Win5–0Fernando GalvanTKO2 (8) 14 Nov 20234Win4–0David BenitezTKO 3 (8) 11 Oct 20233Win3–0Gi Sung GwakTKO2 (8) 12 Mar 20232Win2–0Adam Trenado1 (8) 16 Jul 20221Win1–0Ismat Eynullayev1 (4) 3 Nov 2021
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