Who is Radivoje Kalajdzic?

Things you didn't know about Radivoje "Hot Rod" Kalajdzic?

Serbian "Hot Rod" Radivoje Kalajdzic (30-3, 22 KOs) fights in the UK for the first time in his pro career on Saturday, September 26.

The Serbian duels with the "Spider" Craig Richards (20-4-1, 16 KOs) over 10-rounds at light-heavyweight at the Copper Box Arena, live on Sky Sports.

As it's his British boxing debut, GBN have listed a whole host of facts about the visiting fighter.

Who is Radivoje Kalajdzic?

Radivoje Kalajdžić was born 27th July 1991 in Zenica, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, then part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

His family was forced to flee the Bosnian War in 1992, when he was less than a year old; firstly to Bijeljina in Republika Srpska and then to Čačak in Serbia. As Bosnian Serbs, the family faced displacement amid widespread atrocities and sieges, living as refugees for several years in uncertain conditions before seeking stability abroad. Despite the instability, Kalajdzic's parents provided a supportive environment during his first seven years in Bosnia, shielding him from the full brunt of the hardships while maintaining family cohesion in the war-torn setting.

After seven years as refugees, they moved to Saint Petersburg, Florida in 1998, eventually establishing permanent residence in Pinellas County, where he grew up.

His followed his father Marko into boxing, who had trained in his youth. Radivoje begun boxing aged 14 at a local Florida gym.

At first, he just liked the idea of being called a boxer, "I just thought it was cool to be a boxer, and went into the gym and fell in love."

His earliest boxing idol and inspiration was Mike Tyson. Radi was particularly inspired by "Iron" Mike's work ethic and aggression.

Kalajdžić's early training regimen was unstructured and resource-limited, occurring in makeshift environments such as backyards, garages, and sporadically available gyms, often under the guidance of coach Willie Ellis.

There's hardly any records of his amateur career because it was very limited, choosing to turn professional early at 19-years-old in 2011.

He won his pro debut in June 2011 within just 34 seconds! He went on to win his first four fights by knockout. He now has 14 first-round KOs to his name.

In March 2014, he won the IBU Championship with a fourth-round knockout of Larry Pryor in Florida. The International Boxing Union is a little-known professional boxing sanctioning body founded in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1996. It's most notable champions were James Toney and Shannon Briggs.

In 2015, he knocked out Brazilian Fabio Garrido in just three seconds. The referee waved it off after about 16 seconds, but the knockdown occurred in the first three seconds of the fight. It appears that the punchers touched gloves after the first bell, but Kalajdžić instantly followed up with a huge right cross to the unguarded chin of Garrido. The move resulted in a lot of criticism at the time for Kalajdžić.

In 2016, he stepped up against Marcus Browne but narrowly lost out on the WBC–USNBC light-heavyweight title via split decision. When Browne's name was called and his arm was raised, the decision was met with boos.

In May 2019, he fought the fearsome Artur Beterbiev for the IBF world light-heavyweight title, but was stopped in the fifth round by the Russian KO artist. Only a few years later, in 2023, the former rivals are friends and regularly sparring with each other.

A bout of injuries and promotional issues ensued after that defeat and he only managed to fight once during 2020. In fact, from 2019 to 2023, he only managed one fight per year. He fought twice during 2024, but not at all in 2025.

In August 2024, he challenged David Morrell for the vacant WBA (Regular) light-heavyweight title, but was beaten unanimously.

In his last fight, he defeated Oleksandr Gvozdyk in February 2026 to win Zuffa Boxing's Performance of the Night.

He wears the Serbian tricolour and "SRB" on his shorts.

He is 6'3" in height, with a 76" reach.

He is a devout believer in Jesus Christ and he wears tattoos of Eastern Orthodox iconography.

Radivoje is happily married and a proud father, although he opts to keep details of his family private.

He describes himself as a nerd and a hermit, "I don’t have many hobbies. I would say I’m a nerd. I like to play video games with my friends online."

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