Kamshybek Kunkabayev turns professional with MTK!

Earlier today MTK Global announced their latest Kazakh signing, and it a big and interesting one for us!
 
The man in question is Kazakh Super Heavyweight standout Kamshybek Kunkabayev [Камшыбек Кункабаев], who has been one of the standouts on the Asian and International amateur scenes over the last few years.
 
The 28 year old Kunkabayev was a 2-time silver medal winner at the World Amateur Championships (2017 and 2019) and Asian Championships (also 2017 and 2019).
 
A press release from MTK Global saw Kunkabayev stating:
“I’m very pleased to be signing with MTK Global. I’ve been really happy with what I have achieved in my career so far and I’m confident that working with MTK and Askar Salikbayev can help me reach the top.
“I have some big goals that I want to accomplish in my career, so I can’t wait to continue proudly representing Kazakhstan and show everybody what I am capable of throughout the rest of my career.”
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For those unsure on who Askar Salikbayev, he is the head of MTK Kazakhstan who will be guiding his career. Salikbayev has also been quote in the press release to announce the fighter's signing, stating:
We are honoured to be welcoming Kamshybek Kunkabayev to the team. He is a hero in Kazakhstan and we’re extremely happy to have him join MTK Global.
“He has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, so we’re thrilled to have him represent Kazakhstan and MTK Global at that prestigious and iconic event.
“We have really high hopes for what Kunkabayev can achieve in boxing, so it is set to be a very bright future for this exciting star.”
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At the moment it's unclear when Kunkabayev will make his debut, but given his amateur success and background in the unpaid ranks there really isn't a need to move him slowly. Given his age, his background and his talent we would love to see him facing known "names" within a year or so and climbing into the world rankings within 2 years, though with the Olympics there is probably going to be a more cautious approach to bringing him through the rankings.

Talking about the Olympics Kunkabayev is expected to fight at the Tokyo games, and may be one of the many fighters who crosses back and forth with professional and amateur boxing, like his great amateur rival ​Bakhodir Jalolov, from Uzbekistan.