It's been a while since we've seen Panamanian Anselmo Moreno (33-2-1, 12) in the ring, 9 months in fact, though this Saturday he returns to action and defends the WBA "super" title at Bantamweight as he faces Colombian challenger William Urina (24-2, 20).
The last time we saw Moreno in action he suffered his first career defeat in a over decade as the highly talented Abner Mares claimed a very impressive decision over him up at Super Bantamweight. It's shocking to actually say he's fighting at Bantamweight for the first time since stopping David De La Mora last April, some 16 or so months ago.
At Bantamweight many regard Moreno as the #1 guy, his loss at Super Bantamweight really doesn't effect that. In fact losing to Mares, who now holds a title at Featherweight, is no great shame at all.
Moreno's resume at Bantamweight is genuine exceptional. He holds wins over Volodymyr Sydorenko, twice, Rolly "Matsushita" Lunas, Mahyar Monshipour, Nehomar Cermeno, twice, Lorenzo Parra, Vic Darchinyan and De La Mora.
It's not just the resume that has made "Chemito" stand out in the eyes of the hardcore fans but also his style of fighting. He is one of the truly elite pure boxers. He's as slippery as they come, has an accurate jab, is an outstanding counter puncher and uses the ring as good as any fighter not named "Mayweather" or "Rigondeaux".
I'll admit I was shocked by the way Mares beat Moreno though in all honesty it says more about how good Mares is than how bad Moreno is. I honestly cannot see any fighter at 118 doing the same to Moreno as Mares did, and that's despite the fact I think Shinsuke Yamanaka is an exceptional fighter.
Colombian challenger Urina is 27 and surprisingly only around 6 months younger than the champion. Despite the relatively close age of the two men in terms of raw years, the challenger is easily the younger man in terms of ring years. Moreno has fought 36 bouts and a combined 268 rounds, including more than 10 world title bouts, Urina has fought just 26 bouts for a combined 108 rounds and has just 1 world title bout behind him.
It's the previous world title bout of Urina's that is by far the most interesting bout of his career. In that bout he went to Argentina and was widely out pointed by Omar Narvaez in a bout for the WBO Super Flyweight title.
Against Narvaez, Urina tried hard and had some success though was widely outclassed by the talented and oft-overlooked Argentinian. Despite the loss he had impressed some with his desire to win and he has improved on the back of that loss.
In terms of his style Urina is a bit of the "typical Colombian". Hits hard, especially against the C grade opponents, is some what limited and seems to have little success out of his homeland, he is 0-2 outside of Colombia.
To me this bout is much less about Moreno defending his title but actually looking good and Urina has been selected as an opponent because he is made to order for Moreno. He'll come forward all night, he'll throw plenty and he'll give Moreno a lot of chances to counter and make him look stupid. Sure Urina may take a round or two early as Moreno shakes off the ring rust but for the most part he'll be chasing shadows and getting hitting by sharp shots through out the 12 round contest.
Prediction-Moreno UD12
Showing posts with label Panama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Panama. Show all posts
Saturday, 10 August 2013
Friday, 9 August 2013
Oscar Escandon v Nehomar Cermeno
The Super Bantamweight division is a bit of a funny division at the moment with 1 stand out fighter, Guillermo Rigondeaux, and a number of fighters all looking for their place in the division. Amongst those fighters in the "chasing group" are guys like Scott Quigg, Carl Frampton, Shingo Wake, Leo Santa Cruz, Jhonathan Romero and Oscar Escandon.
The unbeaten Escandon (22-0, 15) of Colombia will look for his biggest victory to date on August 10th as he takes on former world title holder Nehomar Cermeno (21-5-1, 13), victory that could well see Escandon become one of the leading contenders in the 122lb division and the WBA Interim Super Bantamweight champion.
Aged 29 Escandon is unlike most typical Colombian fighters. He's not the typical raw banger that we've come to expect from the country with the likes of Edison Miranda and Breidis Prescott, in fact he's more of the "new breed" of Colombian's like Middleweight prospect Alex Theran.
Sure Escandon is heavy handed, not destructive but heavy handed, though he combines his power with a solid amateur background of around 200 fights, including bouts at the highest level. He's not an out and out skillster but he is well schooled and uses those skills from his amateur days to good effect.
With many Colombian's being sluggers it's nice to see that Escandon can fight as an educated pressure fighter, as he showed against Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar when he used a lovely variety of punches to head and body, was relentless and fun to watch. His defense can often go out the window showing he does have some traits of being a typical Colombian but more often than not shows he can use his boxing skills when needed, as he did against Ever Garcia Hernandez.
There is certainly plenty to like about Escandon who appears capable of boxing on the back foot or forcing the action on the front foot. Though there are also worries to be had about him. To date he has only been 10 rounds once, against the very limited Nelson Cantero and his best win as a professional is one over Cuellar, who was then 17-0. The lack of experience in 12 round contests is a massive worry for fans of Escandon here.
Whilst this is a chance for Escandon to announce himself on the world stage it's also a chance for Cermeno, of Venezuela to rebuild his seriously faltering career.
Just 4 years ago Cermeno was the WBA interim Bantamweight champion. He had a 2009 to remember scoring 2 victories over the excellent Cristian Mijares and defeating the then credible Alejandro Valdez, all in Mexico.
Since the victory over Valdez however Cermeno has really struggled winning just 2 of 8 contests. Whilst most of Cermeno's losses in that run have come to good fighters in the form of Anselmo Moreno, twice, Victor Terrazas, Fernando Montiel and Alexander Bakhtin it's become fair to say that he's now looking very much a washed up fighter.
At his best Cermeno was a tricky fighter, no single quality really stood out as world class but he was difficult to read, he could be very cautious at times but always seemed to know when to strike. He seemed able, somehow, to control the distance and pace of a fight without having anything close to exceptional speed or power, though he did have a decent work rate.
Aged 33, 34 in November, Cermeno is now an old fighter, especially for someone in the lower weights. His recent form and age would suggest that he's certainly beyond his best, probably still good enough to beat most fringe contenders but unlikely to ever beat a genuine world class opponent again.
Cermeno might be on a seriously slide but he's a fighter who is proven over the 12 rounds, a distance he has gone 6 times in his 27 fights. In fact he's gone 10 or more rounds in 9 of his contests so far. This is probably his key advantage, and something that will likely be seen late in the fight, if it goes that far.
Prime for prime this a match up that I'd fave Cermeno in. Stylistically he was a frustrating opponent to fight. Now though, with his confidence shot, I'll be going with Escandon to do enough to take a hard fought decision in a bout that might not always be fun to watch but will be interesting through out.
Prediction-Escandon UD12
The unbeaten Escandon (22-0, 15) of Colombia will look for his biggest victory to date on August 10th as he takes on former world title holder Nehomar Cermeno (21-5-1, 13), victory that could well see Escandon become one of the leading contenders in the 122lb division and the WBA Interim Super Bantamweight champion.
Aged 29 Escandon is unlike most typical Colombian fighters. He's not the typical raw banger that we've come to expect from the country with the likes of Edison Miranda and Breidis Prescott, in fact he's more of the "new breed" of Colombian's like Middleweight prospect Alex Theran.
Sure Escandon is heavy handed, not destructive but heavy handed, though he combines his power with a solid amateur background of around 200 fights, including bouts at the highest level. He's not an out and out skillster but he is well schooled and uses those skills from his amateur days to good effect.
With many Colombian's being sluggers it's nice to see that Escandon can fight as an educated pressure fighter, as he showed against Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar when he used a lovely variety of punches to head and body, was relentless and fun to watch. His defense can often go out the window showing he does have some traits of being a typical Colombian but more often than not shows he can use his boxing skills when needed, as he did against Ever Garcia Hernandez.
There is certainly plenty to like about Escandon who appears capable of boxing on the back foot or forcing the action on the front foot. Though there are also worries to be had about him. To date he has only been 10 rounds once, against the very limited Nelson Cantero and his best win as a professional is one over Cuellar, who was then 17-0. The lack of experience in 12 round contests is a massive worry for fans of Escandon here.
Whilst this is a chance for Escandon to announce himself on the world stage it's also a chance for Cermeno, of Venezuela to rebuild his seriously faltering career.
Just 4 years ago Cermeno was the WBA interim Bantamweight champion. He had a 2009 to remember scoring 2 victories over the excellent Cristian Mijares and defeating the then credible Alejandro Valdez, all in Mexico.
Since the victory over Valdez however Cermeno has really struggled winning just 2 of 8 contests. Whilst most of Cermeno's losses in that run have come to good fighters in the form of Anselmo Moreno, twice, Victor Terrazas, Fernando Montiel and Alexander Bakhtin it's become fair to say that he's now looking very much a washed up fighter.
At his best Cermeno was a tricky fighter, no single quality really stood out as world class but he was difficult to read, he could be very cautious at times but always seemed to know when to strike. He seemed able, somehow, to control the distance and pace of a fight without having anything close to exceptional speed or power, though he did have a decent work rate.
Aged 33, 34 in November, Cermeno is now an old fighter, especially for someone in the lower weights. His recent form and age would suggest that he's certainly beyond his best, probably still good enough to beat most fringe contenders but unlikely to ever beat a genuine world class opponent again.
Cermeno might be on a seriously slide but he's a fighter who is proven over the 12 rounds, a distance he has gone 6 times in his 27 fights. In fact he's gone 10 or more rounds in 9 of his contests so far. This is probably his key advantage, and something that will likely be seen late in the fight, if it goes that far.
Prime for prime this a match up that I'd fave Cermeno in. Stylistically he was a frustrating opponent to fight. Now though, with his confidence shot, I'll be going with Escandon to do enough to take a hard fought decision in a bout that might not always be fun to watch but will be interesting through out.
Prediction-Escandon UD12
Thursday, 16 May 2013
Denis Lebedev v Guillermo Jones
WBA Cruiserweight title action sees former champion Guillermo Jones (?-?) attempt to recapture his old belt from Russian Denis Lebedev (?-?) in a bout that has been made...and than cancelled more often than Floyd Mayweather Jr has "taken vacations".
Now aged 41 years old what Jones has left is a bit of a mystery. He's looked good in his most recent fights stopping Firat Arslan, Valery Brudov and Michael Marrone but those bouts span almost 5 years and it really is a mystery as to what he has left in him.
At his best Jones was a tricky customer. He was big, powerful, fast, slippery and managed to land an amazing number of sneaky shots. He could look lazy but yet effective, clumsy but yet intelligent and hurt yet teak tough. In fact Jones has one of those styles which never looks good but also never lets his opponents look much good either.
Although Jones is 3-1-2 in world title fights many feel that he should be 6-0, his draws with Jhonny Nelson and Laurent Boudouani (who he also lost to) were all highly controversial and all came away from home. Even though he has had bad fortune on the road he's proven he isn't adverse to fighting away and has won fights in Venezuela, the USA and most notably German (where he stopped Arslan).
At "just" 33 years old Lebedev, the home fighter for this bout is significantly younger than the challenger though is also less experienced in terms of both professional bouts and professional rounds. Despite his relative inexperience Lebedev has proven to be a world class fighter mixing it with Enzo Maccarinelli, Alexander Alekseev and Marco Huck amongst others, with only Huck managing to score a victory over him (albeit controversially).
Lebedev is a small, powerful Cruiserweight who hits like a truck, uses very under-rated boxing skills and has an excellent killer instinct. He's shown a bit too much respect in some fights, notably his bout with Roy Jones, though when he lets his hands go he's a destructive force able to break bones and out man the tough men of the division.
Although Lebedev isn't one of the big names in world boxing he is one of the sports most genuinely exciting fighters. His power brings excitement, his toughness brings action and overall it's always a joy to watch him in a bout. This time around though he could be in for a tough night as he gives away an astonishing 5" in height.
The height difference between the two men will be drastic and a major disadvantage for Lebedev, who is a big betting favourite. In terms of skills it'd be fair to say that Jones is the more skilled man, Lebedev the more powerful, both are tough and both are proven and whilst the size is clearly an advantage for Jones the age is a clear disadvantage.
Prime for prime I'd have to go with Jones though now, with too many questions surrounding him I have to go with Lebedev who is fresher and won't have the ring rust or just general rust of Jones.
Prediction-Lebedev TKO10
Now aged 41 years old what Jones has left is a bit of a mystery. He's looked good in his most recent fights stopping Firat Arslan, Valery Brudov and Michael Marrone but those bouts span almost 5 years and it really is a mystery as to what he has left in him.
At his best Jones was a tricky customer. He was big, powerful, fast, slippery and managed to land an amazing number of sneaky shots. He could look lazy but yet effective, clumsy but yet intelligent and hurt yet teak tough. In fact Jones has one of those styles which never looks good but also never lets his opponents look much good either.
Although Jones is 3-1-2 in world title fights many feel that he should be 6-0, his draws with Jhonny Nelson and Laurent Boudouani (who he also lost to) were all highly controversial and all came away from home. Even though he has had bad fortune on the road he's proven he isn't adverse to fighting away and has won fights in Venezuela, the USA and most notably German (where he stopped Arslan).
At "just" 33 years old Lebedev, the home fighter for this bout is significantly younger than the challenger though is also less experienced in terms of both professional bouts and professional rounds. Despite his relative inexperience Lebedev has proven to be a world class fighter mixing it with Enzo Maccarinelli, Alexander Alekseev and Marco Huck amongst others, with only Huck managing to score a victory over him (albeit controversially).
Lebedev is a small, powerful Cruiserweight who hits like a truck, uses very under-rated boxing skills and has an excellent killer instinct. He's shown a bit too much respect in some fights, notably his bout with Roy Jones, though when he lets his hands go he's a destructive force able to break bones and out man the tough men of the division.
Although Lebedev isn't one of the big names in world boxing he is one of the sports most genuinely exciting fighters. His power brings excitement, his toughness brings action and overall it's always a joy to watch him in a bout. This time around though he could be in for a tough night as he gives away an astonishing 5" in height.
The height difference between the two men will be drastic and a major disadvantage for Lebedev, who is a big betting favourite. In terms of skills it'd be fair to say that Jones is the more skilled man, Lebedev the more powerful, both are tough and both are proven and whilst the size is clearly an advantage for Jones the age is a clear disadvantage.
Prime for prime I'd have to go with Jones though now, with too many questions surrounding him I have to go with Lebedev who is fresher and won't have the ring rust or just general rust of Jones.
Prediction-Lebedev TKO10
Friday, 15 March 2013
Roberto Vasquez v John Mark Apolinario II
Panamanian Roberto Vasquez (32-5-1, 22) and Filipino John Mark Apolinaro (17-2-2, 4) meet for the second time in a little over 4 months after fighting to a draw in November 2012. Like in their first fight the men will be battling for the WBA "interim" Bantamweight title though unlike last time, they will be fighting in Vasquez's native Panama as opposed to the more neutral Argentina (where their first fight was).
Going in to their first bout I felt Vasquez would simply have too much experience and skill for the untested Apolinario who in all honesty had never fought at Vasquez's level before. In fact Apolinario's losses to Marvin Tampus and Jessie Albaracin were pretty damning results in my eyes, despite this however Apolinario put on the performance of his life and held Vasquez in a hard fought bout.
This time I think Vasquez will know what to expect from the young Filipino and, roared on by the Panamanian fans I think he'll raise his game. Whilst Apolinario fought his best fight last time I don't think Vazquez did and although Apolinaio is the naturally bigger man the experience edge and home advantage makes it hard not to favour Vasquez again this time around.
Going in to their first bout I felt Vasquez would simply have too much experience and skill for the untested Apolinario who in all honesty had never fought at Vasquez's level before. In fact Apolinario's losses to Marvin Tampus and Jessie Albaracin were pretty damning results in my eyes, despite this however Apolinario put on the performance of his life and held Vasquez in a hard fought bout.
This time I think Vasquez will know what to expect from the young Filipino and, roared on by the Panamanian fans I think he'll raise his game. Whilst Apolinario fought his best fight last time I don't think Vazquez did and although Apolinaio is the naturally bigger man the experience edge and home advantage makes it hard not to favour Vasquez again this time around.
Thursday, 14 March 2013
John Riel Casimero v Luis Alberto Rios
The IBF Light Flyweight champion John Riel Casimero (17-2, 10) has had a very interesting career so far and despite only being 23 he has probably has more stories than many seasoned veterans. He's fought around the world, "caused" a riot by beating a controversial Argentinian and become a genuinely solid (though criminally under-rated) fighter. This weekend sees Casimero on the road again as he fights for the first time in Panama defending his title against the once beaten Luis Alberto Rios (18-1-1, 13).
Casimero debuted way back in 2007 as a fresh faced 17 year old and in a little over a year he had already claimed a notable title winning the Philippines Boxing Federation Flyweight title and upsetting the experienced Rodel Quilaton. That was just Casimero's 10th professional bout. Just months later Casimero would capture the WBO Asia Pacific Light Flyweight title title and prove himself to be one of the most exciting teenagers in the sport.
Aged just 19 Casimero left his native Philippines for the first time and traveled to Nicaragua to fight seasoned Colombian Cesar Canchila (who had been the first man to beat Giovanni Segura just 17 months earlier) in a bout for the interim WBO Light Flyweight title. Many had written off the relatively unknown Casimero who shocked many fan of the lower divisions by stopping Canchila in 11 rounds to take the title back home. Sadly Casimero's title reign was short lived as he would the belt in his next bout via split decision to Mexican Ramon Garcia Hirales.
Casimero's road journey continued in his next bout as he traveled to South Africa and faced the genuinely excellent Moruti Mthalane in an IBF Flyweight title bout. Mthalane was too big, too talented and too strong for the brave Casimero who was stopped in the fifth round.
After 3 fights away from home Casimero swiftly dispatched with Roemart Sentillas in the Philippines before arguably scoring his biggest win in Argentina where he stopped the very unlikable Luis Alberto Lazarte for the interim IBF Light Flyweight title. Sadly that bout is better remembered for the disgusting scenes that followed the bout rather than the victory for Casimero, who was later pelted with items as the crowd almost tried to kill him in one of the most horrific scenes seen in boxing in the past decade.
Since claiming the IBF Light Flyweight title Casimero has made a solitary defense of the belt, defeating Pedro Guevara in Mexico by split decision (in a bout that saw Guevara on the canvas numerous times with them often being ruled as "slips").
In terms of Casimero in the ring he's fearless, he's fast, accurate and a very under-rated fighter. I wouldn't put him in with Roman Gonzalez or Kazuto Ioka but against anyone else in the division he would at very least hold his own. He's only really been beaten once and that was by Mthalane who I'm a huge admirer off and in that bout everything was against Casimero, including weight and the crowd (and it showed as he was honesty swatted around by Mthalane). At Light Flyweight he's a genuine nightmare for anyone and he keeps his power late having stopped both Canchila (TKO11) and Lazarte (TKO10) late.
Going into this bout relatively little is known of Luis Alberto Rios. The 23 year old Panamanian challenger has, like Casimero, been a professional since 2007 and been in pretty much the same number of fights, though all of his have been at home in fact almost all of them have taken place in Panama City.
Despite fighting just in Panama Rios has faced several better known fighters. These have seen him scoring victories over Edwin Diaz, Walter Tello (who faces Alberto Rossel in Peru also this weekend), local journeyman Carlos Melo, former world title contender Luis Carrillo and most recently Felipe Salguero, also a world title contender. What is notable from those fights is that Rios has a solid punch on him having taken out Salguero (TKO11), Carillo (TKO5), Tello (TKO4).
It's not all good news for Rios though. He has been stopped himself (against Luis Carrillo) and was held to a draw with Carlos Melo in a rematch. He was dropped last time out against Salguero and if I'm being honest Salguero is no Casimero and this is what swings me in to feeling that Casimero should be able to hurt and stop Rios.
Prediction-Casimero TKO9
Casimero debuted way back in 2007 as a fresh faced 17 year old and in a little over a year he had already claimed a notable title winning the Philippines Boxing Federation Flyweight title and upsetting the experienced Rodel Quilaton. That was just Casimero's 10th professional bout. Just months later Casimero would capture the WBO Asia Pacific Light Flyweight title title and prove himself to be one of the most exciting teenagers in the sport.
Aged just 19 Casimero left his native Philippines for the first time and traveled to Nicaragua to fight seasoned Colombian Cesar Canchila (who had been the first man to beat Giovanni Segura just 17 months earlier) in a bout for the interim WBO Light Flyweight title. Many had written off the relatively unknown Casimero who shocked many fan of the lower divisions by stopping Canchila in 11 rounds to take the title back home. Sadly Casimero's title reign was short lived as he would the belt in his next bout via split decision to Mexican Ramon Garcia Hirales.
Casimero's road journey continued in his next bout as he traveled to South Africa and faced the genuinely excellent Moruti Mthalane in an IBF Flyweight title bout. Mthalane was too big, too talented and too strong for the brave Casimero who was stopped in the fifth round.
After 3 fights away from home Casimero swiftly dispatched with Roemart Sentillas in the Philippines before arguably scoring his biggest win in Argentina where he stopped the very unlikable Luis Alberto Lazarte for the interim IBF Light Flyweight title. Sadly that bout is better remembered for the disgusting scenes that followed the bout rather than the victory for Casimero, who was later pelted with items as the crowd almost tried to kill him in one of the most horrific scenes seen in boxing in the past decade.
Since claiming the IBF Light Flyweight title Casimero has made a solitary defense of the belt, defeating Pedro Guevara in Mexico by split decision (in a bout that saw Guevara on the canvas numerous times with them often being ruled as "slips").
In terms of Casimero in the ring he's fearless, he's fast, accurate and a very under-rated fighter. I wouldn't put him in with Roman Gonzalez or Kazuto Ioka but against anyone else in the division he would at very least hold his own. He's only really been beaten once and that was by Mthalane who I'm a huge admirer off and in that bout everything was against Casimero, including weight and the crowd (and it showed as he was honesty swatted around by Mthalane). At Light Flyweight he's a genuine nightmare for anyone and he keeps his power late having stopped both Canchila (TKO11) and Lazarte (TKO10) late.
Going into this bout relatively little is known of Luis Alberto Rios. The 23 year old Panamanian challenger has, like Casimero, been a professional since 2007 and been in pretty much the same number of fights, though all of his have been at home in fact almost all of them have taken place in Panama City.
Despite fighting just in Panama Rios has faced several better known fighters. These have seen him scoring victories over Edwin Diaz, Walter Tello (who faces Alberto Rossel in Peru also this weekend), local journeyman Carlos Melo, former world title contender Luis Carrillo and most recently Felipe Salguero, also a world title contender. What is notable from those fights is that Rios has a solid punch on him having taken out Salguero (TKO11), Carillo (TKO5), Tello (TKO4).
It's not all good news for Rios though. He has been stopped himself (against Luis Carrillo) and was held to a draw with Carlos Melo in a rematch. He was dropped last time out against Salguero and if I'm being honest Salguero is no Casimero and this is what swings me in to feeling that Casimero should be able to hurt and stop Rios.
Prediction-Casimero TKO9
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Adrian Hernandez v Dirceu Cabarca
WBC Light Flyweight champion Adrian Hernandez (25-2-1, 16) will be the first champion to attempt to defend his world title in 2012 as he faces the very limited Panamanian Dirceu Cabarca (13-6, 5) in what appears to be little more than a gimme defense for Hernandez.
Mexican Hernandez, now a two time WBC Light Flyweight champion having regained his title by stopping Kompayak Porpramook back in October gaining revenge after losing to the Thai in 2011 is seen by many as one of the top guys at 108lbs. At 27 years old he's coming in to his physical prime and when added to his solid boxing skills and hurtful he's a real danger man for anyone at the weight.
Having been around since 2006 Hernandez has already beaten a mini who's who including Rodel Mayol, Gilberto Keb Baas (twice) and of course Kompayak Porpramook though has yet to really get the break through with the hardcore boxing fan base who often turn a blind eye to the lower weights.
As a Light Flyweight Hernandez is huge, he stands at well over 5'6" (reportedly 5'8") and has a freakish 71" reach making him the giant of the division. Not only is he massive but he also knows how to use his size with accurate straight punches though he can also fighter inside with the best of them showing his Mexican machismo when it's called upon. It's this combination of being able to fight both at range or up close that makes Hernandez so dangerous.
Sadly I don't think we'll be seeing Hernandez's pushed too hard against Dirceu Cabarca who in all honesty is very lucky to be getting a title opportunity. To date Cabarca hasn't beaten anyone of note, though has lost when he has faced known fighters (Ulises Solis, Edwin Diaz and Karim Guerfi) and has often struggled to even win a round against the top fighters he's faced.
In his biggest win to date Cabarca did claim the Panamanian Super Flyweight title by winning a split decision over Manuel Vides, though in that fight Cabarca did find himself climbing off the canvas. I think he'll find himself back on the canvas here as Hernandez looks for an quick start to the year. Hernandez's skill and power will be too much and after hurting Cabarca he'll close the show.
Prediction-Hernandez TKO5
Mexican Hernandez, now a two time WBC Light Flyweight champion having regained his title by stopping Kompayak Porpramook back in October gaining revenge after losing to the Thai in 2011 is seen by many as one of the top guys at 108lbs. At 27 years old he's coming in to his physical prime and when added to his solid boxing skills and hurtful he's a real danger man for anyone at the weight.
Having been around since 2006 Hernandez has already beaten a mini who's who including Rodel Mayol, Gilberto Keb Baas (twice) and of course Kompayak Porpramook though has yet to really get the break through with the hardcore boxing fan base who often turn a blind eye to the lower weights.
As a Light Flyweight Hernandez is huge, he stands at well over 5'6" (reportedly 5'8") and has a freakish 71" reach making him the giant of the division. Not only is he massive but he also knows how to use his size with accurate straight punches though he can also fighter inside with the best of them showing his Mexican machismo when it's called upon. It's this combination of being able to fight both at range or up close that makes Hernandez so dangerous.
Sadly I don't think we'll be seeing Hernandez's pushed too hard against Dirceu Cabarca who in all honesty is very lucky to be getting a title opportunity. To date Cabarca hasn't beaten anyone of note, though has lost when he has faced known fighters (Ulises Solis, Edwin Diaz and Karim Guerfi) and has often struggled to even win a round against the top fighters he's faced.
In his biggest win to date Cabarca did claim the Panamanian Super Flyweight title by winning a split decision over Manuel Vides, though in that fight Cabarca did find himself climbing off the canvas. I think he'll find himself back on the canvas here as Hernandez looks for an quick start to the year. Hernandez's skill and power will be too much and after hurting Cabarca he'll close the show.
Prediction-Hernandez TKO5
Saturday, 10 November 2012
Abner Mares v Anselmo Moreno
This weekend's stand out fight in the world of boxing sees the unbeaten Mexican Abner Mares (24-0-1, 13) attempt to defend his WBC Super Bantamweight title against the supremely talented Panamanian Anselmo Moreno (33-1-1, 12). Whilst neither man is a massive name outside of boxing, every boxing fan knows that these two are two genuinely elite fighters, both meeting in their prime.
Mares goes into this fight as the slight betting favourite and probably with good reason, he's the "house" fighter, the Golden Boy Promotions fighter and the one seen as a marketable fighter, especially with the Mexican audiences. However it's unfair to actually view this as the only reason why Mares would win. In fact Mares is a very hard working fighter, who throws relentless to both the head and body, he's young, he's strong and he's relentless. Also he's quickly improving.
Mares first came to the attention of most boxing fans back in 2010 when he pushed the then IBF Bantamweight champion Yonnhy Perez to a very hard fought draw. Following the Perez bout, Mares become one of the 4 men involved in Showtimes' 4-man Bantamweight tournament, a tournament Mares would come out the winner of thanks to victories over Vic Darchinyan and Joseph Agbeko. Despite beating both Darchinyan and Agbeko, many were unimpressed by Mares who had been lucky to win both fights with some favourable officiating (especially by Pat Russell in the Agbeko fight).
Thankfully for Mares he showed real character and had a rematch with Agbeko, clearly defeating the tough Ghanian and making up for the controversy of their first match. Since then he has moved to Super Bantamweight where he defeated veteran Eric Morel for the then vacant WBC Super Bantamweight title.
As a fighter Mares is fun to watch, he throws some of the best combinations in the sport and really makes for exciting fights. Whilst he has a reputation as a bit of a ball breaker (literally) he's actually a very talented fighter and someone who would genuinely give anyone in and around 122lbs a hard night. Saying this however he can be out boxed as Joseph Agbeko showed in their first match and even Vic Darchinyan showed at points. It's fair to say that unless you have real KO power and a high work rate, a war with Mares is a bad idea as that's his fight.
On the same card as Mares' rematch with Agbeko we saw a new star born as Anselmo Moreno put on a boxing masterclass against former Mares opponent Vic Darchinyan. In the bout Moreno really opened the worlds eyes to his sensational talent as he made Vic look like a clueless, raw amateur. To those watching Moreno for the first time, this was a sensational performance, for those who had seen Moreno in the past however it was a case of "told you so".
Despite the Darchinyan fight being the "coming out party" for Moreno, he's actually been one of the best fighters for the last 3 or 4 years. In fact Moreno first claimed a world title, the WBA Bantamweight title, way back in 2008 as he out pointed the previously unbeaten Volodymyr Sydorenko in Germany. Since winning that title Moreno has faced a relative who's who including Sydorenko in a rematch, Mahyar Monshipour, Nehomar Cermeno (twice), Lorenzo Parra, Vic Darchinyan and most recently David De La Mora. Often facing those top fighters away from home.
In terms of his style the 27 year old Panamanian is slippery to say the least. He moves wonderfully well, using his jab to keep opponents at range whilst breaking opponents mentally. Although his work rate is often limited he's a fighter who can genuinely frustrate any opponent as they swing and miss time and time again, tiring them out with just his defensive prowess. This has lead to many fight fans referring to him as a modern day Pernell Whittaker, huge praise indeed.
In his most recent fight, Moreno proved not only to be a slippery fighter but also a spiteful fighter as he gave the unfortunate David De La Mora a real beating, hammering away at De La Mora's body and head and really proving that not only was there a gulf in class but that he could really hurt opponents. Though it's worth noting that this isn't the first time Moreno has shown that he's spiteful, it was an eye catching performance against someone who gave Koki Kameda a real nightmare.
What we have here is a very hard working and aggressive pressure fighter (Mares) against a very slippery counter-puncher (Moreno) in what really does look on paper to be an enthralling battle of both styles, fighters and minds. If Mares can apply constant pressure and have success with his body attack he could very easily slow the legs of Moreno and make the bout easy for himself. Like wise if Moreno can keep just movement going and make Mares miss then a tiring Mares could be there for the taking late, or even get Mares frustrated to the point he does something illegal.
Of those two, I favour Moreno by a close decision, it'll be competitive through out but Moreno, for my money, just has that extra bit of class. Do not be shocked however if the cards favour Mares under-controversial circumstances.
Prediction- Moreno UD12
Mares goes into this fight as the slight betting favourite and probably with good reason, he's the "house" fighter, the Golden Boy Promotions fighter and the one seen as a marketable fighter, especially with the Mexican audiences. However it's unfair to actually view this as the only reason why Mares would win. In fact Mares is a very hard working fighter, who throws relentless to both the head and body, he's young, he's strong and he's relentless. Also he's quickly improving.
Mares first came to the attention of most boxing fans back in 2010 when he pushed the then IBF Bantamweight champion Yonnhy Perez to a very hard fought draw. Following the Perez bout, Mares become one of the 4 men involved in Showtimes' 4-man Bantamweight tournament, a tournament Mares would come out the winner of thanks to victories over Vic Darchinyan and Joseph Agbeko. Despite beating both Darchinyan and Agbeko, many were unimpressed by Mares who had been lucky to win both fights with some favourable officiating (especially by Pat Russell in the Agbeko fight).
Thankfully for Mares he showed real character and had a rematch with Agbeko, clearly defeating the tough Ghanian and making up for the controversy of their first match. Since then he has moved to Super Bantamweight where he defeated veteran Eric Morel for the then vacant WBC Super Bantamweight title.
As a fighter Mares is fun to watch, he throws some of the best combinations in the sport and really makes for exciting fights. Whilst he has a reputation as a bit of a ball breaker (literally) he's actually a very talented fighter and someone who would genuinely give anyone in and around 122lbs a hard night. Saying this however he can be out boxed as Joseph Agbeko showed in their first match and even Vic Darchinyan showed at points. It's fair to say that unless you have real KO power and a high work rate, a war with Mares is a bad idea as that's his fight.
On the same card as Mares' rematch with Agbeko we saw a new star born as Anselmo Moreno put on a boxing masterclass against former Mares opponent Vic Darchinyan. In the bout Moreno really opened the worlds eyes to his sensational talent as he made Vic look like a clueless, raw amateur. To those watching Moreno for the first time, this was a sensational performance, for those who had seen Moreno in the past however it was a case of "told you so".
Despite the Darchinyan fight being the "coming out party" for Moreno, he's actually been one of the best fighters for the last 3 or 4 years. In fact Moreno first claimed a world title, the WBA Bantamweight title, way back in 2008 as he out pointed the previously unbeaten Volodymyr Sydorenko in Germany. Since winning that title Moreno has faced a relative who's who including Sydorenko in a rematch, Mahyar Monshipour, Nehomar Cermeno (twice), Lorenzo Parra, Vic Darchinyan and most recently David De La Mora. Often facing those top fighters away from home.
In terms of his style the 27 year old Panamanian is slippery to say the least. He moves wonderfully well, using his jab to keep opponents at range whilst breaking opponents mentally. Although his work rate is often limited he's a fighter who can genuinely frustrate any opponent as they swing and miss time and time again, tiring them out with just his defensive prowess. This has lead to many fight fans referring to him as a modern day Pernell Whittaker, huge praise indeed.
In his most recent fight, Moreno proved not only to be a slippery fighter but also a spiteful fighter as he gave the unfortunate David De La Mora a real beating, hammering away at De La Mora's body and head and really proving that not only was there a gulf in class but that he could really hurt opponents. Though it's worth noting that this isn't the first time Moreno has shown that he's spiteful, it was an eye catching performance against someone who gave Koki Kameda a real nightmare.
What we have here is a very hard working and aggressive pressure fighter (Mares) against a very slippery counter-puncher (Moreno) in what really does look on paper to be an enthralling battle of both styles, fighters and minds. If Mares can apply constant pressure and have success with his body attack he could very easily slow the legs of Moreno and make the bout easy for himself. Like wise if Moreno can keep just movement going and make Mares miss then a tiring Mares could be there for the taking late, or even get Mares frustrated to the point he does something illegal.
Of those two, I favour Moreno by a close decision, it'll be competitive through out but Moreno, for my money, just has that extra bit of class. Do not be shocked however if the cards favour Mares under-controversial circumstances.
Prediction- Moreno UD12
Thursday, 1 November 2012
Roberto Vasquez v John Mark Apolinario
This weekends most "overlooked" title fight is the WBA "interim" Bantamweight title bout between Panamanian Roberto Vasquez (32-5, 22) and Filipino John Mark Apolinario (17-2-1, 4), that is scheduled to take place in the Argentinian city of Colón. As with many "interim" title bouts, the fight really lacks too much to get excited about, however could it be a sleeper classic?
With the belt being a vacant one, both men are challenger, however one man has a bit more pedigree to than the other, in fact poor John Mark Apolinario is so unknown that...well I'd never heard of him (or most of his opponents) until I saw this bout listed. So lets look at him first.
Aged 22 the Filipino challenger John Mark Apolinario has been a professional for almost 6 years (making his debut on November 25th 2006) and since then has compiled a list of fights against very limited opposition.
Apolinario's career started well as he ran up 11 straight wins in the first 15 months of his career before suffering a loss to the novice Jessie Albaracin (who would later go on to claim the WBO Oriental Super Bantamweight title). Sadly for Apolinario this loss soon put the breaks on his rapid climb up the rankings and a year later his record fell to 12-2 as he suffered a stoppage loss to Marvin Tampus.
Since the loss to Tampus, Apolinario's career has recovered somewhat with a several wins, including a notable one in 2010 which saw him claiming his first professional title, the WBO Oriental Super Flyweight title. As well as the wins Apolinario also has a draw on his record, coming in November 2010 to the tough Armando Casa.
Whilst the highlight of Apolinario's career so far may have been the WBO Oriental Super Flyweight title fight, the most interesting thing about his record was actually his last fight. Last time out Apolinario scored a 2nd round TKO over Menard Zaragosa...who had to run off to the toilet forcing the referee to end the bout whilst Zaragosa, relieved himself. Worryingly however this means Apolinario has only fought 2 rounds in the last year and in fact Apolinario has only fought 12 rounds (2 bouts) in the past 24 months!
From what I can see with Apolinario we have an inactive fighter, who lacks any power and has only really been beating very low level domestic opponents. It's with good reason that Boxrec.com rate him as the 71st Bantamweight on the planet (the 12th in his homeland!) and whilst I'll admit I've not seen footage of him, it's fair to say that he's not fought the competition with which to really create a true opinion of just how good he actually is. The lost to Tampus, his most notable opponent so far is perhaps the most telling result with Tampus himself losing 7 of 13 since then.
With the Filipino being pretty unknown it's fair to admit that the co-challenger Roberto Vasquez is much more known and well respected. The 29 year old Panamanian has been a professional for over 11 years and despite starting his career with a loss (a controversial one to Angelo Dottin) he has really forged a solid record.
After losing his debut on points, Vasquez would go 6 years before suffering his next loss. In that time he would record 23 straight victories including 16 by T/KO. Vasquez wasn't just beating scrubs though, he was quickly rising through the rankings and stopping the likes of Beibis Mendoza to claim the WBA World Light Flyweight title, a title he would defend 3 times before moving up to Flyweight.
After moving up to Flyweight in 2006 Vasquez swiftly moved on to the title scene and claimed the interim WBA World Flyweight title thanks to a victory over Japanese fighter Takefumi Sakata. Sadly a rematch the following year saw Sakata earn some measure of revenge by defeating Vasquez to end the Panamanian's long unbeaten run.
Since losing to Sakata, Vasquez has had mixed fortune winning 8 of his subsequent 11 bouts. Whilst his wins have come at a "lesser" level two of his losses have come at the highest level thanks to Hugo Fidel Cazares and Drian Francisco, however his most recent loss, to Oscar Gonzalez is highly debatable.
Vasquez is currently on a 2 fight winning streak, including a notable victory over Mario Briones, however both of those fights too place well above the Bantamweight limit. It's fair to assume that that if Vasquez has any real problem with this bout, it may well be in making the 118lbs limit as I don't think Apolinario will have anything to worry Vasquez.
In terms of Vasquez as a fighter, the southpaw is a hard hitting fighter who despite having been down a number of times in his career is durable with only the monstrously hard hitting Drian Francisco managing to stop him. It's fair to say that Vasquez will bring the pressure here and look to take Apolinario out within 6 rounds, he certainly has the power to do it and certainly has the experience to know that Apolinario isn't going to be able to throw anything new at him.
Prediction-Vasquez TKO5
With the belt being a vacant one, both men are challenger, however one man has a bit more pedigree to than the other, in fact poor John Mark Apolinario is so unknown that...well I'd never heard of him (or most of his opponents) until I saw this bout listed. So lets look at him first.
Aged 22 the Filipino challenger John Mark Apolinario has been a professional for almost 6 years (making his debut on November 25th 2006) and since then has compiled a list of fights against very limited opposition.
Apolinario's career started well as he ran up 11 straight wins in the first 15 months of his career before suffering a loss to the novice Jessie Albaracin (who would later go on to claim the WBO Oriental Super Bantamweight title). Sadly for Apolinario this loss soon put the breaks on his rapid climb up the rankings and a year later his record fell to 12-2 as he suffered a stoppage loss to Marvin Tampus.
Since the loss to Tampus, Apolinario's career has recovered somewhat with a several wins, including a notable one in 2010 which saw him claiming his first professional title, the WBO Oriental Super Flyweight title. As well as the wins Apolinario also has a draw on his record, coming in November 2010 to the tough Armando Casa.
Whilst the highlight of Apolinario's career so far may have been the WBO Oriental Super Flyweight title fight, the most interesting thing about his record was actually his last fight. Last time out Apolinario scored a 2nd round TKO over Menard Zaragosa...who had to run off to the toilet forcing the referee to end the bout whilst Zaragosa, relieved himself. Worryingly however this means Apolinario has only fought 2 rounds in the last year and in fact Apolinario has only fought 12 rounds (2 bouts) in the past 24 months!
From what I can see with Apolinario we have an inactive fighter, who lacks any power and has only really been beating very low level domestic opponents. It's with good reason that Boxrec.com rate him as the 71st Bantamweight on the planet (the 12th in his homeland!) and whilst I'll admit I've not seen footage of him, it's fair to say that he's not fought the competition with which to really create a true opinion of just how good he actually is. The lost to Tampus, his most notable opponent so far is perhaps the most telling result with Tampus himself losing 7 of 13 since then.
With the Filipino being pretty unknown it's fair to admit that the co-challenger Roberto Vasquez is much more known and well respected. The 29 year old Panamanian has been a professional for over 11 years and despite starting his career with a loss (a controversial one to Angelo Dottin) he has really forged a solid record.
After losing his debut on points, Vasquez would go 6 years before suffering his next loss. In that time he would record 23 straight victories including 16 by T/KO. Vasquez wasn't just beating scrubs though, he was quickly rising through the rankings and stopping the likes of Beibis Mendoza to claim the WBA World Light Flyweight title, a title he would defend 3 times before moving up to Flyweight.
After moving up to Flyweight in 2006 Vasquez swiftly moved on to the title scene and claimed the interim WBA World Flyweight title thanks to a victory over Japanese fighter Takefumi Sakata. Sadly a rematch the following year saw Sakata earn some measure of revenge by defeating Vasquez to end the Panamanian's long unbeaten run.
Since losing to Sakata, Vasquez has had mixed fortune winning 8 of his subsequent 11 bouts. Whilst his wins have come at a "lesser" level two of his losses have come at the highest level thanks to Hugo Fidel Cazares and Drian Francisco, however his most recent loss, to Oscar Gonzalez is highly debatable.
Vasquez is currently on a 2 fight winning streak, including a notable victory over Mario Briones, however both of those fights too place well above the Bantamweight limit. It's fair to assume that that if Vasquez has any real problem with this bout, it may well be in making the 118lbs limit as I don't think Apolinario will have anything to worry Vasquez.
In terms of Vasquez as a fighter, the southpaw is a hard hitting fighter who despite having been down a number of times in his career is durable with only the monstrously hard hitting Drian Francisco managing to stop him. It's fair to say that Vasquez will bring the pressure here and look to take Apolinario out within 6 rounds, he certainly has the power to do it and certainly has the experience to know that Apolinario isn't going to be able to throw anything new at him.
Prediction-Vasquez TKO5
Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Diego Gabriel Chaves v Jose Miranda
This weekend sees unbeaten Argentinian Diego Gabriel Chaves (21-0, 17) make the first defense of his WBA "interim" Welterweight title as he faces the somewhat uninspiring Jose Miranda (12-11-3, 8) in what appears to be a mismatch from the off.
The hard hitting Chaves claimed the title earlier this year when he stopped Frenchman Ismael El Massoudi in 3 rounds and made his first major mark on the boxing world. Although unknown by many in Europe and even North America, the hard core fans had been been following him for a while, with fans in his homeland dubbing him "La Joya" -The Jewel.
Chaves turned professional in 2008 after a credible amateur career and debuted in July '08. Within a year of being a professional he had swiftly raced out to 10-0 (9) with 8 victories in the first 2 rounds as he simply blew opponents away with hurtful nasty shots. It would take much longer for him to add his first professional title as he claimed the WBO Latino Light Middleweight title just a fight later.
After defending the WBO Latino Light Middleweight title once, Chaves dropped down to the Welterweight division and swiftly claimed the WBO Latino Welterweight title. He defend this second title 5 times as he moved his record to 20-0 (16) and defeated veterans Omar Gabriel Weis and Jorge Daniel Miranda.
Following the 5 WBO Latino Welterweight title defenses Chaves would then go on to defeat El Massoudi for the WBA "interim" Welterweight title.
Whilst he's a noted puncher Chaves does have some solid skills there to rely on if needed. He's never going to become a true slickster but he will make enjoyable fights with his aggressiveness and power which is deadly to both the head and body. This does often leave him there to be hit, and he can be hurt, in fact he's been down several times so far in his career, however he appears to be able to regroup and get back to work with out too many issues.
Sadly for Chaves' first defense he will be facing the very limited Panamanian Jose Miranda who's career so far has been really unspectacular in terms of results and performances.
Miranda made his professional debut way back in 2000 as a Super Bantamweight and despite starting with 4 wins it didn't take long for his record to become somewhat patchy as he swiftly fell to 4-2-2 (2).
Despite scoring 3 successive wins between September 2002 and August 2003 it didn't take long for Miranda's record to really falter as he scored only 2 wins in his next 12 bouts as he fell to 9-11-3 (6). Whilst some of those losses came to decent fighters, including the likes of Darley Perez, Alberto Mosquera, Johan Perez and former world champion Vicente Mosquera they were still career damaging losses.
Surprisingly Miranda has won his last 3 fights, including scoring a notable victory over William Gonzalez. Despite scoring those 3 victories they were, at best, a level or two below world title level (yes, even some interim titles).
Going in to this bout it's almost impossible to see how Miranda can win. With some 6 stoppage losses to his name we know that Miranda isn't that tough and having started his career way down at Super Bantamweight we also know that Miranda is naturally the smaller man. Perhaps most tellingly, at least from the footage that I've seen, is that Miranda is quite easy to hit and Darley Perez had no issue at all in dropping him twice. Whilst Perez hits hard Chaves hits much harder.
Whilst Miranda has been given a bit of a "Rocky" type chance here it's hard to see him lasting more than a round or two against a fearsome hard hitter like Chaves. Expect this one to be over early.
Prediction-Chaves TKO3
The hard hitting Chaves claimed the title earlier this year when he stopped Frenchman Ismael El Massoudi in 3 rounds and made his first major mark on the boxing world. Although unknown by many in Europe and even North America, the hard core fans had been been following him for a while, with fans in his homeland dubbing him "La Joya" -The Jewel.
Chaves turned professional in 2008 after a credible amateur career and debuted in July '08. Within a year of being a professional he had swiftly raced out to 10-0 (9) with 8 victories in the first 2 rounds as he simply blew opponents away with hurtful nasty shots. It would take much longer for him to add his first professional title as he claimed the WBO Latino Light Middleweight title just a fight later.
After defending the WBO Latino Light Middleweight title once, Chaves dropped down to the Welterweight division and swiftly claimed the WBO Latino Welterweight title. He defend this second title 5 times as he moved his record to 20-0 (16) and defeated veterans Omar Gabriel Weis and Jorge Daniel Miranda.
Following the 5 WBO Latino Welterweight title defenses Chaves would then go on to defeat El Massoudi for the WBA "interim" Welterweight title.
Whilst he's a noted puncher Chaves does have some solid skills there to rely on if needed. He's never going to become a true slickster but he will make enjoyable fights with his aggressiveness and power which is deadly to both the head and body. This does often leave him there to be hit, and he can be hurt, in fact he's been down several times so far in his career, however he appears to be able to regroup and get back to work with out too many issues.
Sadly for Chaves' first defense he will be facing the very limited Panamanian Jose Miranda who's career so far has been really unspectacular in terms of results and performances.
Miranda made his professional debut way back in 2000 as a Super Bantamweight and despite starting with 4 wins it didn't take long for his record to become somewhat patchy as he swiftly fell to 4-2-2 (2).
Despite scoring 3 successive wins between September 2002 and August 2003 it didn't take long for Miranda's record to really falter as he scored only 2 wins in his next 12 bouts as he fell to 9-11-3 (6). Whilst some of those losses came to decent fighters, including the likes of Darley Perez, Alberto Mosquera, Johan Perez and former world champion Vicente Mosquera they were still career damaging losses.
Surprisingly Miranda has won his last 3 fights, including scoring a notable victory over William Gonzalez. Despite scoring those 3 victories they were, at best, a level or two below world title level (yes, even some interim titles).
Going in to this bout it's almost impossible to see how Miranda can win. With some 6 stoppage losses to his name we know that Miranda isn't that tough and having started his career way down at Super Bantamweight we also know that Miranda is naturally the smaller man. Perhaps most tellingly, at least from the footage that I've seen, is that Miranda is quite easy to hit and Darley Perez had no issue at all in dropping him twice. Whilst Perez hits hard Chaves hits much harder.
Whilst Miranda has been given a bit of a "Rocky" type chance here it's hard to see him lasting more than a round or two against a fearsome hard hitter like Chaves. Expect this one to be over early.
Prediction-Chaves TKO3
Monday, 27 August 2012
Moruti Mthalane v Ricardo Nunez
In Panama this coming weekend we have another over looked world title fight, and one that promises a lot as the IBF Flyweight champion Moruti Mthalane (28-2, 19) defends against Panama's very own hard hitter, Ricardo Nunez (24-2, 20). Whilst I know many fans aren't particularly interested in the Flyweight division (or for that matter any of the smaller divisions) some fights in those divisions have "exciting" written on them, and this is certainly one of them.
South African Mthalane is, like compatriot Nkosinathi Joyi (who defends against Mario Rodriguez on the same night), very under-rated by the international boxing community. This is due to 3 separate reasons firstly his weight (112lbs) which generally doesn't appeal to US, secondly he's not been featured much on US television (thus hiding him from the US TV audience) and thirdly in his only US fight to date he was stopped, on cuts by the highly touted Nonito Donaire. Despite the lack of exposure he is very talented and he does a lot of things very well. Whilst he's not lighting quick, or has dynamite in his fists he is a very solid fighter with a good defense, hurtful power and solid technique as well as excellent composure.
Mthalane made his professional debut way back in 2000 and won his first 14 fights before being shockingly stopped in 2004 by the then national Flyweight champion Nkqubela Gwazela in round 11. Mthalane bounced back well from his first defeat and claimed the South African Flyweight title less than 2 years later by stopping Akhona Aliva in 6 rounds.
Having made a number of defenses of his South African title Mthalane moved into the world level with an excellent victory over former world title challenger Hussein Hussein in an IBF eliminator. Having got the #1 ranking Mthalane went to the US to face the then champion Nonito Donaire. Despite putting up a solid effort against Donaire, Mthalane was cut in round 6 and unfortunately it took the steam out of his attack before the doctor stopped the bout. Prior to the 6th round Mthalane had out landed Donaire and had appeared to have won rounds 4 and 5 as he seriously pushed the highly rated Filipino hard.
Since losing to Donaire, Mthalane has been on a 6 fight winning streak which has seen him claiming the IBF Flyweight title (that had been vacated by Donaire) by defeating the teak tough Julio Cesar Miranda. As well as winning the title Mthalane has made 3 defenses of the belt by defeating fellow South African Zolani Tete (TKO5), current IBF Light Flyweight champion John Riel Casimero (TKO5) and former WBO title challenger challenger Andrea Sarritzu (TKO7). Whilst looking more impressive in every outing. However, despite 3 solid title defences (including beating Sarritzu in Italy) Mthalane has been inactive since October 2011, a notably absence from the ring.
The challenger, Ricardo Nunez, who will be fighting at home will go into this bout with the feeling that he's probably a slight favourite, due to the home field advantage with Mthalane needing to go from South Africa to Panama. Though if he's expecting anything other than a tough night ahead I'd be very surprised.
Nunez debuted back in 2006 and showed some really impressive power and finishing as he stopped his first 6 opponents, 5 of them in the opening round and actually started his career 10-0 (9) before suffering the first loss of his career in 2008. It what could only be described as a giant upset Nunez was stopped by the hard hitting journeyman William De Sousa in just 37 seconds.
Despite suffering his first loss Nunez swiftly rebuilt his career and ran up 7 more wins (6 by T/KO) as he moved to 17-1 (15). Sadly his winning run would again come to an end prematurely, this time at the hands of power and exciting Filipino Drian Francisco who almost beheaded Nunez in round 5 before eventually knocking him out in what turned out to be a real beat down. Despite looking really poor against Francisco (and I mean really poor) Nunez proved his chin as he literally ate power shots from Francisco before finally being laid out.
Since losing to Francisco we've seen Nunez dropping down to Flyweight from Super Flyweight a change that seems to have really helped him rebuild career once again. Nunez is now on a 7 fight winning streak which has seen him stopping 5 opponents including Carlos Tamara the former IBF Light Flyweight champion, a win that helped Nunez to get this world title opportunity.
With an aggressive mindset Nunez is very fun to watch and whilst he's not particularly quick he has has a must watch style of fighting. Not only does Nunez have genuinely hurtful power but he also really likes to let his hands go with a bit of a reckless abandon at times and whilst his defense is sloppy (to say the least) he appears to be able to take a solid shot or two, in fact from the number of shots he took from Francisco he can take an awful lot of flush shots. He appears to like to grind opponents down and whilst having heavy hands he's probably not quite what you'd term as a concussive puncher, certainly not at the top level.
Despite the fact Nunez will have the crowd behind him I just don't think that'll be enough to win him the bout. Mthalane is the more talented fighter, he's much more defensively sound, more technical in the ring and whilst possible not quite as powerful he's more likely to land his blows cleanly than Nunez. Whilst a decision would likely favour Nunez I don't see it going that far as I don't think Nunez will be able to cope with the hard accurate counters of Mthalane.
Prediction-Mthalane TKO8
Interestingly in the same division just weeks later the WBA "super" title and the WBO title will be unified as Hernan "Tyson" Maruqez (34-2, 25) faces Brian Viloria (31-3-0-3, 18), a bout between the winners would be a huge fight for the division and the sort of bout that would deserve a major TV slot in the US.
South African Mthalane is, like compatriot Nkosinathi Joyi (who defends against Mario Rodriguez on the same night), very under-rated by the international boxing community. This is due to 3 separate reasons firstly his weight (112lbs) which generally doesn't appeal to US, secondly he's not been featured much on US television (thus hiding him from the US TV audience) and thirdly in his only US fight to date he was stopped, on cuts by the highly touted Nonito Donaire. Despite the lack of exposure he is very talented and he does a lot of things very well. Whilst he's not lighting quick, or has dynamite in his fists he is a very solid fighter with a good defense, hurtful power and solid technique as well as excellent composure.
Mthalane made his professional debut way back in 2000 and won his first 14 fights before being shockingly stopped in 2004 by the then national Flyweight champion Nkqubela Gwazela in round 11. Mthalane bounced back well from his first defeat and claimed the South African Flyweight title less than 2 years later by stopping Akhona Aliva in 6 rounds.
Having made a number of defenses of his South African title Mthalane moved into the world level with an excellent victory over former world title challenger Hussein Hussein in an IBF eliminator. Having got the #1 ranking Mthalane went to the US to face the then champion Nonito Donaire. Despite putting up a solid effort against Donaire, Mthalane was cut in round 6 and unfortunately it took the steam out of his attack before the doctor stopped the bout. Prior to the 6th round Mthalane had out landed Donaire and had appeared to have won rounds 4 and 5 as he seriously pushed the highly rated Filipino hard.
Since losing to Donaire, Mthalane has been on a 6 fight winning streak which has seen him claiming the IBF Flyweight title (that had been vacated by Donaire) by defeating the teak tough Julio Cesar Miranda. As well as winning the title Mthalane has made 3 defenses of the belt by defeating fellow South African Zolani Tete (TKO5), current IBF Light Flyweight champion John Riel Casimero (TKO5) and former WBO title challenger challenger Andrea Sarritzu (TKO7). Whilst looking more impressive in every outing. However, despite 3 solid title defences (including beating Sarritzu in Italy) Mthalane has been inactive since October 2011, a notably absence from the ring.
The challenger, Ricardo Nunez, who will be fighting at home will go into this bout with the feeling that he's probably a slight favourite, due to the home field advantage with Mthalane needing to go from South Africa to Panama. Though if he's expecting anything other than a tough night ahead I'd be very surprised.
Nunez debuted back in 2006 and showed some really impressive power and finishing as he stopped his first 6 opponents, 5 of them in the opening round and actually started his career 10-0 (9) before suffering the first loss of his career in 2008. It what could only be described as a giant upset Nunez was stopped by the hard hitting journeyman William De Sousa in just 37 seconds.
Despite suffering his first loss Nunez swiftly rebuilt his career and ran up 7 more wins (6 by T/KO) as he moved to 17-1 (15). Sadly his winning run would again come to an end prematurely, this time at the hands of power and exciting Filipino Drian Francisco who almost beheaded Nunez in round 5 before eventually knocking him out in what turned out to be a real beat down. Despite looking really poor against Francisco (and I mean really poor) Nunez proved his chin as he literally ate power shots from Francisco before finally being laid out.
Since losing to Francisco we've seen Nunez dropping down to Flyweight from Super Flyweight a change that seems to have really helped him rebuild career once again. Nunez is now on a 7 fight winning streak which has seen him stopping 5 opponents including Carlos Tamara the former IBF Light Flyweight champion, a win that helped Nunez to get this world title opportunity.
With an aggressive mindset Nunez is very fun to watch and whilst he's not particularly quick he has has a must watch style of fighting. Not only does Nunez have genuinely hurtful power but he also really likes to let his hands go with a bit of a reckless abandon at times and whilst his defense is sloppy (to say the least) he appears to be able to take a solid shot or two, in fact from the number of shots he took from Francisco he can take an awful lot of flush shots. He appears to like to grind opponents down and whilst having heavy hands he's probably not quite what you'd term as a concussive puncher, certainly not at the top level.
Despite the fact Nunez will have the crowd behind him I just don't think that'll be enough to win him the bout. Mthalane is the more talented fighter, he's much more defensively sound, more technical in the ring and whilst possible not quite as powerful he's more likely to land his blows cleanly than Nunez. Whilst a decision would likely favour Nunez I don't see it going that far as I don't think Nunez will be able to cope with the hard accurate counters of Mthalane.
Prediction-Mthalane TKO8
Interestingly in the same division just weeks later the WBA "super" title and the WBO title will be unified as Hernan "Tyson" Maruqez (34-2, 25) faces Brian Viloria (31-3-0-3, 18), a bout between the winners would be a huge fight for the division and the sort of bout that would deserve a major TV slot in the US.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)