Pound-for-Pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr (43-0, 26) returns to the ring for the first time in almost a year as he defends his WBC Welterweight title against the once beaten Robert Guerrero (31-1-1-2, 18). The bout, the first of a possible 6 bouts that Showtime will show of Mayweather will see "Money" attempting to finish off the recent rise of "The Ghost".
Aged 36 Mayweather takes not only the premier spot on most pound-for-pound charts but also one of the best records in the sport and the position as the #1 pay-per-view attraction. Though with his age comes deteriorating speed and reflexes which won't have been helped by spending a notable time in jail away from the gym and the highly level nutrition he's used to.
At his very best Mayweather is a slick counter puncher who combines very solid technical skills, impressive speed, fantastic accuracy and cat like reflexes. Defensively his shoulder-roll has proven to be near impenetrable and has helped him survive so long at the top whilst taking so little damage. Offensively he's been criticised due to his perceived lack of power though when he wishes to be spiteful he can hurt fighters with his laser guided straight right. So accurate is Mayweather that he can often lead with a straight right hands and get back in to a defensive posture before his opponent knows what has hit them.
Although Mayweather is no longer at his "best" with his feet being visibly slower than they once were he's also become more offensively minded than he once was. His pot shotting is still a delight and his combinations are a thing of beauty. In fact getting older has helped Mayweather become more offensively minded than he was when he was younger. He's not become a swarmer or a fighter looking for a war fight-in-fight out yet he's become a more offensively minded boxer.
Looking for the biggest victory of his career Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero looks to prove that he belongs in the pound-for-pound argument. Aged "just" 30 Guerrero is a fighter who has filled out from a Featherweight into a perfectly sized Welterweight who is 2-0 at 147lbs and has beaten two well regarded fighters in Selcuk Aydin and Andre Berto.
Fighting from the Southpaw stance Guerrero has proven he can box, as he did against both Aydin and Michael Katsidis as well as brawl as he did in a messy bout with Andre Berto. Whilst it was obvious that he was hurt against Aydin (especially late) he appeared to be a fully blown Welterweight against Berto where he was forcing Berto backwards repeatedly and even dropped him twice. Sure Berto is no Mayweather but it was still impressive.
For Guerrero the big question is "how do you solve a problem like Mayweather?" Trying to box him isn't an option and doing so will see him tagged by the accurate and under-rated straight right which, as we all know, is a massive threat to Southpaws. Trying to brawl might be his best option and whilst Mayweather tends not to get drawn in to them he certainly can be dirty and hold his own in them when he needs to.
The battle, at least in my eyes looks to be lost by Guerrero before the first blow has been thrown, despite the fact Guerrero has been stealing the headlines going in to the bout.
Prediction-Mayweather TKO10
Showing posts with label WBC Welterweight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WBC Welterweight. Show all posts
Friday, 3 May 2013
Thursday, 22 November 2012
Robert Guerrero v Andre Berto
This weekend Mexican American Robert Guerrero (30-1-1-2, 18) will be hoping to make the first defense of his WBC "interim" Welterweight title as he faces former champion Andre Berto (28-1, 22) in an interesting match up that will see both men asked a lot of questions.
Guerrero, 29, claimed the title just 4 months ago as he claimed a competitive but clear decision over Turkish hard hitter Selcuk Aydin and will now look to prove that he is one of the top dogs at 147lbs having moved up swiftly in recent years. In just 5 years we've seen Guerrero moving from Featherweight (where he was a 2-time IBF champion) all the way up to Welterweight, claiming some form of title at both Super Featherweight and Lightweight on his way up.
Although the champion is a relatively big guy for the weight at 5'8" and with a 70" reach he's certainly not a big guy in terms of power having failed to stop anyone of note above 130lbs (with his last notable stoppages come way back down at 126lbs). As well as his questionable power at Welterweight some also question Guerrero's durability at the weight. Whilst it's true that he has never been stopped in his 34 fight career he has been dropped and hurt, and seemed really hurt late in his fight against Aydin.
Whilst I'm certainly not sure of Guerrero's ability to match the best physically at Welterweight he certainly isn't with out his own positives. Firstly Guerrero is a very talented boxer, he's very good at using his reach and and getting off with his jab though his real asset is is work rate and speed, especially hand speed. Against Aydin, Guerrero looked lightening quick, especially early on as he landed combinations at will, and his boxing ability really looked to be a class or two better than the Turk.
Whilst I have a lot of questions about Guerrero's toughness and power at Welterweight, I have more questions about Andre Berto. Berto, a former IBF and WBC champion at Welterweight returns to the ring for the first time in over a year after failing a drugs test in preparation for a rematch with Victor Ortiz, the only man thus far to have defeated him. The questions about Berto are not just what will he be like after a year out, but also what mental questions are over his head following his failed drugs test?
Prior to the ban Berto was an exciting, though somewhat limited fighter. He was an explosive combination puncher who could unleash 5 or 6 punch combinations in a heart beat and although he often looked like he could be out boxed no one managed it, and it only took a gutsy performance by Ortiz back in April 2011 to decrown him in an hallacious war.
Despite being a career Welterweight, Berto is actually only a shade taller (1/2") than Guerrero and only has a minor reach advantage(also 1/2") and due to his love of throwing hooks Berto may actually leave him self to be out boxed at range despite having the longer reach. However if the bout takes place up close, Berto's explosiveness will be the difference maker.
The odds on this fight are very interesting with Berto a slight favourite (4/5) and I'd agree with that. There is a lot of questions over his return however if he is anything like the fighter he once was, I'd snap your hand off for Berto by T/KO as his power and speed are a big step up from Aydin's. If Berto has lingering issues however Guerrero could outbox him to a decision.
Prediction-Berto TKO7
Guerrero, 29, claimed the title just 4 months ago as he claimed a competitive but clear decision over Turkish hard hitter Selcuk Aydin and will now look to prove that he is one of the top dogs at 147lbs having moved up swiftly in recent years. In just 5 years we've seen Guerrero moving from Featherweight (where he was a 2-time IBF champion) all the way up to Welterweight, claiming some form of title at both Super Featherweight and Lightweight on his way up.
Although the champion is a relatively big guy for the weight at 5'8" and with a 70" reach he's certainly not a big guy in terms of power having failed to stop anyone of note above 130lbs (with his last notable stoppages come way back down at 126lbs). As well as his questionable power at Welterweight some also question Guerrero's durability at the weight. Whilst it's true that he has never been stopped in his 34 fight career he has been dropped and hurt, and seemed really hurt late in his fight against Aydin.
Whilst I'm certainly not sure of Guerrero's ability to match the best physically at Welterweight he certainly isn't with out his own positives. Firstly Guerrero is a very talented boxer, he's very good at using his reach and and getting off with his jab though his real asset is is work rate and speed, especially hand speed. Against Aydin, Guerrero looked lightening quick, especially early on as he landed combinations at will, and his boxing ability really looked to be a class or two better than the Turk.
Whilst I have a lot of questions about Guerrero's toughness and power at Welterweight, I have more questions about Andre Berto. Berto, a former IBF and WBC champion at Welterweight returns to the ring for the first time in over a year after failing a drugs test in preparation for a rematch with Victor Ortiz, the only man thus far to have defeated him. The questions about Berto are not just what will he be like after a year out, but also what mental questions are over his head following his failed drugs test?
Prior to the ban Berto was an exciting, though somewhat limited fighter. He was an explosive combination puncher who could unleash 5 or 6 punch combinations in a heart beat and although he often looked like he could be out boxed no one managed it, and it only took a gutsy performance by Ortiz back in April 2011 to decrown him in an hallacious war.
Despite being a career Welterweight, Berto is actually only a shade taller (1/2") than Guerrero and only has a minor reach advantage(also 1/2") and due to his love of throwing hooks Berto may actually leave him self to be out boxed at range despite having the longer reach. However if the bout takes place up close, Berto's explosiveness will be the difference maker.
The odds on this fight are very interesting with Berto a slight favourite (4/5) and I'd agree with that. There is a lot of questions over his return however if he is anything like the fighter he once was, I'd snap your hand off for Berto by T/KO as his power and speed are a big step up from Aydin's. If Berto has lingering issues however Guerrero could outbox him to a decision.
Prediction-Berto TKO7
Tuesday, 24 July 2012
Robert Guerrero v Selcuk Aydin
This coming Saturday see's former multi-weight champion Robert Guerrero (29-1-1-2, 18) jumping up from Lightweight to Welterweight in an attempt to win the "Interim" WBC Welterweight title. Guerrero's opponent will be the hard hitting Turk Selcuk Aydin (23-0, 17) in what promising to be an interesting spectacle of skill against power with natural size being played against natural speed.
The 29 year old Guerrero started his professional career back in 2001 as a Featherweight (126lbs) and it was at this weight that Guerrero would start to make his name. After starting his career 18-1-1 (11) Guerrero would get a chance to face Eric Aiken for the IBF Featherweight title. Aiken, who had won the title in his previous bout by DQ over Valdemir Pereira wasn't a fighter of genuine "Championship" quality and was stopped in 8 rounds by Guerrero. Guerrero lost his title in his first defence being out pointed by the teak tough Mexican Orlando Salido, however Salido would later be stripped of the title following a positive drugs test. Guerrero would reclaim the Featherweight title by stopping Spend Abazi (TKO9) and then defend it successfully twice before moving up to Super Featherweight (130lbs).
In 2009 Guerrero become a 2-weight world champion claiming the IBF Super Featherweight title by out pointing South African Malcolm Klassen. Rather than defending this title Guerrero retired from the sport to care for his sick wife who was suffering from Leukemia. After just a few months Guerrero returned to the ring to continue his career at Lightweight. As a Lightweight Guerrero would claim the WBO and WBA "interim" world titles following an excellent performance against the popular brawler Michael Katsidis. The bout with Katsidis was Guerrero's most recent bout. He was scheduled to face Marcos Maidana but an injury and subsequent surgery forced Guerrero out of action for much of the last 12 months.
Having never fought above 140 Guerrero is effectively jumping from Lightweight to Welterweight for this bout. Whilst he's incredibly skilled, with excellent movement, an accurate jab and an elusive nature (hence his nickname of "The Ghost") he's certainly not a puncher having scored only 2 stoppages in his last 6 bouts (with 1 of those stoppages coming via an opponents arm being injured). Quite how his punch will carry up to 147 is a major question, though the bigger question is what will his punch resistance be like at Welterweight? Guerrero was dropped a few fights back by Joel Casamayor who was well beyond his best going into the bout. If Casamayor can drop Guerrero logic is a fully blown Welterweight can certainly hurt him.
Although Guerrero is pretty well known by boxing fans and will be the favourite going into the bout Selcuk Aydin is a little bit of an unknown to most fans. The unbeaten Turk, dubbed "Mini Tyson" turned professional in 2006 after a solid amateur career that ended in controversy with Aydin spitting at a referee and repeatedly fouling against British fighter Frankie Gavin. As an amateur Aydin was a powerful fighter, sadly, as seen in his bout with Gavin he was short tempered and easily frustrated by a fighter who moved and used angles.
Aydin's professional career started with a series of destructive stoppages, in fact only 1 of Aydin's first 13 opponents managed to hear the final bell. In Aydin's 15th bout as a professional he claimed his first title, the WBC International Welterweight title with opponent Lucky Lewele, being the first man to take Aydin the 12 round distance. This title saw Aydin boosted up the WBC rankings and after defending the belt 4 times he was seen as deserving challenger by many for a world title. Sadly for Aydin the then WBC champion Andre Berto had other plans and Aydin was generally avoided in one way or another.
In 2009, whilst chasing a world title fight, Aydin made his US debut and defeated Said Ouali by Split Decision in an action packed bout. Whilst Ouali was the more technically skilled fighter Aydin just refused to be out worked early on and bagged the early rounds with his aggression, landing a number of thudding uppercuts to Ouali's chin. Aydin however seemed to tire and was looking exhausted in the final round with Ouali rallying and almost managing to steal the decision in an engaging bout. For many in the US, this was the only time they've managed to see Aydin, who showed bullish strength but not the best boxing brain out there.
Since the Ouali fight Aydin has remained in Europe fighting a mixture of highly ranked opponents including Jackson Osei Bonsu (in a European title bout) and Ionut Dan Ion (better known as Jo Jo Dan) twice, winning the first by split decision and the second by unanimous decision. The Dan fights showed the two notable things about Aydin-
1-he's dangerous, he hits hard and can drop you especially early in a bout
2-he can be out boxed and tires if he's forced to chase the bout.
So what happens when the men get in the ring together? Well this is what makes this bout so interesting. On one side you have, Guerrero a skilful fighter who boxes wonderfully, uses a lot of movement and has a very crisp accurate jab the same things that have been shown to give Aydin real issues in both the amateurs and as a professional. Guerrero however is the naturally "smaller man", although both men are around the same height and Guerrero has a significant reach advantage Aydin is built like a short, powerful, destructive tank. Aydin is used to fighting as a Welterweight, he's used to taking punches from Welterweights and he's used to hurting Welterweights. Unless Guerrero has the power to keep Aydin away, the Turk may try to just walk through his jabs, wrestle him and attack the body to take Guerrero's wheels away, if he manages that Guerrero's in for a hard night. We saw in the Katisidis fight with Guerrero that Robert doesn't like to be hit to the body and Aydin certainly can hit to the body. If Guerrero can't keep Aydin at range he will have to move, a lot, land the jab and move, constantly, force Aydin to chase shadows.
The questions around the bout are really what makes it such an intriguing bout-
Can Guerrero take Aydin's power?
Can Aydin land on the elusive Guerrero?
What will the move to Welterweight do to Guerrero's speed?
Will Guerrero manage to control the distance?
For me personally I favour Aydin to score what is on paper an upset. At the moment the odds favour Guerrero to win (1/4) though Aydin as an outside bet (7/2) does feel very over priced.
The fight can be seen on:
Showtime (United States) and BoxNation (United Kingdom)
The undercard features:
Unbeaten American Shawn Porter (19-0, 14) against popular Mexican Alfonso Gomez (23-5-2, 12)
Unbeaten Brit George Groves (14-0, 11) against hard hitting Mexican Francisco Sierra (25-5-1, 22)
Video below courtesy of shosports
The 29 year old Guerrero started his professional career back in 2001 as a Featherweight (126lbs) and it was at this weight that Guerrero would start to make his name. After starting his career 18-1-1 (11) Guerrero would get a chance to face Eric Aiken for the IBF Featherweight title. Aiken, who had won the title in his previous bout by DQ over Valdemir Pereira wasn't a fighter of genuine "Championship" quality and was stopped in 8 rounds by Guerrero. Guerrero lost his title in his first defence being out pointed by the teak tough Mexican Orlando Salido, however Salido would later be stripped of the title following a positive drugs test. Guerrero would reclaim the Featherweight title by stopping Spend Abazi (TKO9) and then defend it successfully twice before moving up to Super Featherweight (130lbs).
In 2009 Guerrero become a 2-weight world champion claiming the IBF Super Featherweight title by out pointing South African Malcolm Klassen. Rather than defending this title Guerrero retired from the sport to care for his sick wife who was suffering from Leukemia. After just a few months Guerrero returned to the ring to continue his career at Lightweight. As a Lightweight Guerrero would claim the WBO and WBA "interim" world titles following an excellent performance against the popular brawler Michael Katsidis. The bout with Katsidis was Guerrero's most recent bout. He was scheduled to face Marcos Maidana but an injury and subsequent surgery forced Guerrero out of action for much of the last 12 months.
Having never fought above 140 Guerrero is effectively jumping from Lightweight to Welterweight for this bout. Whilst he's incredibly skilled, with excellent movement, an accurate jab and an elusive nature (hence his nickname of "The Ghost") he's certainly not a puncher having scored only 2 stoppages in his last 6 bouts (with 1 of those stoppages coming via an opponents arm being injured). Quite how his punch will carry up to 147 is a major question, though the bigger question is what will his punch resistance be like at Welterweight? Guerrero was dropped a few fights back by Joel Casamayor who was well beyond his best going into the bout. If Casamayor can drop Guerrero logic is a fully blown Welterweight can certainly hurt him.
Although Guerrero is pretty well known by boxing fans and will be the favourite going into the bout Selcuk Aydin is a little bit of an unknown to most fans. The unbeaten Turk, dubbed "Mini Tyson" turned professional in 2006 after a solid amateur career that ended in controversy with Aydin spitting at a referee and repeatedly fouling against British fighter Frankie Gavin. As an amateur Aydin was a powerful fighter, sadly, as seen in his bout with Gavin he was short tempered and easily frustrated by a fighter who moved and used angles.
Aydin's professional career started with a series of destructive stoppages, in fact only 1 of Aydin's first 13 opponents managed to hear the final bell. In Aydin's 15th bout as a professional he claimed his first title, the WBC International Welterweight title with opponent Lucky Lewele, being the first man to take Aydin the 12 round distance. This title saw Aydin boosted up the WBC rankings and after defending the belt 4 times he was seen as deserving challenger by many for a world title. Sadly for Aydin the then WBC champion Andre Berto had other plans and Aydin was generally avoided in one way or another.
In 2009, whilst chasing a world title fight, Aydin made his US debut and defeated Said Ouali by Split Decision in an action packed bout. Whilst Ouali was the more technically skilled fighter Aydin just refused to be out worked early on and bagged the early rounds with his aggression, landing a number of thudding uppercuts to Ouali's chin. Aydin however seemed to tire and was looking exhausted in the final round with Ouali rallying and almost managing to steal the decision in an engaging bout. For many in the US, this was the only time they've managed to see Aydin, who showed bullish strength but not the best boxing brain out there.
Since the Ouali fight Aydin has remained in Europe fighting a mixture of highly ranked opponents including Jackson Osei Bonsu (in a European title bout) and Ionut Dan Ion (better known as Jo Jo Dan) twice, winning the first by split decision and the second by unanimous decision. The Dan fights showed the two notable things about Aydin-
1-he's dangerous, he hits hard and can drop you especially early in a bout
2-he can be out boxed and tires if he's forced to chase the bout.
So what happens when the men get in the ring together? Well this is what makes this bout so interesting. On one side you have, Guerrero a skilful fighter who boxes wonderfully, uses a lot of movement and has a very crisp accurate jab the same things that have been shown to give Aydin real issues in both the amateurs and as a professional. Guerrero however is the naturally "smaller man", although both men are around the same height and Guerrero has a significant reach advantage Aydin is built like a short, powerful, destructive tank. Aydin is used to fighting as a Welterweight, he's used to taking punches from Welterweights and he's used to hurting Welterweights. Unless Guerrero has the power to keep Aydin away, the Turk may try to just walk through his jabs, wrestle him and attack the body to take Guerrero's wheels away, if he manages that Guerrero's in for a hard night. We saw in the Katisidis fight with Guerrero that Robert doesn't like to be hit to the body and Aydin certainly can hit to the body. If Guerrero can't keep Aydin at range he will have to move, a lot, land the jab and move, constantly, force Aydin to chase shadows.
The questions around the bout are really what makes it such an intriguing bout-
Can Guerrero take Aydin's power?
Can Aydin land on the elusive Guerrero?
What will the move to Welterweight do to Guerrero's speed?
Will Guerrero manage to control the distance?
For me personally I favour Aydin to score what is on paper an upset. At the moment the odds favour Guerrero to win (1/4) though Aydin as an outside bet (7/2) does feel very over priced.
The fight can be seen on:
Showtime (United States) and BoxNation (United Kingdom)
The undercard features:
Unbeaten American Shawn Porter (19-0, 14) against popular Mexican Alfonso Gomez (23-5-2, 12)
Unbeaten Brit George Groves (14-0, 11) against hard hitting Mexican Francisco Sierra (25-5-1, 22)
Video below courtesy of shosports
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