Mexican Bantamweight Leo Santa Cruz (21-0-1, 12) looks to not only prove that he's one of the fastest rising boxers in the world right now, but that he's also one of the top Bantamweights as he attempts to defend his IBF title against huge under-dog Victor Zaleta (20-2-1, 10).
Santa Cruz, seen by many as a future multi-weight champion, claimed the the IBF title just 5 months ago when he defeated Vusi Malinga and since then has defended his title once, becoming the first man to stop veteran Eric Morel. It was though by many that the Morel fight would be Santa Cruz's last bout as a Bantamweight however the ease with which he won has seen him remaining at 118lbs for one more fight as he waits to weigh up options at Super Bantamweight sometime next year.
As a fighter Santa Cruz is looking like a super star in the making, though it's not his skill per-se that is making him look like that, but his all action, relentless style. He's a monster at Bantamweight with hurtful shots, especially to the body and he throws in huge numbers slowly grinding opponents down with pressure and the cumulative effect of his shots. Despite his record not making him look much of a puncher he has amazingly stopped 10 of his last 11 opponents!
As well as his work rate and pressure, Santa Cruz is also a very tough fighter who takes a solid punch and smiles at his opponents afterwards as if to ask if that's all they have. In many regards he is similar to former Welterweight champion Antonio Magarito, who many have compared him to. Despite the similarities however, it's fair to say that Santa Cruz actually has the better skills and seems to be a bit more than just a relentless tornado of punches.
Whilst the bout is here for Santa Cruz to further enhance his reputation, it's fair to say that Zaleta will be looking for an upset and it's also fair to say that if Zaleta wins it would genuinely be one of the upsets of the year.
Despite being a decent fighter Zaleta has made his name at Super Flyweight and has even fought as low as Flyweight. In fact it's been at those lower weights that Zaleta has often acted as a bit of a banana skin with victories over fighters such as Eric Ortiz, Gilberto Keb Baas and Jose Antonio Aguirre (all of whom were world champions). Sadly however Zaleta hasn't been able to claim a world title, being widely beaten in his only previous world title bout again Omar Andres Narvaez.
Since the Narvaez bout, Zaleta has struggled winning 3 and drawing 1, though he could easily have lost 3 and won 1 of those and in effect be 1-4 in his last 5 bouts, having been dropped in 2 of them. Whilst he's never been stopped, he's never faced a fighter like Santa Cruz and I really, really can't see him coping with the relentless aggression of the champion here.
Prediction: Santa Cruz by TKO7
Friday, 9 November 2012
Thursday, 8 November 2012
Chris John v Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo
Indonesian Featherweight Chris John (47-0-2, 22) not only has the longest active unbeaten record at 49 fights, but he is also one of the longest reigning world champions having held the various forms of the WBA Featherweight title since 2003. This weekend however John seeks to take the unbeaten record of another unbeaten fighter as he faces Thai Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo (44-0, 27). Yes you are reading this right, the combined records of these two men reads 91-0-2 (49) and tomorrow morning, they will fight for John's "Super" WBA Featherweight title.
Most fight fans around the world will know something about Chris John. You don't hold various forms of the WBA title for 9 years with out boxing fans knowing who you are, likewise you don't go 49 fights unbeaten with out people reading about you. Though of course despite those stats most haven't really seen much of John, other than perhaps his 2 fights in the US against Rocky Juarez.
A reason for so few fight fans to have actually seen John is due to the fact he's a legendary fight in Indonesia where his is paid very nicely. His payments in Indonesia as the main event are significantly better than what he generally gets paid for fighting away from home, hence his lack of fights in Europe or the US. In fact in a career spanning all the way back to 1998 John has only fought 8 times out of his homeland, 3 times in Japan, twice in Australia, once in Singapore and the two aforementioned bouts with Juarez in the US. However tomorrows fight will see John fighting in Singapore for the second successive fight, again with a huge payment expected.
In terms of his record John is a bit of a strange one. He's been unbeaten since 1998 yet has only faced a number of well regarded opponents. Whilst Juan Manuel Marquez is obviously the stand out name on John's record (who John beat in 2006), John also holds wins over Oscar Leon, Derrick Gainer, Rocky Juarez and fellow Indonesian Daud Cino Yordan (who also fights on the same card).
At his best John was a hugely talented fighter who could move, box, and whilst he couldn't really bang, he knew what to do to stay out of trouble using his legs and long accurate shots thrown in combinations. He had quick hands, he was tough (though knew how to stay out of too much danger) and quick feet. However at 33 years old John is no longer the fighter he once was and the fact he struggled with Stanyslav Merdov just a year ago, despite dropping Merdov, shows signs that John is a fighter who is feeling the effects of a long career. Not only is long in terms of years (14) or fights (49) but also rounds (395). The problem with not being a hard puncher, especially at world level is that 12 rounds take their toll on your body and with John having stopped only 3 of his last 17 opponents, he has run up a lot of miles on the clock.
Whilst John is well known through out the boxing world for various things, it's fair to say that Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo is much less well known, however many view him as having a genuine chance at scoring the upset. The 27 year old Thai turned professional in 2003 and swiftly claimed the WBC Asian Boxing Council Featherweight title, a title he defended well over 20 times!
Although Piriyapino has a long unbeaten record, like John, it's hard to find too many recognisable names on his record however the most recognisable is former world champion Yoddamrong Sithyodthong, however Sithyodthong wasn't the fighter he had once been. Other than that, his record is padded with journeyman, like Jack Asis and Jaime Barcelona which make it almost impossible to really say how good he is.
Like fellow Thai Pungluang Sor Singyu, Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo has a genuinely tough look to him. Whilst their styles are different, they are similar and Piriyapinyo does seem like the sort of fighter who will force an opponent to work hard (like Sor Singyu, who appears to have a better defense). If Piriyapinyo can force the fight to John he really could take advantage of the champions age and wear and tear, however the fact he is slow on his feet does give John a chance to stay away and box.
If John isn't up for this and cannot roll back the clock I really do see the upset. Piriyapinyo will not only be looking to retain his unbeaten record, but will be looking to score by far the biggest win of his career, a win that will really allow him to make some serious money and a chance to show his talent around the world. Whilst John is the favourite, I personally will be going for the upset here.
Prediction: Piriyapinyo UD 12
Most fight fans around the world will know something about Chris John. You don't hold various forms of the WBA title for 9 years with out boxing fans knowing who you are, likewise you don't go 49 fights unbeaten with out people reading about you. Though of course despite those stats most haven't really seen much of John, other than perhaps his 2 fights in the US against Rocky Juarez.
A reason for so few fight fans to have actually seen John is due to the fact he's a legendary fight in Indonesia where his is paid very nicely. His payments in Indonesia as the main event are significantly better than what he generally gets paid for fighting away from home, hence his lack of fights in Europe or the US. In fact in a career spanning all the way back to 1998 John has only fought 8 times out of his homeland, 3 times in Japan, twice in Australia, once in Singapore and the two aforementioned bouts with Juarez in the US. However tomorrows fight will see John fighting in Singapore for the second successive fight, again with a huge payment expected.
In terms of his record John is a bit of a strange one. He's been unbeaten since 1998 yet has only faced a number of well regarded opponents. Whilst Juan Manuel Marquez is obviously the stand out name on John's record (who John beat in 2006), John also holds wins over Oscar Leon, Derrick Gainer, Rocky Juarez and fellow Indonesian Daud Cino Yordan (who also fights on the same card).
At his best John was a hugely talented fighter who could move, box, and whilst he couldn't really bang, he knew what to do to stay out of trouble using his legs and long accurate shots thrown in combinations. He had quick hands, he was tough (though knew how to stay out of too much danger) and quick feet. However at 33 years old John is no longer the fighter he once was and the fact he struggled with Stanyslav Merdov just a year ago, despite dropping Merdov, shows signs that John is a fighter who is feeling the effects of a long career. Not only is long in terms of years (14) or fights (49) but also rounds (395). The problem with not being a hard puncher, especially at world level is that 12 rounds take their toll on your body and with John having stopped only 3 of his last 17 opponents, he has run up a lot of miles on the clock.
Whilst John is well known through out the boxing world for various things, it's fair to say that Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo is much less well known, however many view him as having a genuine chance at scoring the upset. The 27 year old Thai turned professional in 2003 and swiftly claimed the WBC Asian Boxing Council Featherweight title, a title he defended well over 20 times!
Although Piriyapino has a long unbeaten record, like John, it's hard to find too many recognisable names on his record however the most recognisable is former world champion Yoddamrong Sithyodthong, however Sithyodthong wasn't the fighter he had once been. Other than that, his record is padded with journeyman, like Jack Asis and Jaime Barcelona which make it almost impossible to really say how good he is.
Like fellow Thai Pungluang Sor Singyu, Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo has a genuinely tough look to him. Whilst their styles are different, they are similar and Piriyapinyo does seem like the sort of fighter who will force an opponent to work hard (like Sor Singyu, who appears to have a better defense). If Piriyapinyo can force the fight to John he really could take advantage of the champions age and wear and tear, however the fact he is slow on his feet does give John a chance to stay away and box.
If John isn't up for this and cannot roll back the clock I really do see the upset. Piriyapinyo will not only be looking to retain his unbeaten record, but will be looking to score by far the biggest win of his career, a win that will really allow him to make some serious money and a chance to show his talent around the world. Whilst John is the favourite, I personally will be going for the upset here.
Prediction: Piriyapinyo UD 12
Stanyslav Kashtanov v Server Yemurlayev
In the past I have regularly complained about how meaningless the WBA "interim" title is, and we see this issue raising it's head twice this weekend. We see it at Flyweight with Juan Carlos Reveco having a "stay busy" fight against Julian Rivera and we also see it in the Ukraine as the WBA's "interim" Super Middleweight title is on the line as Stanyslav Kashtanov (29-1, 16) faces compatriot Server Yemurlayev (22-0, 8) in what can only be described as having a title for titles sake.
The Super Middleweight division, as we all know, revolves around American star Andre Ward who is the WBA's "Super" champion and the WBC champion. Then we have Carl Froch (IBF champion), Arthur Abraham (WBO champion) and in December we will crown a new WBA "regular" champion as Brian Magee faces Mikkel Kessler. As well as this bunch of top class fighters we also have top contenders such as Lucien Bute, Robert Stieglitz, Andre Dirrell and Kelly Pavlik. Basically the division is stacked and sadly neither of the fighters fighting for WBA "interim" title deserves to be mentioned alongside the elite.
Of the two men Stanyslav Kashtanov is the better known fighter having been unlucky not to have actually claimed this very same title 15 months ago as he was controversially defeated by Karoly Balzsay. In that performance Kashtanov proved that he could hold his own at fringe world level and whilst he was unlucky to lose, he proved that he was perhaps a genuine future title contender.
Sadly however aside from the fight with Balzay, Kashtanov is really unproven with his "next best well known opponent" being Belorussian journeyman Kanstantsin Makhankou (who has genuinely fought a who's who, though sadly seems to have retired). This would suggest that whilst Kashtanov has got ability his actually level is really hard to determine.
Whilst I don't know a lot about Kashtanov it's fair to say I know a lot more about him than I know about Server Yemurlayev who turned professional in 2007 and has yet to face a really notable opponent, with the best opponent probably being Bernard Donfack.
What we do know about Yemurlayev is that he's not only untested, but has hardly done anything of note. He really has no power (a 36% stoppage rate) and yet has only been 10 or more rounds on 2 occasions, giving Kashtanov a big advantage in terms of rounds fought, ability to score stoppages and tested stamina.
When it comes to this fight it's hard to really say too much about either man, however I do favour that Kashtanov, mixing at a higher level will serve him well here.
Prediction-Kashtanov UD12
The Super Middleweight division, as we all know, revolves around American star Andre Ward who is the WBA's "Super" champion and the WBC champion. Then we have Carl Froch (IBF champion), Arthur Abraham (WBO champion) and in December we will crown a new WBA "regular" champion as Brian Magee faces Mikkel Kessler. As well as this bunch of top class fighters we also have top contenders such as Lucien Bute, Robert Stieglitz, Andre Dirrell and Kelly Pavlik. Basically the division is stacked and sadly neither of the fighters fighting for WBA "interim" title deserves to be mentioned alongside the elite.
Of the two men Stanyslav Kashtanov is the better known fighter having been unlucky not to have actually claimed this very same title 15 months ago as he was controversially defeated by Karoly Balzsay. In that performance Kashtanov proved that he could hold his own at fringe world level and whilst he was unlucky to lose, he proved that he was perhaps a genuine future title contender.
Sadly however aside from the fight with Balzay, Kashtanov is really unproven with his "next best well known opponent" being Belorussian journeyman Kanstantsin Makhankou (who has genuinely fought a who's who, though sadly seems to have retired). This would suggest that whilst Kashtanov has got ability his actually level is really hard to determine.
Whilst I don't know a lot about Kashtanov it's fair to say I know a lot more about him than I know about Server Yemurlayev who turned professional in 2007 and has yet to face a really notable opponent, with the best opponent probably being Bernard Donfack.
What we do know about Yemurlayev is that he's not only untested, but has hardly done anything of note. He really has no power (a 36% stoppage rate) and yet has only been 10 or more rounds on 2 occasions, giving Kashtanov a big advantage in terms of rounds fought, ability to score stoppages and tested stamina.
When it comes to this fight it's hard to really say too much about either man, however I do favour that Kashtanov, mixing at a higher level will serve him well here.
Prediction-Kashtanov UD12
Juan Carlos Reveco v Julian Rivera
Although we have a number of high profile title fights this coming weekend everyone should know by know that I'm probably more interested in the lower division than the big, household names. Sadly even with that in mind, I can't actually get excited about this weekend's WBA "interim" Flyweight title bout between Juan Carlos Reveco (28-1, 16) and challenger Julian Rivera (13-6, 2). In fact this is probably one of the very worst title bouts this year at any weight.
The 29 year old Reveco, from Malargüe on the west of Argentina is one of the many genuinely class fighters at Flyweight. Whilst not seen as one of the genuine champions he is still a fantastic fighter who has shown some real glimpses of world level class talent at both Light Flyweight, where he first made his name and Flyweight.
Reveco debuted way back in 2004 and quickly rose through the rankings before claiming the then vacant WBA World Light Flyweight title in 2007 thanks to an 8th round stoppage of the previously unbeaten Thai Nethra Sasiprapa. Sadly for Reveco his reign would last only 6 months and he would lose his belt in his second defense as he was narrowly out pointed in France by Brahim Asloum.
Despite the loss to Asloum, Reveco remained at Light Flyweight and later went on to claim the WBA "interim" Light Flyweight title by narrowly beating Francisco Rosas in Mexico. Reveco's reign as the "interim" Light Flyweight champion lasted significantly longer than his reign as the regular champion as he racked up up 2 title defenses before moving up a division after a year long reign. Whilst the full reasons for his move have never been fully known, many feel that he moved up solely to avoid Nicaraguan super star Roman Gonzalez who was hot on Reveco's tail.
Since moving to Flyweight Reveco has not only claimed the WBA "interim" Flyweight title but has also defended it once, defeating the previously unbeaten Frenchman Karim Guerfi. Despite this, and his evident talent, Reveco is yet to prove himself at Flyweight, however in terms of just talent he is up there in the chasing pack to the likes of Brian Viloria, Moruti Mthalane and Hernan Marquez.
Despite not having KO power, especially at Flyweight, Reveco is skilled and can fighter excellently from his jab as well as using a very effective one two and appears to have all the punches in the book. His work rate isn't amazing but he seems to generally be able to control the pace and distance of fights using solid footwork, and he also seems to often be a fighter fighting with in himself.
Whilst we know plenty about Reveco I need to be honest, Julian Rivera is a bit of a new one on me. The Mexican is currently ranked #36 in the division on Boxrec and doesn't appear to have anything really outstanding on his record. Since turning professional in 2006 Rivera has been a win some-lose some type of fighter who's best winning runs have been 3 fights. Also, perhaps tellingly he's not scored a stoppage since 2006 (scoring stoppages in his first and third bouts).
It's fair to say that whilst Rivera has sprung an upset or two in his career, namely defeating Odilon Zaleta (then 11-0) and Faustino Cupul (then 24-5) he has also been beaten by much, much less fighters than Reveco. In fact Rivera's last loss came to a fighter who was 8-9-2 (prior to beating Rivera) and his loss before that came to a 4-3 fighter (again prior to beating Rivera.
Oddly the WBA seem to be allowing this to be a title fight despite the fact that Rivera isn't ranked in the most recent rankings by the organisation (last updated 1st of October), that means they are allowing their interim champion to defend against a fighter they don't feel is in the top 15 in the world. The WBC oddly do rank Rivera, giving him a #12 ranking helped somewhat by the fact Rivera holds the WBC Latino Flyweight title.
Sadly for Rivera even the WBA feel they know the out come of this bout, actually reprinting an article from Boxingscene labeling the bout as a "stay busy" bout for Reveco. I think this sums it up.
Prediction: Reveco, TKO7
The 29 year old Reveco, from Malargüe on the west of Argentina is one of the many genuinely class fighters at Flyweight. Whilst not seen as one of the genuine champions he is still a fantastic fighter who has shown some real glimpses of world level class talent at both Light Flyweight, where he first made his name and Flyweight.
Reveco debuted way back in 2004 and quickly rose through the rankings before claiming the then vacant WBA World Light Flyweight title in 2007 thanks to an 8th round stoppage of the previously unbeaten Thai Nethra Sasiprapa. Sadly for Reveco his reign would last only 6 months and he would lose his belt in his second defense as he was narrowly out pointed in France by Brahim Asloum.
Despite the loss to Asloum, Reveco remained at Light Flyweight and later went on to claim the WBA "interim" Light Flyweight title by narrowly beating Francisco Rosas in Mexico. Reveco's reign as the "interim" Light Flyweight champion lasted significantly longer than his reign as the regular champion as he racked up up 2 title defenses before moving up a division after a year long reign. Whilst the full reasons for his move have never been fully known, many feel that he moved up solely to avoid Nicaraguan super star Roman Gonzalez who was hot on Reveco's tail.
Since moving to Flyweight Reveco has not only claimed the WBA "interim" Flyweight title but has also defended it once, defeating the previously unbeaten Frenchman Karim Guerfi. Despite this, and his evident talent, Reveco is yet to prove himself at Flyweight, however in terms of just talent he is up there in the chasing pack to the likes of Brian Viloria, Moruti Mthalane and Hernan Marquez.
Despite not having KO power, especially at Flyweight, Reveco is skilled and can fighter excellently from his jab as well as using a very effective one two and appears to have all the punches in the book. His work rate isn't amazing but he seems to generally be able to control the pace and distance of fights using solid footwork, and he also seems to often be a fighter fighting with in himself.
Whilst we know plenty about Reveco I need to be honest, Julian Rivera is a bit of a new one on me. The Mexican is currently ranked #36 in the division on Boxrec and doesn't appear to have anything really outstanding on his record. Since turning professional in 2006 Rivera has been a win some-lose some type of fighter who's best winning runs have been 3 fights. Also, perhaps tellingly he's not scored a stoppage since 2006 (scoring stoppages in his first and third bouts).
It's fair to say that whilst Rivera has sprung an upset or two in his career, namely defeating Odilon Zaleta (then 11-0) and Faustino Cupul (then 24-5) he has also been beaten by much, much less fighters than Reveco. In fact Rivera's last loss came to a fighter who was 8-9-2 (prior to beating Rivera) and his loss before that came to a 4-3 fighter (again prior to beating Rivera.
Oddly the WBA seem to be allowing this to be a title fight despite the fact that Rivera isn't ranked in the most recent rankings by the organisation (last updated 1st of October), that means they are allowing their interim champion to defend against a fighter they don't feel is in the top 15 in the world. The WBC oddly do rank Rivera, giving him a #12 ranking helped somewhat by the fact Rivera holds the WBC Latino Flyweight title.
Sadly for Rivera even the WBA feel they know the out come of this bout, actually reprinting an article from Boxingscene labeling the bout as a "stay busy" bout for Reveco. I think this sums it up.
Prediction: Reveco, TKO7
Wednesday, 7 November 2012
Nathan Cleverly v Shawn Hawk
When you're a world champion you have expectation on your shoulders, especially when you're in a competitive weight division and your either American or British. Sadly for WBO Light Heavyweight champion Nathan Cleverly (24-0, 11) his competition has, in recent years, really fallen below an "acceptable" level and things don't get better with his up coming defense against late stand in Shawn Hawk (23-2-1, 17).
Thankfully for Cleverly, this fight isn't totally his fault. Originally he was meant to fight in his native Wales against the highly ranked Ukrainian Vyacheslav Uzelkov (27-2, 16), that was however scrapped so that Cleverly could face unbeaten American Ryan Coyne (21-0, 9) in a show case bout. Sadly that bout was scrapped when Coyne's promoter, Don King stepped in and prevented it from taking place. With only a week left, Hawk eventually accepted the bout, despite a number of complaints and other offers, including one from unbeaten American Cedric Agnew.
Sadly this is the world of boxing and what at first looked like an interesting defense for Cleverly has become nothing more than a joke bout that has to be, rightly, criticised. Whilst it's easy to blame Don King for preventing the Coyne fight, that fight it's self hardly looked competitive and instead the blame needs to lie with Cleverly's promoter Frank Warren who has been too busy riding the coat tails of other, better known fighters than actually getting his fighter a decent fight. The Uzelkov fight was decent enough, though the division also has fighters like Cornelius White (20-1, 16) and Isaac Chilemba (20-1-1, 9) who are both deserving of a world title fight, unlike Coyne and Hawk.
Anyway with that said Cleverly himself isn't a bad fighter. At just 25 years old he has time to get the recognition he likely feels he deserves and although he'll often have his reign criticised this shouldn't take away from the fact that the young Welshman is talented. Cleverly however not only has poor defenses hanging over his head but also the fact he will for ever be linked with former training partner Joe Calzaghe, a fighter who himself had numerous poor defenses before making a name for himself later in his career.
Cleverly is a fighter who is still developing and whilst he'll never be a thunderous puncher he is an aggressive and hard working fighter who appears to have a genuinely sensation engine (one thing he certainly picked up from his time with Calzaghe). He's relentless and can break fighters down on that relentless work rate, as he did with Karo Murat in arguably his best win to date. Despite often bringing pressure, Cleverly, at his best, is actually a genuinely talented boxer who can hit and move, and this was what he did earlier in his career when arguably he was testing himself more against the likes of Tony Oakey, Danny McIntosh (who was then unbeaten) and Antonio Brancalion. Sadly the hitting and moving seems to have gone from his game and replaced by the more exciting brawling that has almost seen him lose to the likes of Tony Bellew and Nadjib Mohammedi.
Sadly for someone who enjoys a tear up Cleverly hasn't got the hurtful 1-punch power, in fact, the Murat stoppage aside, it's hard to really say with "world" level opponent Cleverly has stopped (with Aleksy Kuziemski being his only other stoppage win in the past 2 years). As well as the lack of power, Cleverly also lacks a true defense, especially when brawling, and whilst his chin does seem to be solid, he's taking a lot of shots which will have a cumulative effect over his career, especially at world level.
After title defenses against the likes Aleksy Kuziemski (who took the fight at just a few days notice), Tony Bellew (who had never previously stepped beyond Commonwealth level) and Tommy Karpency (who genuinely was awful) it should be perhaps no surprise to say that Hawk is average at best. Despite his record of 23-2-1 (17) the man dubbed "The Sioux Warrior" is not expected to be a real challenge and with good reason.
Hawk has been a professional since 2004 (a year longer than Cleverly) started his career well running up 13 straight wins 11 by TKO as he fought at Cruiserweight. Sadly for Hawk (and those thinking he may be a big puncher) these wins were against real scrubs in Washington and Idaho and when he faced semi-decent fighter, Ed Perry, Hawk could only muster up a draw.
Just 2 years after drawing with Ed Perry, Hawk would suffer his first professional loss as Cruiserweight Matt Godfrey clearly defeated him over 10 rounds in arguably Hawk's biggest fight to date. This loss saw Hawk falling to 18-1-1 (16), a record still befitting that of a puncher, though he was still with out a recognisable victory on his record, in fact it wasn't until 2010 that Hawk got his first noteworthy win as he took a victory over former world title contender Rubin Williams. The victory over Williams was followed by Hawk's most notable victory, a decision win over Otis Griffin, sadly however this did come against a very faded fighter and it did also see Hawk getting knocked down and really struggling to the decision.
Since defeating Griffin Hawk as beaten Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan (via a 10 round decision) and lost to to the quick Colombian Eleider Alvarez (who himself would have been a more acceptable challenger than Hawk). Alvarez, at the time taking part in just his 9th professional bout, really dominated Hawk, winning 11 of the 12 rounds on 2 of the 3 cards (and winning 10 rounds on the final card). Worryingly the Alvarez fight was actually the most recent fight of Hawk's career taking place just 5 months ago.
For Cleverly this is little more than a chance to make a name in the US. Sadly he doesn't have the ability, or the power to make a big splash, though hopefully a decent performance will help him land fights with the likes of Bernard Hopkins, Chad Dawson or Tavoris Cloud, all of which I think could beat him. Anything less than scorecards of 117-111 should be seen as a failure by Clverly who really needs to either a stoppage or a white wash for this not to have been a real waste of time.
Prediction: Cleverly UD
Thankfully for Cleverly, this fight isn't totally his fault. Originally he was meant to fight in his native Wales against the highly ranked Ukrainian Vyacheslav Uzelkov (27-2, 16), that was however scrapped so that Cleverly could face unbeaten American Ryan Coyne (21-0, 9) in a show case bout. Sadly that bout was scrapped when Coyne's promoter, Don King stepped in and prevented it from taking place. With only a week left, Hawk eventually accepted the bout, despite a number of complaints and other offers, including one from unbeaten American Cedric Agnew.
Sadly this is the world of boxing and what at first looked like an interesting defense for Cleverly has become nothing more than a joke bout that has to be, rightly, criticised. Whilst it's easy to blame Don King for preventing the Coyne fight, that fight it's self hardly looked competitive and instead the blame needs to lie with Cleverly's promoter Frank Warren who has been too busy riding the coat tails of other, better known fighters than actually getting his fighter a decent fight. The Uzelkov fight was decent enough, though the division also has fighters like Cornelius White (20-1, 16) and Isaac Chilemba (20-1-1, 9) who are both deserving of a world title fight, unlike Coyne and Hawk.
Anyway with that said Cleverly himself isn't a bad fighter. At just 25 years old he has time to get the recognition he likely feels he deserves and although he'll often have his reign criticised this shouldn't take away from the fact that the young Welshman is talented. Cleverly however not only has poor defenses hanging over his head but also the fact he will for ever be linked with former training partner Joe Calzaghe, a fighter who himself had numerous poor defenses before making a name for himself later in his career.
Cleverly is a fighter who is still developing and whilst he'll never be a thunderous puncher he is an aggressive and hard working fighter who appears to have a genuinely sensation engine (one thing he certainly picked up from his time with Calzaghe). He's relentless and can break fighters down on that relentless work rate, as he did with Karo Murat in arguably his best win to date. Despite often bringing pressure, Cleverly, at his best, is actually a genuinely talented boxer who can hit and move, and this was what he did earlier in his career when arguably he was testing himself more against the likes of Tony Oakey, Danny McIntosh (who was then unbeaten) and Antonio Brancalion. Sadly the hitting and moving seems to have gone from his game and replaced by the more exciting brawling that has almost seen him lose to the likes of Tony Bellew and Nadjib Mohammedi.
Sadly for someone who enjoys a tear up Cleverly hasn't got the hurtful 1-punch power, in fact, the Murat stoppage aside, it's hard to really say with "world" level opponent Cleverly has stopped (with Aleksy Kuziemski being his only other stoppage win in the past 2 years). As well as the lack of power, Cleverly also lacks a true defense, especially when brawling, and whilst his chin does seem to be solid, he's taking a lot of shots which will have a cumulative effect over his career, especially at world level.
After title defenses against the likes Aleksy Kuziemski (who took the fight at just a few days notice), Tony Bellew (who had never previously stepped beyond Commonwealth level) and Tommy Karpency (who genuinely was awful) it should be perhaps no surprise to say that Hawk is average at best. Despite his record of 23-2-1 (17) the man dubbed "The Sioux Warrior" is not expected to be a real challenge and with good reason.
Hawk has been a professional since 2004 (a year longer than Cleverly) started his career well running up 13 straight wins 11 by TKO as he fought at Cruiserweight. Sadly for Hawk (and those thinking he may be a big puncher) these wins were against real scrubs in Washington and Idaho and when he faced semi-decent fighter, Ed Perry, Hawk could only muster up a draw.
Just 2 years after drawing with Ed Perry, Hawk would suffer his first professional loss as Cruiserweight Matt Godfrey clearly defeated him over 10 rounds in arguably Hawk's biggest fight to date. This loss saw Hawk falling to 18-1-1 (16), a record still befitting that of a puncher, though he was still with out a recognisable victory on his record, in fact it wasn't until 2010 that Hawk got his first noteworthy win as he took a victory over former world title contender Rubin Williams. The victory over Williams was followed by Hawk's most notable victory, a decision win over Otis Griffin, sadly however this did come against a very faded fighter and it did also see Hawk getting knocked down and really struggling to the decision.
Since defeating Griffin Hawk as beaten Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan (via a 10 round decision) and lost to to the quick Colombian Eleider Alvarez (who himself would have been a more acceptable challenger than Hawk). Alvarez, at the time taking part in just his 9th professional bout, really dominated Hawk, winning 11 of the 12 rounds on 2 of the 3 cards (and winning 10 rounds on the final card). Worryingly the Alvarez fight was actually the most recent fight of Hawk's career taking place just 5 months ago.
For Cleverly this is little more than a chance to make a name in the US. Sadly he doesn't have the ability, or the power to make a big splash, though hopefully a decent performance will help him land fights with the likes of Bernard Hopkins, Chad Dawson or Tavoris Cloud, all of which I think could beat him. Anything less than scorecards of 117-111 should be seen as a failure by Clverly who really needs to either a stoppage or a white wash for this not to have been a real waste of time.
Prediction: Cleverly UD
Friday, 2 November 2012
Marco Huck v Firat Arslan
WBO Cruiserweight champion Marco Huck (34-2-1, 25) looks to make the 10th defense of his belt this coming weekend as he faces veteran Firat Arslan (32-5-2, 21) in what looks likely to be Huck's final bout as a Cruiserweight and possibly Arslan's last career bout.
The 42 year old challenger has been there, seen it and gotten the T-shirt in his his 15 year career that has seen him becoming a staple of the Cruiserweight division. He has literally been in with a who's who of the division, especially in the last 5 or 6 years, and he's also held his own with not only some of the best of his generation but also of the emerging fighters in the division.
Arslan would really make a name for himself between 2006 and 2008 as he scored successive victories over the likes of Grigory Drozd, Valery Brudov, Virgil Hill and the always dangerous Darnell Wilson as he claimed the WBA Cruiserweight title, a title he defended three times. Sadly however for Arslan his advanced age didn't help him hold the title for long as he suffered a 10th round TKO loss to Guillermo Jones and a year later an 11th round TKO loss to Steve Herelius in an interim title bout.
Following the losses to Jones and Herelius, some expected Arslan to bow out of the sport gracefully with a then solid record of 29-5-2 (18) however Arslan seemed to think there as still life in the old dog. On his return to the ring, just 9 after losing to Herelius, Arslan stopped Michal Bilak before gaining revenge over Lubos Suda who had beaten him back in 2003. The come back then saw Arslan defeating Orlando Antonio Farias before scoring an eye opening draw with the highly touted Alexander Alekseev.
In terms of his style Arslan is a very tough fighter, he's in your face and brings a lot of pressure whilst looking to work from behind his high guard. Despite being in his 40's he has a respectable work rate even if it's not particularly high as he attempted to do enough to either just nick rounds or grind down opponents. If you allow Arslan to dictate either the tempo or the distance of a fight he can spring an upset on anyone however at just 5'11" he is short for a Cruiserweight and can be kept at range by a decent boxer.
Whilst Arslan is certainly coming to the end of his career, the 27 year old Huck is still well with in his prime and the former kick boxer is unarguably one of the most fun to watch fighters in world boxing. Despite having only been a professional for 8 years Huck has been one of the key names in the Cruiserweight division for 6 of them (since claiming the European-Union title in 2006).
As a Cruiserweight Huck is seen as a crude, caveman style fighter who is hugely powerful, teak tough and whilst not the most skilled has the physicality to win bouts with his power and raw aggression. Despite this he's not unbeatable with Steve Cunningham holding a 12th round TKO victory over Huck, although that was way back in 2007, the one and only time that Huck has been beaten at Cruiserweight.
Following the loss to Cunningham, Huck has rebuilt his career well claiming the European title and then the WBO title as he's swathed through a number of very skilled fighters including Jean Marc Monrose,Victor Emilio Ramirez, Ola Afolabi (twice), Denis Lebedev and Hugo Hernan Garay. However there is a lot of debate about whether or not the victories over Lebedev and Afolabi were above board (with a lot of debate over both bouts).
Despite suffering his only Cruiserweight loss back in 2007, Huck is current 0-1-1 in his last 3 having scored a draw Afolabi last time out and a loss in a WBA Heavyweight title bout to Alexander Povetkin in his fight prior. In both of these Huck came on strong after losing a number of early rounds and in all honesty he could well have won both bouts due despite losing a number of early rounds. Against Arslan, Huck will likely start faster than he did in either of those bouts.
I imagine this will be very fun to watch as both men are happy to stand in front of opponents and land their own shots between their opponents attacks. Neither guy is a typical "boxer" and neither guy particularly likes to take a backward step, this would therefore look, at least on paper, like a really exciting to watch bout. Sadly despite the brilliant combination of styles, it's hard to see Arslan managing to keep up with Huck's pace and power. As a result of Huck being the younger, more powerful, bigger, stronger, tougher man...it's impossible to go against Huck.
Prediction: Huck by TKO6
The 42 year old challenger has been there, seen it and gotten the T-shirt in his his 15 year career that has seen him becoming a staple of the Cruiserweight division. He has literally been in with a who's who of the division, especially in the last 5 or 6 years, and he's also held his own with not only some of the best of his generation but also of the emerging fighters in the division.
Arslan would really make a name for himself between 2006 and 2008 as he scored successive victories over the likes of Grigory Drozd, Valery Brudov, Virgil Hill and the always dangerous Darnell Wilson as he claimed the WBA Cruiserweight title, a title he defended three times. Sadly however for Arslan his advanced age didn't help him hold the title for long as he suffered a 10th round TKO loss to Guillermo Jones and a year later an 11th round TKO loss to Steve Herelius in an interim title bout.
Following the losses to Jones and Herelius, some expected Arslan to bow out of the sport gracefully with a then solid record of 29-5-2 (18) however Arslan seemed to think there as still life in the old dog. On his return to the ring, just 9 after losing to Herelius, Arslan stopped Michal Bilak before gaining revenge over Lubos Suda who had beaten him back in 2003. The come back then saw Arslan defeating Orlando Antonio Farias before scoring an eye opening draw with the highly touted Alexander Alekseev.
In terms of his style Arslan is a very tough fighter, he's in your face and brings a lot of pressure whilst looking to work from behind his high guard. Despite being in his 40's he has a respectable work rate even if it's not particularly high as he attempted to do enough to either just nick rounds or grind down opponents. If you allow Arslan to dictate either the tempo or the distance of a fight he can spring an upset on anyone however at just 5'11" he is short for a Cruiserweight and can be kept at range by a decent boxer.
Whilst Arslan is certainly coming to the end of his career, the 27 year old Huck is still well with in his prime and the former kick boxer is unarguably one of the most fun to watch fighters in world boxing. Despite having only been a professional for 8 years Huck has been one of the key names in the Cruiserweight division for 6 of them (since claiming the European-Union title in 2006).
As a Cruiserweight Huck is seen as a crude, caveman style fighter who is hugely powerful, teak tough and whilst not the most skilled has the physicality to win bouts with his power and raw aggression. Despite this he's not unbeatable with Steve Cunningham holding a 12th round TKO victory over Huck, although that was way back in 2007, the one and only time that Huck has been beaten at Cruiserweight.
Following the loss to Cunningham, Huck has rebuilt his career well claiming the European title and then the WBO title as he's swathed through a number of very skilled fighters including Jean Marc Monrose,Victor Emilio Ramirez, Ola Afolabi (twice), Denis Lebedev and Hugo Hernan Garay. However there is a lot of debate about whether or not the victories over Lebedev and Afolabi were above board (with a lot of debate over both bouts).
Despite suffering his only Cruiserweight loss back in 2007, Huck is current 0-1-1 in his last 3 having scored a draw Afolabi last time out and a loss in a WBA Heavyweight title bout to Alexander Povetkin in his fight prior. In both of these Huck came on strong after losing a number of early rounds and in all honesty he could well have won both bouts due despite losing a number of early rounds. Against Arslan, Huck will likely start faster than he did in either of those bouts.
I imagine this will be very fun to watch as both men are happy to stand in front of opponents and land their own shots between their opponents attacks. Neither guy is a typical "boxer" and neither guy particularly likes to take a backward step, this would therefore look, at least on paper, like a really exciting to watch bout. Sadly despite the brilliant combination of styles, it's hard to see Arslan managing to keep up with Huck's pace and power. As a result of Huck being the younger, more powerful, bigger, stronger, tougher man...it's impossible to go against Huck.
Prediction: Huck by TKO6
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
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