Can Guerrero Rebound Against Martinez?

Former three-time world champion Robert Guerrero has endeared himself to Boxing fans throughout his career as a fighter who has been willing to take on all comers and who gives everything he has every time he steps in the ring. Guerrero, who has won world titles in the Featherweight and Jr. Lightweight divisions has gone on to become one of the top fighters in the Welterweight division. 

Many fans remember the exciting battles Guerrero engaged in against Selcuk Aydin and former Welterweight world champion Andre Berto. Two exciting fights where Guerrero showed his mettle and earned a hard fought victories. It was those two victories that earned Guerrero an opportunity against Floyd Mayweather in May 2013 for Mayweather’s WBC Welterweight world championship. On that night however, Mayweather out boxed Guerrero and earned a lopsided twelve round unanimous decision to retain his title.

Despite suffering that loss, Guerrero was able to bounce back from that defeat to earn a twelve round unanimous decision over contender Yoshihiro Kamegai, in what was a grueling war in June of last year. In his last fight in March of this year, Guerrero suffered another setback in another hard fought battle in losing a twelve round unanimous decision to undefeated top contender Keith Thurman. Now three months removed from that fight, Guerrero looks to rebound from his loss to Thurman as he prepares to return to the ring against journeyman contender Aron Martinez on Saturday afternoon at the StubHub Center in Carson, California in a fight that will headline the latest installment of the “Premier Boxing Champions” series on NBC.

This fight would appear to favor Guerrero as he has more experience against top level opposition and will enter the fight with a record of 32-3-1, with 18 Knockouts. Martinez, who will enter the bout with a record of 19-3-1, with 4 Knockouts will be stepping up in class against Guerrero. Martinez however, has failed to successfully step up in class of opposition and will enter this fight having lost two of his last three fights losing a ten round unanimous decision to undefeated Jr. Welterweight contender Jessie Vargas in September 2012 and was stopped in five rounds in his last fight by former world title challenger Josesito Lopez in April of last year.

Although this fight appears to be a “Comeback Fight” for Guerrero, the question heading into this fight in my eyes is what effect if any have Guerrero’s recent fights had on him. After all, several of Guerrero’s recent bouts were grueling give and take battles and one has to wonder if those fights have taken something out of Guerrero. 

Even though Martinez is at a disadvantage in terms of experience, he has only been stopped once in his career and did give a good account of himself in his fight against Jessie Vargas. Although he was outworked by Vargas in that fight, Martinez was “Game” and able to have periodic moments throughout the fight.  It will be interesting to see what Martinez, who has not fought in over a year will bring to this fight in what is the biggest fight of his career thus far. If Martinez is able to score an upset in this fight it will likely lead to an opportunity against another contender in the Welterweight division.

For Guerrero however, one might argue this fight is not just a mere “Comeback Fight”, but an important fight in terms of his standing in the Welterweight division. Guerrero is currently rated number ten in the world in the World Boxing Association’s (WBA) ratings and it is logical to assume that if Guerrero wins this fight and does so in impressive fashion that he could find himself back in the mix of contenders looking for an opportunity at a world title in the talent stacked Welterweight division. If Guerrero loses this fight however, it could likely put his standing as a contender in jeopardy. 

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

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A Look At Cotto-Geale

A potential storyline that has developed in recent times in the sport of Boxing has been one involving three fighters who may indeed face each other in the near future. Saul Alvarez, Gennady Golovkin, and Miguel Cotto. Following his victory over James Kirkland on May 9th, Alvarez expressed interest in moving up in weight from the 154lb. Jr. Middleweight division to the 160lb. Middleweight division to face either current WBC world champion Cotto or current unified WBA/IBO world champion Golovkin.

Golovkin meanwhile stated following his title defense over Willie Monroe Jr. on May 16th that he wants further unification in the Middleweight division. This would theoretically open the possibility of a unification bout with Miguel Cotto at some point in the near future. With both Alvarez and Golovkin successful in their recent bouts the stage is now set for Cotto to make the first defense of his WBC world championship against former two-time Middleweight world champion Daniel Geale on Saturday, June 6th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

In his last fight Cotto scored a tenth round stoppage of WBC Middleweight world champion Sergio Martinez in what was a dominating performance. Now almost exactly one year later Cotto prepares to defend that title in what will be his second fight in the Middleweight division. The four-division world champion Cotto will face what could be a difficult opponent in the form of Daniel Geale.

Geale, the former two-time Middleweight world champion has been one of the top fighters in the division for several years having defeated fighters such as Anthony Mundine, Sebastian Sylvester, and Felix Sturm among others. Geale however, suffered the first knockout loss of his career in July of last year when he was stopped in three rounds by Gennady Golovkin. Geale hit Golovkin with a flush right hand to the head, but was dropped by Golovkin’s own right hand after absorbing Geale’s punch. Geale was able to beat the count, but was unable to continue. Geale was able to bounce back from his defeat at the hands of Golovkin by scoring a twelve round unanimous decision over Jerrod Fletcher in December of last year.

Although Geale was stopped by Golovkin, he is a world-class boxer who is known for his ability to throw his punches in volume as well as his solid lateral movement. In his bout against Golovkin, Geale was able to have some success in the opening round in being able to disrupt Golovkin’s rhythm. He was unable however, to maintain distance between himself and Golovkin and could not land anything to discourage him from pressing forward. There may be some who may believe that Geale’s fight against Cotto could have a similar outcome due to Cotto’s ability to apply consistent pressure and gradually break down his opponents.

The key to this fight in my eyes will be whether Geale can establish himself as an elusive target and negate Cotto’s pressure and ability to land power punches. Although Cotto is a boxer/puncher and capable of adjusting his fight plan as a fight progresses, I believe that he will look to apply pressure on Geale from the outset, look to neutralize Geale’s movement and gradually break him down. If Cotto is intent on pressuring Geale from the opening bell, he must not let up as the fight progresses. 

If this fight has close rounds where both fighters are able to be effective, Geale is the kind of fighter that is capable of winning close rounds if he can get his punches off first and use his elusiveness to evade his opponent. If Cotto can negate Geale’s movement however, the advantage will be in his favor. Cotto does have an advantage in terms of punching power as he has compiled a near 75% career knockout percentage in forty-three professional fights, scoring thirty-two knockouts in thirty-nine career wins as compared to Geale’s 47% having scored sixteen knockouts in thirty-one career wins, in thirty-four professional fights.

Although Cotto was able to dominate Sergio Martinez and scored four knockdowns in that fight, it will be interesting to see if Cotto’s punching power remains consistent as a Middleweight as compared to when he was fighting as a Jr. Welterweight, Welterweight, and Jr. Middleweight. It will be of equal interest to see whether or not Cotto will look to make a statement in this fight in facing a fighter that Gennady Golovkin was able to stop in three rounds.

Per Cotto’s victory over Martinez, a fighter widely considered at the time to be the number one fighter in the Middleweight division and Gennady Golovkin’s fourteen successful defenses of his unified world championship and his knockout streak, which currently stands at twenty, there is little doubt that Cotto and Golovkin are the two top fighters in the division. Golovkin however, could be considered the number one fighter in the division in the opinion of some due to the length of his title reign as well as his current knockout streak.

If Cotto is looking to defeat Geale in an even more decisive manner than Golovkin was able to do and is too intent on looking for a knockout and lets Geale establish an offensive rhythm by throwing punches in volume and allows Geale to win what could be considered close rounds, Geale is capable of pulling off an upset. Geale was able to defeat former longtime Middleweight world champion Felix Sturm in 2012 in a fight that some considered an upset. Geale finds himself once again in the role of underdog in this fight as he was against Sturm and against Golovkin.

With potential fights against Saul Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin possibly awaiting the champion Cotto should he win this fight, we will see if he can do what Alvarez and Golovkin were able to do in their recent bouts defeat a determined opponent that stands across the ring from him. We will see what happens when Cotto and Geale square off on Saturday night. 

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

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Khan-Algieri: Should There Be A Rematch?

The storyline leading up to the Welterweight fight between former Jr. Welterweight world champions Amir Khan and Chris Algieri was one that some might argue of two fighters at a crossroads. In one corner stood Amir Khan the one time unified WBA/IBF Jr. Welterweight world champion, who has seen his career go through ups and downs. Despite suffering some setbacks however, Khan has established himself as one of the top contenders in the Welterweight division and entered into the bout with Algieri having won four straight fights.

Standing across the ring from Khan was Chris Algieri. Algieri was able to go from an undefeated contender to a world champion last year when he defeated Ruslan Provodnikov to win the WBO Jr. Welterweight world championship. Algieri however, would suffer a setback of his own as he was dominated in his attempt to move up in weight in challenging Manny Pacquiao for the WBO Welterweight world championship in November of last year.

A battle of two former world champions, one looking to continue to build momentum, the other looking to bounce back from his first defeat, culminated when Khan and Algieri met on May 29th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. It was no surprise to this observer to see this fight being fought at a tactical pace as both fighters were able to have periods of effectiveness in the early rounds.

When it comes to tactical Boxing matches a challenge for those who score a fight where both fighters are able to be effective is to determine which fighter is able to execute their offense in a more decisive manner than his opponent. This can result in “Swing Rounds” where there can be differing opinions as to who wins a round. In this fight Amir Khan was able to get his punches off first often by throwing punches in combination. Algieri meanwhile, was able to consistently put pressure on Khan and able to periodically land solid right hands and left hooks, which were attention grabbing.

Although Khan continued to be effective in throwing and landing combinations as the fight progressed, Algieri’s consistent pressure and ability to be effective in spurts made this fight difficult to score. It became a question of Khan’s ability to throw in quantity versus Algieri’s pressure and aggression, which was often effective.

As the fight entered the late rounds it was really anyone’s fight in this observer’s eyes. It was in the late rounds however, where I feel Khan began to stand out from Algieri a little more than had been the case in the early and middle rounds. Khan’s lateral movement and ability to consistently throw combinations never really decreased as the fight progressed. Khan was able to win rounds ten and eleven by landing combinations, countering Algieri, and landing punches to Algieri’s body, in my opinion. Algieri however, seemed to get the better of the action in my eyes in the twelfth and final round based on his ability to pressure Khan and Khan seeming to let up slightly with his offense perhaps due to fatigue.

At the end of the twelve round bout it did not surprise me to see a difference in scoring even though the decision was unanimous in favor of Khan. Judge Don Ackerman scored the fight 115-113 or 7-5 in rounds, while Judges Joseph Pasquale and Benoit Rousell both scored the fight 117-111 or 9-3 in rounds. Unofficially, I scored this fight the same as Don Ackerman 115-113 for Khan.

In all truth and honesty I feel this fight could have gone either way, but in my opinion Khan’s combination punching was the difference in this fight. I can easily see an argument however, in favor of Algieri based on how effective he was able to be in spurts and his overall pressure and aggression. Several of the rounds were extremely close and as I have often said over the years when it comes to close fights, it will often boil down to what a judge prefers in their own individual criteria in how they score based on clean punching, effective aggressiveness, ring generalship, and defense. Even though two judges ultimately gave nine of twelve rounds to Khan, if you watch the fight round by round it was extremely difficult to score.

An interesting question coming out of this fight will be what is next for both fighters. Although Khan is hoping to secure a fight against Floyd Mayweather in September, this observer believes that a rematch between Khan and Algieri is warranted based on how competitive the fight was and I believe Boxing fans would want to see a rematch between the two. If a fight against Mayweather or a rematch against Algieri is not in the immediate future for Khan, a possible option could be a championship fight against IBF world champion Kell Brook, who successfully defended his title on May 30th with a sixth round stoppage of top contender Frankie Gavin.

As I stated following Brook’s victory over Jo Jo Dan earlier this year both Brook and Khan have significant followings and a fight between the two just might be the type fight that both fighters need in order to secure a potential fight against a fighter like Floyd Mayweather. Whether or not Khan does secure a fight against Mayweather, which he has been seeking for some time remains to be seen. 

In this observer’s opinion however, there are now two very intriguing fights outside of a potential clash with Mayweather that Khan should consider. Kell Brook has clearly established himself as a rising star in the sport and currently is the only world champion in the Welterweight division besides Floyd Mayweather. The other fight of course, would be a rematch against the more than deserving Chris Algieri, who despite losing his last two fights, remains a player in the Welterweight division and gave Khan all he could handle.

If a fight against Floyd Mayweather is not available to Khan for his next fight, it will be interesting to see if Khan will seek a fight against either Brook or Algieri. Although this observer believes a fight with Brook or a rematch with Algieri are the most logical options for Khan outside of a fight with Floyd Mayweather, we will have to simply wait and see who Khan will fight next.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison 

 

  

Khan-Algieri Preview

One of the storylines that emerged in the aftermath of Floyd Mayweather’s victory over Manny Pacquiao on May 2nd was the announcement that Mayweather intended to relinquish the world championships he holds in both the Welterweight and Jr. Middleweight divisions. Perhaps a storyline of more interest however, could be who Mayweather might face later this year in what could be the final fight of his career.

A fighter who has been in the running as a potential Mayweather opponent on more than one occasion is former unified WBA/IBF Jr. Welterweight world champion Amir Khan. Khan, who reigned as champion in the 140lb. Jr. Welterweight division from 2009-2012 successfully defended his five times and successfully unified the WBA and IBF world titles before losing back-to-back fights to Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia in 2011 and 2012.

Despite suffering some setbacks in his career, Khan has remained a force to be reckoned with and has won four straight fights since his loss to Garcia, including three wins in the 147lb. Welterweight division. Now after compiling wins over the likes of Carlos Molina, Julio Diaz, Luis Collazo, and Devon Alexander Khan may once again be in the running for a potential fight with Floyd Mayweather. Before Khan can set his sights on Mayweather however, he must first face a challenge in the form of former WBO Jr. Welterweight world champion Chris Algieri on Friday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Algieri emerged on Boxing’s main stage in June of last year when he scored a come from behind twelve round split decision over Ruslan Provodnikov to win the WBO world Jr. Welterweight championship. In that fight, Algieri overcame two knockdowns in the first round and a badly swollen right eye and was able to outwork Provodnikov throughout most of the fight to earn a hard fought decision victory.

Algieri however, would be stripped of his world title in what some considered a controversial move by the World Boxing Organization (WBO) prior to Algieri’s move up in weight to the 147lb. Welterweight division to challenge then WBO Welterweight world champion Manny Pacquiao for his title in November of last year.

Algieri, who was also an undefeated two-division world champion in Kickboxing, prior to beginning his professional Boxing career would suffer his first loss as a fighter when he lost a lopsided twelve round unanimous decision to Pacquiao in a fight where Algieri suffered six knockdowns.

Although Algieri lost that fight, he more than proved his mettle in defeat by continuing to fight through adversity to go the distance. Now Algieri looks to rebound from that loss against Khan.

This figures to be an interesting contest as both fighters are known for their quickness and hand speed. What will interest this observer in the early rounds of this fight will be which fighter takes the initiative of being the aggressor and whether one of the fighters will look to play the role of counter puncher.

Although Khan would appear to have an edge in terms of punching power having scored nineteen knockouts in his thirty career wins compared to Algieri’s eight knockouts in twenty career wins, it would not surprise me to see a tactical chess match between the two fighters and to see this fight and up close on the scorecards. It will be interesting to see how Khan would deal with Algieri’s lateral movement during the course of this fight. 

In his fight with Ruslan Provodnikov, Algieri was able to use his movement to set up his offense and was able to get his punches off before Provodnikov could get set to throw his punches. Even though Khan has a different style than Provodnikov and is also known for his quickness, it will be interesting to see if Algieri can implement a similar strategy of being an elusive target against Khan. It is a fight that could go either way.

What may be at stake for the winner of course could be a fight against Floyd Mayweather later this year. If a fight against Mayweather is not in store for the winner however, what could await the winner if Mayweather does follow through on his announcement and relinquishes his world titles could be a fight for a vacated world title in the Welterweight division.

Regardless of what may be in store for the winner of this fight, this observer believes given the styles of the two fighters this could be an entertaining fight. Whether the actual fight lives up to the interesting tactical battle it appears to be leading up to it remains to be seen.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison