Category: Preview + Prediction

Lomachenko vs Linares – Preview + Prediction

Lomachenko vs Linares – Preview + Prediction

If i can ask you to cast your mind back to a few months when we all thought the month of May looked to be a dream month for boxing fans , but that dream has slowly became a nightmare . Firstly we had the final of the World Boxing Super Series called off due to an injury to Oleksandr Usyk then the super fight between GGG and Canelo was called off due to Canelo failing a drug test and being suspended by the Nevada Athletics Commission . So who will save this Month for us ?…..Step forward Vasyli Lomachenko and Jorge Linares . This weekend we will see two of the best technicians in boxing go toe to toe and i cannot wait .

Jorge Linares 44-3-0 27Ko’s

I have been a fan of Jorge Linares for a good few years now , so much so i made the trip from Glasgow to Manchester to see him take Anthony Crolla apart . Linares in full flow is a joy to watch , with his lightening quick hand’s and superb shot selection Linares is really is a handful . Linares isn’t just a nightmare offensively for opponents , due to his fantastic footwork Linares is very rarely tied down or caught against the ropes and can even make his opponents look foolish when they try to do so . There is one criticism that has always stuck to Linares and that is that he lacks heart when things get tough , now i don’t know how much stock i can put in this nowadays as Linares has just came through a hard fight with Luke Campbell , a fight that maybe at one time Linares would have folded mentally but i do think he has matured mentally as a fighter . Linares also has a another flaw , a more biological problem than a flaw in skills and that is that Linares is a bleeder and i do think that could be a big problem for him this weekend .

Vasyl Lomachenko 10-1-0 8Ko’s

Well what else can be said about this man ? In just eleven fights Vasyl Lomachenko is a two weight World Champion and he will fight in his twelfth fight to become a three weight World Champion , an absolutely outstanding statement of intent from the Ukrainian . Where do you start when talking about Loma , never have i seen a man with the ability to destroy opponents mentally , forcing them to quit like his last four opponents giving Loma the nickname “NoMasChenko” in reference to the infamous Leonard vs Duran 2 fight . The beauty of watching Lomachenko is that when you watch him fight you realise you are seeing are a great in the making , the way he glides across the ring literally acting like a matador toying with a raging bull , the way he launches attacks from obscure angle’s that opponents don’t see coming . I don’t have any negatives to say about Loma , so far he has been perfect …disregarding the shambles of a fight against Orlando Salido of course .

Prediction;

Well as you probably can already tell i have made my pick . I think Vasyl Lomachenko really is something special and no matter how good Jorge Linares is I just cant see him getting the better of Loma . The big question is will Linares make it to the end of the fight or will be another quit job ? ….Well i think Linares will make it to the end , i feel with the fight being Loma’s first at 135lbs he will maybe just lacking the power to hurt Linares …….then again I wouldn’t put it past Loma to stop Linares and make no mistake he will going in there to get the stoppage .

watch it

Bellew vs Haye 2 : Review

Bellew vs Haye 2 : Review

Just as i sit here ready to write my review i think i should apoligise to a few people out there that asked when the Haye vs Bellew 2 preview would be up on the site . Due to me being a bit of a socialite i have been out of the UK for the past ten days and added in with the fact i had absolutely no interest in this fight i just couldn’t make the time to write the preview due to being as us Scots say ” Pished ” ( Drunk) . On Saturday night we seen the rematch that no one wanted . A fight that was little more than a money making exercise to top up two old guys pension funds first time round , but due to the casual appeal of this fight both guys grabbed the opportunity to do it all again , and do you know what i will never grudge any man making money for his family , but as a sporting event it was little more than a circus .

In the build up to the fight the little few video’s i did see i thought David Haye did look that bit sharper but for me he was still to heavy on the scales for what his body can handle . Tony Bellew on the other hand looked in fantastic shape considering he isn’t a heavyweight and that is all down to the big scouser and his trainer who i rate very highly  Dave Caldwell . As usual there were stories doing the rounds on social media and boxing media that David Haye was still really struggling the weeks before the fight , but as usual i don’t really pay that much attention to these stories as some people just like to act as if they are in the know and 90% of the time it is all bullshit .Image result for haye bellew

From the opening bell it was obvious David Haye was struggling . His twinkle feet of yester year were well and truly gone . Anyone who has ever attended any boxing gym will tell you that although your rear leg should carry most of the weight it should never be flat on the canvas , yet from the opening bell Haye was leaning over his front knee which is another ” NO NO ” in basic boxing whilst dragging his rear leg , he was leaving himself wide open to an uppercut or more vitally he wasn’t leaving enough time to get himself out of range . Now lets not take anything away from Tony Bellew here as i thought he boxed really well . Bellew knew even a slow flat footed Haye has fantastic power that can end fight . It all started to unravel for Haye in the third round when he was caught with a fantastic counter by Bellew which had Haye on his weak back foot , and instead of covering up to survive he threw off balance with his feet square , another bit of fundamental suicide which Tony Bellew was only to happy to punish and send Haye down for the first time . Haye did take the shot well but his legs looked even heavier now and it wasn’t long before Bellew sent him crashing down again but this time we could see Haye was really struggling to get back up to his feet .

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From The Sun …Dont Buy The Sun JFT96

In the fourth round David Haye looked  little better than a white Coller fighter as he couldn’t step in behind his jab , his legs had all but deserted him by now . Still Bellew stayed of range picking his shots well and then stepping up the pace to cut off the ring  . Going into the fifth and what would turn out to be the final round there was little left that Haye could try , he was in there on a fighter’s heart only . At this point Bellew was just cutting the ring off and Haye had nothing left to offer . He had lost nearly all his mobility and had nothing left throw as he couldn’t tranfere any power from that rear leg. I cannot be a 100% sure of this but i thought i seen Bellew ask Haye to quit in this fight but both time’s Haye shook his head . Bellew had given him the chance to quit to no avail so Bellew took Haye down once more with a beautiful right hand to the head which seen Haye go down hard , and once again he got up , only for the ref to step in as Bellew went in for the kill . A much easier win this time for Bellew and for me that has to be the end of David Haye .

A lot of credit has to go to Haye , to many guys in the modern sport don’t want to go out on there shield  . I do think there has to be questions asked about Haye actually being fit enough to step in the ring in the first place . As for for Tony Bellew he deserves a lot of credit for the way he executed Dave Caldwell’s gameplan . He could have been to eager and made this fight a lot hared than it needed be  and after having a very difficult few months i bet Tony Bellew is the happiest man alive  .

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Potential Next Opponents For Bellew

What Next For Tony Bellew

The question was asked of Tony Bellew and i got the impression if the money is right he will go back to where he belongs at cruiserweight and take on the winner of the WBSS ( Usyk or Gassiev ) and I’m sure that’s the fight we all want to see him in .

Frampton vsDonaire – Preview + Prediction

Frampton vsDonaire – Preview + Prediction

There are some sporting events across the world where the crowd are not only part of the show , but very often they become the show . Crowds where the combination of passion and desire awakes the inner caveman in us as human beings . Here in Scotland we have the Old Firm game between Celtic and Rangers , In Spain there is the El Classico between Barcalona and Real Madrid and even in Holland , the most chilled out country in the world there is the De Klassieker between Feyenoord and Ajax . This weekend we will see that special atmosphere in Belfast when Carl Frampton takes on Nonito Donair at the SSE Arena which will be live on BT Sport .

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Donaire landing the best left hand in boxing ( pic from Irish Boxing)

Nonito Donaire 38-4-0 24ko’s

Nonito Donaire comes from the same island in the Philippines as boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao but as a child he and his family moved to the US . As is the case with so many poor immigrant children Nonito suffered terribly at the hands of bullies which is why he took up boxing . Over the next 20 years Donaire went on to become one of the top P4P fighter’s in the sport . With his skill , speed , power and aggression Donaire has really been a fans favourite over the years . Now at 35 years old Donaire is not the monster he once was , as is the case with every great fighter throughout history , time has ate away at this future ” Hall of Fame ” boxer but i am sure that what is left is still very capable of causing an upset this weekend . For me Donaire has the best left hand in boxing , whether it comes in the way of an upper cut or left hook it will land with devastation , but this is not to take anything away from his right hand which is also a great equaliser . Donaire of old was the perfect all round fighter who could fight off the front foot and back foot which made him a nightmare for opponents to figure out but now as time goes on his reflexes and ability to let his hands go have greatly diminished . This weekend Donaire will be asking himself for one last great performance and who would bet against him producing it .

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Frampton landing a big left on LSC (Pic by Irish News)

Carl Frampton 24-1-0 14ko’s

Carl Frampton is one of the most popular fighters in the British Isles , a lad who can bring the divisions of N Ireland together when he’s fighting  , a guy who on fight night even us here in Scotland will come together in song and celebration and that is the power Carl Frampton . Frampton fights are rarely dull due to his open and exciting style which see’s him throw punches in bunches , switching between head and body then getting out of danger before his opponent has the chance to counter . Frampton did have power to go along with his combination punching but since moving up to featherweight the power didn’t come with him , now he look’s to break opponents down with accumulative shots rather than that one big punch . The past couple of years have not been easy for Frampton since losing his World Title to Leo Santa Cruz he has fallen foul to management disputes , dispute which are still going through the courts today . He also split with highly rated trainer Shane McGuigan over the same incident which seen Frampton sit idle for ten months . After teaming up with trainer Jamie Moore , Frampton fought Horacio Garcia on his comeback . An unknown Mexican that most of us hadn’t heard of , a fight most of us expected Frampton to walk but when Canelo Alvarez had made the journey over to Belfast it should have been a warning sign that this guy wasn’t here to roll over  . Carl had to dig deep in the fight after hitting the canvas to come back and win the fight on the cards in a fight which at one point looked to be slipping away from the irishman  . It has to be said that Carl Frampton looks in fantastic shape going into this one and with Donaire having such a big reach advantage over Frampton , he is going to have to work hard and hit hard once in the inside and looks to have given himself every chance of doing that  .

Prediction 

This is a really hard fight to call as we don’t really know where both fighters are at the  minute . Yes Donaire is on the slide but has he slid enough for Frampton to be to much for him ? . Was Frampton’s last fight just a little ring rust or has Frampton peaked aswell ?. I believe Donire has a good 4 or 5 rounds left in him where he will be immensely dangerous , especially as Frampton can be easy to hit . I feel this is a fight where we could see both guys hit the canvas and i also think this is a fight where both fighters will be out to prove people wrong , and that always makes them more dangerous . I think Donaire will start this fight strongly but he will start to fade badly after the fourth . Frampton has been working with Man City’s strength and conditioning coach for this one  and i think it will pay off going into the last third of the fight , where Frampton will get a stoppage .

Round 10 KO Frampton

DeGale vs Truax ~ Preview + Prediction

DeGale vs Truax ~ Preview + Prediction

Every so often boxing will throw up a big upset and last year’s biggest upset was when Caleb Truax beat IBF Super Middleweight Champion James DeGale in a very convincing victory in what was supposed to be a relatively easy fight for DeGale . That night the 21st century got it’s very own Cindarella Man …..Well to an extent . This weekend we will see DeGale look to avenge his defeat in Las Vegas on the Lara vs Hurd undercard which will be shown live on Boxnation and BT Sport .

James DeGale 23-2-1 14Ko’s

There are some guys in boxing who go out and make things happen for themselves and James DeGale is one of those fighters . Since winning Gold at the 2008 Olympic Games DeGale was earmarked for big things in the sport whilst building a fanbase here in the UK , but that all came to a shuddering halt in 2011 when he fought George Groves and Groves beat him . After that loss though DeGale done well to rebuild himself and in 2015 he won the IBF super middleweight title on the road in Boston against Andre Dirrell . DeGale successfully defended his title against Lucian Bute and Rogelio Medina on the road again , in fights he was expected to win but we seen DeGale form a bad habit in these fights , a habit of taking a one sided fight and turning them into battles which has seen DeGale really start to slip in recent times . DeGale also fought Badu Jack in what became a classic battle in which he took some heavy and sustained punishment and if you go back and check DeGales post fight antics ( bottom of the page )  its clear to see he was acting out of character , almost insane like which suggested me he must have had a concussion , and after these previous fights where DeGale has took punishment i really think it has started to deteriorate DeGales reflexes which really showed in the first fight with Truax .

DeGale also has a poor gas tank which can cause him to take a rest on the ropes which leaves him so vulnerable . It’s not all doom and gloom for James DeGale though as i have always thought he was superbly talented fighter who looks fantastic when throwing quick combinations to the head and body and then pivoting back out of range . DeGale knows going into this fight that he is the better boxer of the two so if he boxes properly he should win .

Caleb Truax 29-3-2 18Ko’s

Now i have to admit i have seen Caleb Truax a grand total of one time , but in that one performance he did really impress me . Truax is very basic in his style but is also quite smart in how he uses the talent he does have . In the first fight Truax made DeGale look very ordinary trapping him on the ropes and going to work , even showing a bit of class when destroying DeGale with a left hook then a spin out of range which DeGale couldn’t answer the full night . I am also a big believer that once a fighter becomes a champion something changes in there mentality and they start training like a champion , they now have something to protect and that will make Caleb Truax more dangerous .

Prediction

This fight has really flown under the radar up to now , not getting any coverage which is a shame as this should be a good fight on a good card . In the last fight DeGale looked to be really struggling for most of it which some put down to DeGale rushing back from injury , but i think it is something deeper than that , i really think James DeGale is showing signs of being a shot fighter , the big question is can he muster enough up to to avenge his defeat to Truax ? . I have went back and fourth with this in my mind but the more i think about it i have a feeling Truax will retain his title . I don’t think James DeGale’s heart is still in boxing and when going to America he will be fighting a man full confidence in Truax .

I think the American will take this fight on the cards but I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if Caleb Truax stopped DeGale .

Joshua vs Parker – I Review Sky Commentary , AJ/Wilder …Oh and we Discuss the Fight

Joshua vs Parker – I Review Sky Commentary , AJ/Wilder …Oh and we Discuss the Fight

Well I’ve took a few days before sitting down to write this review of the AJ vs Parker fight thinking once i had digested it i would be able to find some positives , i thought that I would have put some sort of spin on it by now , but no matter what the sky company men have been saying or even AJ himself since the fight , it was still a very poor fight . I will struggle to keep you entertained talking about it , so i will keep the review of the fight short and sweet and maybe divulge into other aspects of what we seen like one of the worst commentary performances I’ve ever heard and maybe even take some time to clear up this whole Deontay Wilder stuff and hopefully that’s enough to keep you a reader .

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Not a classic by any stretch of the imagination but another win for AJ (pic from daily mail)

The Fight

Since Saturday there has been a spin attached to this fight which started ten minutes after the fight ended and has mothballed into something amusing but so inaccurate at the same time . Just after the fight we had Sky pundits describe how well Joshua boxed then even AJ himself called his performance a “A introduction to the sweet science ” . Now anybody that seen the fight will know this is just pure make believe and I’ve seen enough on social media the past couple of days to know that even the biggest casual fans know what they saw . There is credit to be given to AJ i had him winning 9 – 3 or 8-4 in rounds which is a clear victory against a good opponent but this suggestion of “Sweet Science” is way over the top , and even though the gameplan was the right one by McCracken to get the job done , for the most part i don’t think AJ boxed that well . AJ was happy to keep Parker at the end of his long jab which Parker didn’t have the head movement or ring craft to get past , so for that you have to give Joshua credit but there was little in the way of creativity from Joshua and even tho his jab won him the fight it got progressively worse as the fight went on as two one dimensional fighter plodded away in what was a poor mans game of chess . Another major issue in this turning out a stinker was the referee who was shocking and totally overwhelmed by the occasion . The key to the fight for Parker was him being able to get inside and work on AJ but the ref was far to eager to get in between both guys killing any chance of this one catching fire which you could see was frustrating both fighters as AJ is very good on the inside also  . Then I must comment on the poor judging with two judges only giving Parker one round and the other giving him two rounds which is so disrespectful to Parker who for me won a minimum of three rounds clearly and you could add another couple of swing rounds on to that so yet again a big fight is partly killed by officials . In the end Joshua this was a clear winner but Parker can take positives from this fight , he stayed in there and fought for the full twelve rounds against AJ , something no other person has achieved so far and the  AJ Hype Train keeps rolling on with now with just one more title to collect to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world .

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Carl Froch trying his very best to ruin my night

Sky BoxOffice Show (commentary)

This is not something i usually comment on but i feel obliged to say something on how bad Carl Froch was as part of the Sky commentary team on Saturday night . Now usually i just turn the sound down enough that you can barely hear what’s being said but loud enough to still hear the crowd , after all what you want at home is to still capture the atmosphere and i think that is something that is being lost by most shows shown on the TV as they continually speak all the way though the show but on this occasion i watched it in a friends house so we had to listen to the ramblings of cliche driven mad man  . It is obvious that TV commentary teams nowadays have been instructed to have no free air , no prolonged periods of silence , no time to let fans sit and enjoy the fight  , which would be fine but it encourages complete drivel to be spoken which if anything distracts you from the fight . Froch was a world class boxer but he is not a fan of boxing and his knowledge of fighters and division is little to none and egged on by Adam Smith , Froch continually makes a fool of himself and it really does make for painful listening . This week we will be putting another classic fight on Casual’s Corner so listen out for how less is more when it comes to boxing commentary .       Casual’s Corner

AJ/Wilder 

To top off Saturday’s show we finished up with Eddie Hearn pushing this narrative that because Wilder didn’t come over to the UK for the fight he doesn’t want to fight AJ ….What a load of nonsense . Deontay Wilder was booked to come over right up to ten days before the fight when Hearn announced that Wilder would NOT be allowed in the ring to call out AJ , a tried and tested stunt which is proven to drum up interest in a fight   After hearing he wasn’t allowed to enter the ring Wilder read what was on the wall , he was going to be hijacked by Dillian Whyte who Hearn is now selling as a gatekeeper to AJ . Hearn jumped in the ring and started insulting Wilder right away about ticket sales etc , he’s spent the past four weeks insulting Wilder’s manager because they dared to expose the emails between both camps showing that Eddie doesn’t want to make AJ vs Wilder . Whilst Eddie Hearn was was mid rant post fight i couldn’t help but think , I’ve watched Wilder/Ortiz five times i don’t think i will ever rematch AJ’s last two fights . Lou Di Bella says it best in a fantastic interview with FightTalk.Net  .

( Follow the fight talk guys on twitter @Sam_OReilly1 @craigscott209 @Fight_Talk1 )

Joshua vs Parker – Preview + Prediction

Joshua vs Parker – Preview + Prediction

Five years ago i predicted that the heavyweight division was coming into another Golden Era after years of mediocrity , and i predicted this due to the likes of Tyson Fury , Anthony Joshua and Joseph Parker all coming of age and with the likes of Deontay Wilder and Alexander Povetkin already around the top of the division the future looked bright , but it hasn’t panned out that way . Tyson Fury had a brief stint at the the top of the division when he beat Wladimir Klitschko but then served a ban due to drugs and had retired from the sport , Povetkin is another who had failed a drug test and since his return to the ring hasn’t looked the same fighter so now there are three and this weekend we will see two of them go toe to toe on Saturday night when Anthony Joshua takes Joseph Parker of New Zealand .

Anthony Joshua 20-0-0 20Ko’s

This weekend the AJ hype train will again roll up in Cardiff as Anthony Joshua looks to get his hands on another World Title to go along with his IBF and WBA straps when he fights Parker for his WBO title on his way to being king of the heavyweights . Over the years the hype that has been built up around Joshua has been like nothing ever seen before in this country which has even swept up the most cynical of us at times , and now building up to one of AJ’s biggest fights we must strip back the all hype and separate the man from the myth when trying to break this fight down . There is no doubt Joshua’s main asset is his power and shot selection , which even after all this time watching the big Englishman still has the ability to shock . We seen a great example of both assets when AJ took on Wladimir Klitschko last year when Joshua caught Wlad with a superb uppercut which nobody saw coming , not even the legendary Klitschko and although that wasn’t the Knockout punch it was the punch that won fight .

Countless times we have seen AJ pull a variety of power shots out of the bag to the expense of opponents like Dillian Whyte and Carlos Takam . For all AJ’s power and shot selection impress there is no getting away from Joshua’s biggest flaw ….his gas tank . We have seen AJ gas out after four rounds against 42 year old Klitschko who showed the world the blueprint to beating AJ is with movement and agility and had Wlad not been so old or inactive i firmly believe Joshua would have picked up his first loss . There has been a lot of talk coming out of AJ’s camp that they are looking to come in light for this fight which would suggest they have been working on his stamina , but is it enough to last twelve rounds ? …..I’m not so sure .

Joseph Parker 24-0-0 18Ko’s

Around 18 month’s ago i wrote a scathing review for the Boxing Asylum on Joseph Parker when he took on Andy Ruiz Jnr in a fight he won narrowly won on the cards . After being high on Parker for a while i had seen him gradually lose all the qualities that made him a top prospect not to mention he looked to be coming in far to heavy . Since then i have found out i may have been a bit harsh on Parker as he was struggling with injuries on his shoulders and elbows at the time , which has since been operated on and i have to admit Joseph Parker is coming into this weekends fight in the best shape i have ever seen him . The best tool in Parkers locker is his lightening quick hands which he will need to use to full affect this weekend . Seeing Parker coming in so light for this fight means he is coming to be mobile , which isn’t really his style but if he does it right he might just be able to pull it off . Joseph Parker can be very one dimensional and has a habit of getting lazy the longer a fight goes on which could be his undoing against AJ .

Prediction

If you would have asked me two months ago who was going to win this fight i would have told you AJ would win easily , but seeing Joseph Parker this week it really does look as if he means business . The talk from Team AJ is that they have been preparing for a twelve rounder and i really hope he has been as i can see Parker employing a hit and run tactic which would kill the engine of Joshua . So who is my pick for this weekend ? ….Well i am going to stick with my original pick of Anthony Joshua but rather than predict it will be a 4 round demolition , now i am going to say a 9th round KO in a game of chess type of fight . I think Parker will implement his gameplan early but he will get careless at some point and that’s when Joshua will pounce .

Anthony Joshua 9th round KO

Great Whyte Attack on Saturday Night

Great Whyte Attack on Saturday Night

Dillian Whyte has always been a boxer i felt was playing at boxing , someone who has been able to talk himself into big fights and make good money along the way , but on Saturday night we seen an in shape Dillian Whyte using good boxing skills and ring smarts to destroy Lucas Browne and record his best win to date . Before the fight i said Lucas Browne would need to bring his very best game to beat Whyte but after years of inactivity Browne looked far to heavy alongside the well toned Whyte as they squared up at the opening bell .

Right from the opening bell Whyte knew exactly how he was going to beat Browne , by breaking him down with the jab and choosing his times when to follow the jab with big left hands shots over the top . Browne finished the first round with a cut just above his left eye which Whyte used as the bull’s eye on a target and my god he couldn’t miss . Browne was just far to slow in the ring , every time he tried to land something Whyte was catching him a big counter and from as early as the second the writing was on the wall for Lucas Browne .IMG_8064.JPGIn our preview i pointed out Browne has a habit of throwing punches from the hip and it is a habit the big Australian hasn’t remedied and Whyte was punishing him for it time and time again . Whyte looked agile , quick handed and surprisingly light on his feet in stark contrast to Browne who looked slow ,heavy , laboured and after 3 rounds he was a bloodied mess . It was obvious that after 4 round Browne was fighting with one eye due to the amount blood pouring into his left eye and he was taking a beating and even this early in the fight i was starting to think that  Browne’s corner should be thinking of pulling there man out of there . Dillian Whyte could not miss Browne and in the fifth i think myself and most people watching were expecting that towel to fly in at any second but it never came , bravery or foolery from Browne’s corner but there man paid the price early in the sixth when Whyte landed a massive left hook which sent Browne’s lifeless body flat out on the canvas and it took around 5 minutes to get Browne up and away to Hospital but thankfully Lucas Browne is going home to his family in one peice .Image result for whyte vs browne

Dillian Whyte had fought a fantastic fight , easily a career best for the big Londoner and what a time to do it with HBO beaming the fight in the US . What’s next for Whyte ? The nosies coming from Eddie Hearn is that they want the Deontay Wilder fight which i don’t think Dillian Whyte is ready for . I personally would like to see Whyte fight Big Baby Miller and if he performs at the level he did against Browne on Saturday night i might even back him .

Whyte vs Browne – Preview + Prediction

Whyte vs Browne – Preview + Prediction

The heavyweight division at this moment in time is very fragmented . We have at the very top of the division Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder , the next tier is guys like Joseph Parker and Luis Ortiz who have it in there locker to pressure the top two but will just fall short . Then we have the best of the rest and that is what’s on show this weekend in London’s O2 Arena when Dillon Whyte takes on Australian Lucas Browne . This fight has the potential to go either way and could be a modern day classic , well i am using the term classic very loosely , but this fight also has the potential to be a stinker but I’m sure i speak for everyone when i say i am very intrigued by this one .

Dillan Whyte 22-1-0 16Ko’s

Dillian Whyte is one of the best characters in UK boxing due to his lack of media training , what you see with Dillian is what you get and the British public love that . When Whyte signed to fight Joshua it was widely regarded as another easy fight for AJ and even tho the build up brought us some fantastic TV moments , most expected a walkover for the Olympian , but that wasn’t the case . Whyte regrouped after poor start to rock AJ to his core for the first in his career but Whyte just didn’t have enough in his tank to take advantage and went on to be KO’d by Joshua , but i wonder if that missed opportunity still keeps Whyte awake at night . Since then Dillian Whyte has got a lot of TV coverage , i guess being the first man to land a punch on Joshua has it’s benefits . Dillian Whyte is a hard boxer to asses as he is not great at any one thing , he isn’t mobile , he doesn’t have a great jab , he doesn’t have quick hands , his feet look heavy at times , his power is decent but not game changing , but yet he would give most of the heavyweight division problems . Whyte is a big man and that is one thing he uses to his advantage when inside , he will lean , pull , push and grapple which doesn’t always make for the best viewing but can be effective . Whyte has proved he is very tough after taking some massive shots in a gruelling twelve rounds against Derek Chisora which Whyte just edged on the judges cards , not on mine though i thought he lost . Whyte is at his most dangerous when he is inside looping in hooks and is something Lucas Browne will need to be weary of .

Lucas Browne 25-0-0 22Ko’s

Lucas Browne is coming into this fight having only fought twice since 2015 and no matter which way you dress that up it isn’t great . Back in 2016 Browne put in a career best performance against Ruslan Chagaev where he Ko’d the Russian in the tenth round in what really was a great performance by Browne . Since then he has only fought journeyman Mathew Greer which isn’t the best preparations coming into this massive fight in London , that could lead to a world title shot for the winner , which in itself is ludicrous in Browne’s case . Back when Browne beat Chagaev i was very impressed with the big Australian’s footwork for a man his size . Browne also has a very good jab which he likes to work off but he is prone to throwing it from the waist which can leave him wide open . That performance in Russia will mean Browne know’s exactly what he is walking into at the O2 and more importantly that performance show he’s capable of handling it .

Prediction

This is such a hard fight to call as on one hand Lucas Browne has far better fundamentals than Whyte but then on the other hand now at 38 years old and being inactive Browne has got to have lost something , and that something maybe all Whyte needs to put the odds in his favour . If Browne can the bring a performance similar to that of the one in Russia he will wear Whyte down over the distance . If Whyte wants to win this he has to do what he does best and pressure Browne , keep on the inside and don’t give him a second If he can do that he should get the win .

So who am i picking for this one then ? ……… Well although i think Browne is the better boxer of the two i think his time has been and went . I don’t think he will be as mobile as he was back in 2016 when defeating Chagaev and for that reason i am going to pick Dillian Whyte to win by late stoppage .

Ramirez wins WBC Title , Now 140lbs Need’s A WBSS

Over the past few weeks the super lightweight division has jumped into action and we are a step closer to having a bit of clarity . Three weeks ago Josh Taylor kept his star rising with the KO of Winston Campos to retain his WBC Silver Title and that followed by Regis Prograis Ko victory over Julius Indongo for the WBC Interim Tilte , followed by Mikey Garcia’s points win over Sergy Lipiniets to claim the IBF title at the weight in a great fight . On Saturday night we were treated to another great fight for the WBC Vavant Super Lightweight title between Jose Ramirez and Amir Imam . (YOU CAN WATCH RAMIREZ VS IMAM AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE

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There was a cry a few weeks ago that it should have been Indongo/Prograis that fought for the proper title but that fight turned out to be a damp squib which was over in two rounds , this fight on the other hand was packed with some superb action from both men . From the off Imam showed he was more than capable of making this a fight by working off his jab and using lateral movement to frustrate Ramirez but like all top class fighters Ramirez soon made the changes to take the initiative early on . After a fairly quiet  opening round Ramirez lifted the pace right from the start of the second round putting Imam under immense pressure .When Ramirez closes the gap he is superb to watch and no wonder he’s becoming a fan favourite with this high intensity style of his , which we can see over Ramirez last couple fights he is starting to look a bit more cultured throwing feints whilst inside to open up the body . Ramirez looked to be systematically breaking Imam down until about round eight when Imam made a change of his own when he decided to throw with Ramirez and had some success . In the end Ramirez survived the little comeback by Imam and ran out a deserved clear winner on the cards 117-111 , 115-113 and 120-108 in which was another brilliant performance by Ramirez , a man who impresses me everytime i watch him .Image result for jose ramirez title boxing

Ever since the undisputed champion Terrence Crawford vacated all the belts at 140lbs it has been a bit of a mess but now we are starting to see some clarity in the division . All of a sudden there seems to be so much talent in the 140lbs division with a top 5 all capable of being king of the division and a few more right on the fringes of top level and this has us fans now wanting a World Boxing Super Series format at the division to make all the best fight . Right now at 140lbs there is only one star which is Mikey Garcia (IBF Champion) so it should be within WBSS budget to get all the best in the division to sign , a lot more realistic than the idea of the Light Heavyweight tournament . The WBSS Cruiserweight Tournament has given fans a hunger and desire to see the best put it all on the line in a sink or swim format and if ever a division was ready for it , it is the super lightweight division .