 By - George Delis (@Delisketo)
A massacre will take place one day before Valentine’s Day, as Maksim Vlasov & Joe Smith Jr are set to go to war for the vacant WBO Light Heavyweight championship. The 16 year veteran Maksim Vlasov (46-3/25 KOs) will soon be entering his 50th professional fight, with the chance to cement his legacy and finally call himself a world champion. The road to that dream however has been quite long and not without its hiccups. Vlasov began his career back in 2005 at Super Middleweight, where he ended up being undefeated. His most significant win in the division was against former European champion & 4x world title challenger Khoren Gevor (34-10). As a Light Heavyweight, Vlasov suffered only 2 losses, a controversial one to Isaac Chilemba (26-7), which was avenged in 2019 and a close match with the unbeaten Gilbert Ramirez (41-0). In that bout, Vlasov had problems with his endurance, due to the weight cutting, which is why he then moved up to Cruiserweight. It was there, where the Russian had his big moment, when he came face to face with 2008 Olympic champion Rakhim Chakhkiev (26-3) for the vacant WBA International title. Vlasov shined that night. He scored a fast knockdown in the 2nd with a short right hook and rocked Chakhkiev hard at the end of the round. The fight could have possibly ended there, had it not been for the timekeeper mistakenly ringing the bell 15 seconds earlier than he should have. Vlasov nailed him again with a straight right hand in the 5th, scoring a second knockdown. The action picked up in the next round, as Chakhkiev dropped him with a liver shot of his own. The two men continued to trade bombs until Vlasov returned the favour, flooring the Olympian for the third time. At the 7th round, Vlasov put Chakhkiev down for good this time, after connecting with a plethora of punches and another straight right to the jaw. It undoubtedly was the most spectacular battle of an already great night of boxing. (Gassiev vs. Lebedev was the co-main event, while names like Kudryashov and Troyanovsky were also competing) Vlasov qualified for the 2018 Cruiserweight WBSS tournament, after dominating former WBC Silver champion Olanrewaju Durodola (34-8), only to be eliminated by Krzysztof Glowacki (31-2) at the quarter finals. After that defeat, he switched back to Light Heavyweight and quickly captured the WBO Global title, winning 4 fights in a row over Omar Garcia (16-4), Isaac Chilemba (26-7) as aforementioned, Emmanuel Martey (15-1) and Sergei Ekimov (18-2), earning himself another crack at the gold. In order to fulfil his longtime goal though, he will have to go thrown a very rugged opponent. A bona fide KO artist that possesses massive power in both hands, Joe Smith Jr (26-3/21 KOs) has ended most of his fights within 6 rounds. His first major victory came in 2016, when he took on former IBO champion Andrzej Fonfara (30-5) for the WBC International title. In a surprising turn of events, Smith put the Polish fighter down midway of the opening round with a thunderous right hook, before finishing him off just a few seconds later. Smith would then go on to knock an aged Bernard Hopkins (55-8) out of the ring, successfully defending his belt and moving up in the rankings. However his momentum was momentarily cut short after losing to Sullivan Barrera (22-3) in a world title eliminator. Despite dropping him in the 1st, Smith didn’t do enough as the fight progressed to get the decision. He returned to action almost a year later (Smith’s jaw was broken in the Barrera match) and quickly earned himself an opportunity at the WBA champion Dmitry Bivol (17-0), but was completely outclassed during their encounter, giving the undefeated Russian some trouble only in the 10th round. In 2020, he made another strong comeback, this time against 2x world title challenger Jesse Hart (26-3). A relentless Smith kept the pressure on, continuously moving forward and throwing way more punches than his opponent. After 10 punishing rounds and 1 knockdown, Smith was once again back on track. He solidified his place at the top of the Light Heavyweight rankings last August, with an impressive performance over Eleider Alvarez (25-2). Smith overwhelmed the former WBO champion, virtually leaving him no room for an offense of his own. By the 5th round, Alvarez had already a bruised face and was bleeding profusely from the nose. Smith finally connected with a sharp straight right in the mush, following it up with a left, to drop Eleider and become the #1 contender for the vacant WBO crown. The “working” Joe is now only a step away from realizing his full potential and claim his first world title. When you take a closer look at these 2 guys, you can find similarities in their careers as well as their styles. Both are pressure fighters and even though they have a strong right hand, usually it’s not a one hit punch that does the job. They tend to beat down their opponents before finishing them off with it. Moreover, both men have a good chin. Vlasov has never been stopped in his entire career, while Smith has only been once, but that was a decade ago. Power wise, Joe has to be considered the stronger fighter. In spite of Vlasov having more knockouts, Smith has the higher KO ratio. On the other hand, Vlasov has the better footwork and knows how to properly use his reach to his advantage. As far as their resumes are concerned, each man hold wins over accomplished boxers, but the main difference is in their career’s trajectory. Smith’s best performances came last year, whereas Vlasov’s “best hits” belong in the past. It’s also worth mentioning that the Russian fighter seems to have lost some of his knockout power since moving back to Light Heavyweight, where Smith is looking stronger than ever before. All things considered, Smith must be considered the favourite in this match, but at the same time, Vlasov has proven to be a formidable fighter and not an easy one to dispose of. If he manages to keep his distance and cuts off Smith’s barrage, we might be looking at the 4th Russian born Light Heavyweight champion of the world.
0 Comments
 By - George Delis (@Delisketo)
A major boxing clash takes place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on October 18th, as Artur Beterbiev and Oleksandr Gvozdyk put their respective IBF & WBC Light Heavyweight titles on the line, in what it’s guaranteed to be a fight of the year candidate. Artur Beterbiev (14-0 / 14 KOs) began his career as an amateur, winning the World championship and World Cup once each, as well as the Europeans twice, subsequently earning the honorary title of “National Master of Sports”. During those years, he held victories over future Olympic medalists, such as Egor Mekhontsev (gold), Kenny Egan (silver), Abbos Atoev (bronze) and future pro world champions like Sergey Kovalev & Yuniel Dorticos. He finally made his pro debut in 2013, quickly amassing 5 consecutive stoppages, before facing his first legit opponent in Tavoris Cloud (24-3). Beterbiev dropped the former IBF World champion thrice in the opening round and put him down for the final time in the 2nd after landing a short left hook to the chin, thus becoming the first man to knockout Cloud, in what turned out to be the last match of his career. Beterbiev proceeded to defend his NABO title against Jeff Page (18-3) and also win the IBF North American championship. Despite suffering an early knockdown, he returned the favor two times, while finishing the job once again with the left hook. This was Page’s first ever loss. Continuing his path of destruction in 2015-2016, he outboxed the former WBA World champion Gabriel Campillo (25-8) and KOed him with a powerful straight right, in only 4 rounds. After that, he added Alexander Johnson (17-4), Ezequiel Osvaldo Maderna (26-6), Isidro Ranoni Prieto (27-3) to his victim’s list and the WBO International title to his collection. His big moment came in November of 2017, when he met the 2 time WBA Intercontinental champion Enrico Koelling (26-3) for the vacant IBF title. Beterbiev was clearly the superior boxer, being way ahead in points, as Koelling barely offered any significant offense of his own. It was the one and only time a fight of his went 12 rounds, but he still didn’t need the judges, since he scored 2 knockdowns in the closing moments, causing the referee to stop the fight and crown him the new IBF Light Heavyweight champion of the world. The Russian marked his inaugural title defense last October against the then undefeated British & Commonwealth champion Callum Johnson (18-1). These 2 bruisers engaged in an incredible brawl, trading big shots as well as knockdowns, much to the excitement of the fans in attendance. However, Callum made the mistake of closing the distance, which is where Beterbiev excels at the most, thus taking two rapid blows to the chin and to the temple, putting an end to the Englishman’s world championship aspirations. Dispatching mandatory challenger Radivoje Kalajdzic (24-2) with relative ease, earlier this year, Beterbiev now looks to cement his legacy by fighting a fellow unstoppable fighter and become a double world champion. But the road to glory passes through a rather tough rival. Oleksandr Gvozdyk (17-0), much like Beterbiev, used to compete in the amateurs, where he won the European Cup and most importantly the bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games. His reported record was 225-30. In his 10th match as a pro, he dropped Nadjib Mohammedi (42-8) with a lighting fast right cross during the 2nd round. The Ukrainian defeated 2 more world title challengers in Tommy Karpency (29-7) and Isaac Chilemba (25-7) on the same year. In 2018, Gvozdyk bested former European champion Mehdi Amar (35-6) for the right to face the WBC & Lineal World champion Adonis Stevenson (29-2), who at the time, was undefeated for 7 years and with 24 KOs under his belt. Gvozdyk scored an early knockdown in the 3rd after landing a clean straight right, but the referee called it a slip for some reason. He survived Stevenson’s superman punch in the 10th and hurt the champ before the round ended. The finish came at the 11th, after a plethora of strikes, finally stopping Adonis with a right straight to the chin, ending the reign of one of the best Light Heavyweights in history. Unfortunately, Gvozdyk’s 1st defense wasn’t as impressive, since Doudou Ngumbu (38-10) suffered a calf injury during the 5th round, which led to the referee stoppage. Up untl that point, the champion was in control from the opening bell, putting together some slick combinations and his jab to good use. Now, almost a year away from the biggest fight of his career, he gets the opportunity to make the headlines once again, by gunning for a second world title. It’s always intriguing to see 2 undefeated champions fight each other, but at the same time, it’s tough to pick a winner, since neither man has ever tasted defeat before. Gvozdyk is a much more technical boxer, buying his time and wearing his opponents down before going in for the kill, which most times comes in the form of a straight right. Beterbiev’s style on the other hand is far more aggressive. You can understand that, by simply looking at his record. Only 3 of his fights have gone past the 4th round. What’s also impressive about him is that he can muster a lot of energy behind his short range punches, even when his foe has him clinched. However, the most important statistic about Beterbiev might be this: 100% finishing ratio ! Not a single man that has stepped into the ring with him has managed to go the distance. It won’t be a surprise if he is the one to hand Gvozdyk his 1st loss as a pro. However, if Gvozdyk can survive the early onslaught, he might have a shot at outpointing the Russian. So who walks away the unified WBC/IBF Light Heavyweight World champion??? We will find out this coming Friday in Philly!  The Light Heavyweight division is one with a lot of interesting match ups that could be made, and a very interesting title picture. Sadly though we do, even with the talent in the division, get the occasional bout that doesn't really appeal. On October 12th we get one such bout as WBA champion Dmitry Bivol (16-0, 11) takes on the unheralded Lenin Castillo (20-2-1, 15) from the Dominican Republic.
On paper this doesn't look awful, though in reality it is a step backwards for Bivol, and is a long way from the type of bouts fans had been hoping for from him. After a run of wins over top 15 type guys likes Sullivan Barrera, Isaac Chilemba, Jean Pascal and Joe Smith Jr the hope was for Bivol to face one of the division's top, top fighters. Bouts against the likes of Sergey Kovalek, Artur Beterbiev, Oleksandr Gvozdyk, Gilberto Ramirez, Jesse Hard or Marcus Browne. As for Castillo it's a huge opportunity for him, and ever a good performance in a loss could enhance his profile going forward. The 28 year old Bivol, who was born in Kyrgyzstan, has been on the radar of fans for a few years and he was aggressively matched early on in his career. Unlike many fighters he didn't need easy fights, and instead every one of his pro bouts has come against an opponent with a winning record. When he claimed the WBA "interim" title in May 2016, in just his 7th bout, it was little surprise and since then he has continued to pile up the wins. Sadly though as his competition has stepped up his entertainment level has dropped off. Early in his career Bivol was an technically excellent, aggressive fighter who hunted the stoppage. He through a lot and although it seemed like he was one paced it looked like he wanted to entertain and he wanted to go for stoppages. That was incredibly obvious against Felipe Romero where he turned the screw in the final round despite being in a very clear lead. Sadly since then Bivol has shown more of a focus on winning rather than wowing, taking decision wins, instead of impressing. The focus towards taking the win has made his fights rather samey and dull, and the early excitement of his career has began to fade. Rapidly. He's still incredibly talented, with lovely technical ability, and a solid work rate, but his performances just look uninspired and boring. To many Castillo will be a bit of an unknown, but the 31 year old has actually been around the pro since 2009 and is well travelled, with his international debut coming in 2011. Since his debut he has fought almost half of his career outside of the Dominican republic, with the vast majority of his non-domestic bouts taking place in the US. The most notable of those bouts was his 2018 bout with Marcus Browne, when he lost a clear decision to Browne but showed enough to prove himself as a very capable fighter. In the Browne fight Castillo looked like a very big and strong fighter, with solid power, dropping Browne in round 5, and nice hand speed. The one thing he seemed to lack was real ambition and work rate. When he let his shots fly he looked dangerous, but was far too lazy. Given that this is a huge chance for Castillo we'd hope to see him have more ambition than he did against Browne. If he does than he has the size, power and physical strength to give Bivol real issues. Bivol has the edge in work rate, technique and speed, and we suspect that will be the key, but this is unlikely to be a walk in the park for the champion. We expect to see Bivol using good in and out movement whilst landing with his quicker shots, but we really wouldn't be surprised at all if Castillo has moments against him, and takes more than just a round or two. Bivol's consistency should take him to a clear decision, but this is a legitimate test against a man who will have reach and height advantages and will ask questions of Bivol. Prediction - UD12 Bivol  By - George Delis (@Delisketo)
On March 9th, in Verona, Wisconsin, Dmitry Bivol will defend the WBA Light Heavyweight World Championship against top contender Joe Smith Jr. Dmitry Bivol (15-0/11 KOs) is considered to be one of the top boxers of his division today (currently ranked #3 by the Ring & BoxRec). Boasting an amateur record of 268 wins and only 15 losses, Bivol won numerous titles from 2006 to 2014, including youth and junior World championships, 2 National tournaments as well as gold at the 2013 World Combat Games. Turned pro in 2014 (23 years old) and in 15 months he had already garnered 6 victories, all stoppages. During that time Bivol gained the WBC U.S. Silver & WBA Intercontinental titles, proving his skills early on in his career, while establishing his right hand as a legit threat to anyone that stepped into the ring with him. In May of 2016, the Russian prodigy went toe to toe with the reigning WBA interim World champion Felix Valera, for the Light Heavyweight strap. Valera was also undefeated at the time, standing at 13-0, with 12 stoppages, most of them coming in the first round. Bivol outboxed the champion in every single round, and even dropped him twice, earning a wide unanimous decision and of course the interim championship. Bivol proceeded to defend his belt against Robert Berridge (30-7) and Samuel Clarkson (21-5) in 2 one sided beatdowns, knocking them down three times each before getting the TKO win in the 4th round. He then faced 30 fight veteran Cedric Agnew, in a non title match. Bivol dropped him in 2 minutes of the very 1st round with a fast combination and continued to punishing him until the referee waved the fight off in the 4th. It’s worth mentioning that Agnew’s only KO loss prior to this was against fellow Russian champion Kovalev, who needed 7 rounds to get the job done. In these last 3 bouts, Bivol showcased some excellent bodywork, which we hadn’t seen much from him in the past. After Badou Jack vacated the WBA title, Bivol was promoted to Regular champion. As such, he marked his inaugural title defense over Trent Broadhurst, in November of 2017. The Australian was on a 13 fight winning streak and hadn’t lost in 6 years. Bivol stopped him with a perfectly placed right on the chin, in the very last second of the 1st round. In 2018, Bivol defended his World title thrice, against Sullivan Barrera, Isaac Chilemba and Jean Pascal. Barrera got dominated for 12 consecutive rounds, taking shots nonstop until a right hook sealed the deal. Chilemba had already suffered back to back losses to Alvarez, Kovalev and Gvozdyk, thus not proving to be much of a challenge. The most significant out of the three was the former WBC World champion Pascal, who put up a much better fight that the other two, connecting with some good punches through out the fight, but it wasn’t enough overall to take the belt away from Bivol, who systematically picked him apart and got the win one more time. Now for his 5th one, he will have to face a much stronger boxer this time. Joe Smith Jr. (24-2/20 KOs), a bona fide KO artist with knockout power in both of his hands, has finished most of his opponents within 6 rounds. 2019 will mark the young veteran’s 10th anniversary into the sport, as he aims to finally add a World championship to his collection. His first major success came in 2016, when he took on world title contender Andrzej Fonfara (30-5) for the WBC International title. In a surprising turn of events, Smith put the Polish fighter down in the midway of the opening round, before finishing him off with a left & right hook combination a few seconds later. However, Smith’s biggest test came 6 months later, as he was set to go face to face with legendary boxer Bernard Hopkins, in the main event of a Golden Boy show, broadcasted live on HBO. Hopkins, the 2 division World, Lineal & Ring champion, came out of retirement for one last match and the opportunity to go out with a win and another belt. After 8 action packed rounds, Smith shocked the world again when he caught Hopkins with a thunderous left uppercut, which knocked him out of the ring. Unable to respond to the 20 count, Smith was declared the winner, in what definitely must be his most important victory to date. Smith’s momentum was momentarily cut short in 2017 after losing to Sullivan Barrera in a world title eliminator. Despite dropping Barrera in the 1st, he didn’t do enough, as the fight progressed, to get the decision. He returned to action almost a year later (Smith’s jaw was broken in the Barrera match) and completely dominated Melvin Russell, putting himself again in world title contention. This could be Bivol’s toughest fight yet. Smith has the highest KO ratio of any of Bivol’s previous opponents (77%), while he’s also the youngest and the most experienced one, in terms of years competing as a pro. He might not be the most technically sound boxer in the division but he’s certainly one of the strongest punchers. Smith’s style can be described as aggressive, always moving forward, trying to get the KO as soon as possible and that strategy has worked very well for him thus far (minus 2 fights). On the other hand, Bivol is as technically sound as it gets. He never rushes to finish the fight. He stays patient, picking his shots and most times manages to drop his opponent, usually with a well calculated right hand. If he (Bivol’s rival) manages to get back up, then and only then Bivol storms in with incredibly fast (for his weight class) combinations, going for the kill, and if he doesn’t go down again, Bivol disengages and starts over. To conclude with, the only unknown factor here is if Bivol can withstand Smith’s power. If yes, then a 5th successful title defense is almost guaranteed, as he will try to take this to the distance, which will play in his favour, since Smith has never gone to the 12th round. If not, then Smith will be crowned the 43rd WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion ! Either way, we will get our answer this coming Saturday.  The sport of boxing might still be a sport where two fighters hit each other inside a ring trying to either render their opponent unconscious or win a decision, but outside of the ring there is a lot of changes, with one of the biggest ones stateside being HBO's decision to leave boxing. The US television giant was once a cornerstone of boxing television in the US and the premier channel for bouts Stateside. Their long relationship with the sport however comes to end shortly.
One of the very final shows that HBO will air will be headlined by a WBA Light Heavyweight title clash between Kyrgyzstan born Russian champion Dmitry Bivol (14-0, 11) and Haitian born Canadian Jean Pascal (33-5-1-1, 20). It's not the most amazing of bouts, but it should be a good chance for Bivol to end an impressive year and do so against an opponent with some name value, albeit a faded name. The 27 year old Bivol has been impressive ever since making his debut in 2014, against the experienced Jorge Rodriguez Olivera. Unlike many prospects he hasn't been softly matched at all, and he's never faced a fighter with a losing record, in fact the least notable opponent he's faced so far is Yevgenii Makhteienko who surprisingly lasted 10 rounds with Bivol in 2016. In just 14 fights he has already stamped his name as one of the leading fighters at Light Heavyweight, alongside Eleider alvarez, Adonis Stevenson, Badou Jack and Artur Beterbiev. Unlike those others however he's a relative spring chicken at 27 years old, in what appears to be a division full of older men at the top. In the ring Bivol is an aggressive yet technical fighter, who fights to a relatively text book style, but at a very high tempo. He's a crisp, clean puncher, with good variety to his work, an excellent output and under-rated defense. If we're being honest the most impressive thing about him isn't his high output, but the fact he can keep it up for all 12 rounds. Sadly he can look a bit predictable, and a smart, well educated and unorthodox fighter can give him problems, as we saw earlier this year against Isaac Chilemba who really tested Bivol, for the first time in his career. We suspect some seasoning, and experience will help there, though there is a feeling that he lacks in terms of ingenuity, and won't be inventive in how he approaches certain opponents. That's not too much of an issue, given his plan A is so effective, but would be one possible improvement for him going forward. At 36 years old Pascal is one of the many Light Heavyweights who are sticking around the top 10 but are past their physical primes. In fact Pascal may be the most war worn and damaged of the older men in the division, given he has had so many tough fights during his 40 fight career. He has been competing around the top of the sport for a decade, with his 2008 war with Carl Froch living long in the memory. Since facing Froch for the WBC Super Middleweight title he has shared the ring with the likes of Adrian Diaconu, Chad Dawson, Bernard Hopkins, Lucian Bute, Sergey Kovalev, Yunieski Gonzalez and Elerider Alvarez. A real who's who. Sadly for Pascal he has taken a lot of punishment in those fights, and was twice stopped by Kovalev. In more recent years those battles have taken a toll on him, and his reliance on heart, natural explosiveness and athleticism has proven to be problematic, as his body has taken significant damage and aged. At his best Pascal was a blood and guts warrior, with heavy hands, real quickness, and an awkward style that depended heavily on his explosiveness. As he's aged his legs have slowed, his hands are not quite as quick as they were, his power's not as effective with the loss of speed and his chin isn't what it once was. He's still awkward, but he's probably about 6 years from his peak, and that's an issue against a young gun like Bivol. At his best Pascal would have made for a very tricky assignment for Bivol. The unorthodox style of Pascal, who regularly leaped in and came at opponents from peculiar angles, would have given the text book style of Bivol real questions to answer. Sadly however this faded Pascal will be unlikely to give Bivol much of a fight, and will instead be expected to be chewed up and stopp in the middle or later rounds, as Bivol moves towards unification contests in 2019.  The Light Heavyweight division is a genuinely interesting one right now, with a lot of potentially exciting match ups to be made, and a lot of heavy handed fighters in and around the top of the division. One of those is the Kyrgyzstan born boxer-puncher Dmitry Bivol (13-0, 11), who looks to make his next defense of the WBA Light Heavyweight title this coming Saturday. In the opposite corner to Bivol will be experienced contender Isaac Chilemba (25-5-2, 10), who is essentially in last chance saloon at the top of the division.
Bivol has been fast tracked since making his professional debut, thanks to a strong amateur background that included more than 280 bouts. Ever since his debut in November 2014 he has been matched tough and allowed to hone his skills against good competition. Whilst he has honed his abilities that's not to ignore the fact that he is naturally heavy handed, has a great engine and a good boxing brain. In May 2016 he claimed the WBA interim title, and would go on to claim the full version the following year. In his most impressive performance so far Bivol scored a 12th round TKO win over Cuban fighter Sullivan Barrera. That performance showed Bivol putting it all together. His shots were crisp through out, he showed he could box at a high pace for 12 rounds, and rather than cruise to a decision he hunted the stoppage, becoming the first man to take out Barrera. What was supposed to be a testing bout for Bivol was made to look easy by the 27 year old, who now appears to be on a collision course with Sergey Kovalev, who will be defending the WBO title on the same card. The 32 year old Malawian born South African based Chilemba has long been a leading contender at 175lbs. Early in his career he was happy to make a name for himself in South Africa, where he fought his first 17 bouts and went going 15-1-1 (8), whilst avenging his sole defeat. Whilst many of his opponents in South Africa were relatively unknown they did include a win over the then 20-0 Doudou Ngumbu and a draw with Thomas Oosthuizen. Since then he has gone 10-4-1 whilst fighting on the road in all but 1 of those bouts. On the road he has scored upset wins against Maksim Vlasov, Debis Grachev, Vasily Lepikhin abd Blake Caparello, as well as fighting to a draw with Tony Bellew. Sadly for Chilemba he's a very old 32 who has gone 24 with Bellew, 12 hard rounds with Eleider Alvarez, and 12 hard rounds with Sergey Kovalev and and was stopped in 2016 by Oleksandr Gvozdyk. The losses to Alvarez, Kovalev and Gvozdyk have come in 3 of his last 4 bouts and he has scored only a single win, the one over Caparello, in the last 3 years. At his best Chilemba was a nightmare to fight, he was slippery, slick, tricky and sharp. Sadly though he has shown wear and tear in recent bouts and with inactivity and age his reactions will have slowed. At his best Chilemba would have been able to give fits to Bivol with his movement and control of distance. Sadly though this beyond prime version of Chilemba will be hard pushed to survive with the champion who we suspect will chip away at the challenge before ramping up the tempo and stopping him in the final third of the bout. Chilemba was a very good fighter once, but we really can't see how this current version survives, or competes, with the rising force that is Dmitry Bivol.  This coming Saturday is another big one for boxing fans, who really are having a great few weeks recently. For us the most significant single bout takes place at the legendary Madison Square Garden, as WBA Light Heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10) defends his title against Cuban Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14) in a highly interesting, and potentially explosive, contest.
The Cuban challenger is 36 and will likely see this as his only chance to win a world title, after being some what of an avoided man through much of his career. He turned professional in 2009 but it wasn't until 2015 that he faced a notable name, the then shot to pieces Jeff Lacy. That was Barrera's 15th professional bout and even then he was 32 and likely just on the end of his physical prime. Since then however he has gone 6-1 (4) and scored noteworthy wins over Karo Murat, Joe Smith Jr, Vyacheslav Shabranskyy and Felix Valera,whilst suffering his sole loss to Andre Ward. In the ring Barrera doesn't fight like a typical Cuban. It seems like he knows he needs to be fun to watch, and can't rely on just winning, but instead needs to make fans want to watch him. That has certainly been the care in his biggest fights, as we've seen him down, we've seen him slug out with fighters and have some thrilling fights. We've seen serious question marks left over Barrera's chin, and he's been down against Ward, Shabranskyy, Smith and Valera, but he's shown real bravery and toughness to recover and often look to get revenge. Although skilled Barrera seems to be happy to have a fight with opponents and can be dragged into a war. This can be really exciting, but shows both the strengths and weaknesses of Barrera. He can be hurt, but has the speed, the toughness and the machismo to have a firefight and come out on top. He also has the skills to counter an opponent who happy to engage him, whilst also having rhe boxing skills to get out of range and toy with lesser fighters, who are perhaps too dangerous to have a war with. Russian based Bivol, originally from Kyrgyzstan has been one of the sports fastest rising stars. He debuted in late 2014 and went through very stiff competition early on, doing so in very impressive fashion. Around 18 months after his debut he took a wide decision over Felix Varela for the WBA interim title and essentially announce himself as a fringe world class fighter. Since then he has gone 5-0 (4), defending the interim title twice and claiming the regular title. He has looked even more like a star than he was in his early bouts, and impressed fans in Europe, Russia and North America, with solid wins against the likes of Robert Berridge, Cedric Agnew and Trent Broadhurst. In the ring Bivol looks like a natural born destroyer. He has the typical edge associated with fighters from former Soviet countries. He has the nasty, brutal yet effortless power, associate with Gennady Golovkin and Sergey Kovalev, and just like those two he is technically very solid. He has a high work rate, a seemingly solid chin, and whilst he is perhaps lacking the experience needed find the holes of a defensive genius he looks like a fighter who can simply break the defense, through sheer bloody mindedness and work rate. We've yet to see how Bivol fares against real world class opposition. However the eye suggests he can go a very long way. We've never really seen him break a sweat, be put under any problems or struggle in any way, other than struggle to stop one or two foes. It could be that he can't make that next step, it might be that he can't handle top quality pressure or that he simply isn't as good as he looks. The reality though, seems to be that he is something very special. Barrera might ask a lot of new questions of Bivol. He is the first real world class opponent that Bivol will have faced. However we suspect that Bivol will have answers to question Barrera asks, and the power, work rate and skills to not only hurt the Cuban but finish him off. Barrera certainly has the skills to trouble Bivol, but his chin has caused him issues in the past against lesser opponents, and we suspect that Bivol won't let him off the hook like some of those other opponents have done, so far.  The Light Heavyweight division is one of the divisions which has a lot of talent in it's ranks, and has fans waiting for the top men to face each other and let us really know who is the best at 175lbs. Fighters like Adonis Stevenson, Sergey Kovalev and Badou Jack are the top names whilst contenders continue to mount, with the likes of Eleider Alvarez, Oleksandr Gvozdyk, Artur Beterbiev and Marcus Browne all looking for a shot at the top.
Another fighter looking to announce himself as a top divisional fighter is WBA champion Dmitry Bivol (11-0, 9), a Kyrgyzstan born Russian based boxer-puncher who recently claimed the WA title when Jack chose to vacate rather than give Bivol his long awaited Mandatory title shot. The talented 26 year old Bivol will be up against once beaten Australian Trent Broadhurst (20-1, 12),with the two men fighting in Monaco. Of the two fighters it's obviously Bivol who enters as a fighter looking to make a statement. From his debut in November 2014 it was clear that Bivol was going to be fast tracked. That fast tracking saw Bivol fight for the WBA interim title in just his 7th bout, after just 29 rounds of professional action. He would go on to claim that interim title with a win over the previously unbeaten Felix Valera. Sadly as an interim champion Bivol failed to make the most of his title, only defending it once, though it was clear he was chasing a full world title fight. Sadly he wouldn't get a shot due to the politics of the sport,but would be upgraded when Badou Jack decided Bivol wasn't worth the ring of a mandatory defense. Although yet to score a career defining win Bivol has been consistently impressing. He's shown really consistent and intelligent pressure with a very good work rate, very solid power and smart pressure. He's yet to be given a real chin check, and hasn't faced anyone with the IQ or skills to make his pressure work against him, but when he's had to show some variety he has managed. It should be noted though that he has shown a bit of a 1-paced fighting style and does sometimes struggle when fighters use a good defense, though they have often been left handcuffed by Bivol's constant work, as seen when Bivol beat Cedric Agnew. Whilst Bivol is viewed by many as the heir apparent for the Light Heavyweight division the 29 year old Broadhurst is seen as the lamb to the slaughter. The Australian challenger has yet to fight above Australian domestic level, with his sole loss being a 5th round KO defeat to Robert Berridge in 2011, who was himself stopped in 4 rounds by Bivol. Whilst some may suggest the loss to Berridge was more than 6 years ago there really isn't much on Broadhurst's record to show he's developed beyond the likes of Berridge. He does hold wins over the shop work Nader Haman, the crude Rob Powdrill, and the under-sized Affif Belghecham. One thing that has impressed is the fact he's shown solid power, but at best that power is only “solid”. In the ring Broadhurst is a bit simple, he can apply pressure and does have some nice combinations and head movement, but it's more the fact that those things look better at domestic level than they will when he faces Bivol. It's easy to throw combinations that look nice against limited foes who aren't throwing back. He has been forced on to the back foot before and seems very unsure of himself when he is forced backwards. He's looked flawed on the lower tiers and whilst we have seen fighters step up when t mattered they had usually shown some tools of note, whilst Broadhurst hasn't and has looked very basic so far. It really is hard to see anything but a showcase win for Bivol here in front of an audience in Monaco and TV cameras from the UK. Broadhurst might have to fleeting moments, but Bivol will quickly put an end to Broahurt's ambition before breaking him down and stopping him. We don't imagine the Aussie will willingly roll over, but we don't see how he will be able to cope for long with the pressure and power of Bivol, who really is something special. During the last 40 years or so we have become somewhat accustomed to seeing Oriental fighters being fast tracked through the ranks to a world title. Fighters from Thailand, Japan and Korea have all won world titles in their first 10 or so bouts with fighters, particularly Japanese, doing it regularly over the last few years. Notably it seems fighters from other countries now want to do the same now and we've already seen Vasyl Lomachenko race to a world title in just 3 professional bouts.
The next fighter looking to win a “world title” in their first 10 bouts is Kyrgyzstan born Russian based fighter Dmitry Bivol (6-0, 6), who looks to claim the WBA “interim” Light Heavyweight title and over-come the unbeaten, and tricky, Felix Valera (13-0, 12), of the Dominican Republic. Valera, who enters the bout as the current “interim” champion, came to the attention of hardcore boxing fans last year when he travelled to Russia and out-pointed Stanislav Kashtanov for the title. The bout was one that many fans felt was scored incorrectly in favour of the Dominican, but in fair Valera did show some genuinely impressive traits and showed that he genuinely does know his way around the ring. The Dominican has a very relaxed style, he can border on lazy at times but has the flash hand speed, intelligent movement and ring IQ that can take a fighter very far. He's a fighter whose record suggests he's a big puncher, though it must be said that aside from Kashtanov he's not faced anyone of any real value and his best stoppage is a 4th round KO against the limited Emilliano Cayetano. Whilst Valera is a relaxed and “lazy” fighter the same can't really be used to describe Bivol who is an aggressive, high intensity fighter who brings the pressure and the action and looks to break down opponents. He can look a bit one paced at times, but he does everything excellently with a wonderful array of punches, an brilliant work rate and the desire to hunt a stoppage even when a bout is already won. Unlike many fighters, including Valera, Bivol has been matched insanely hard. Everyone of his opponents has had a winning record, and in fact everyone has had double figure wins. We won't pretend the opposition have been fringe world level but they have been very good opponents for a fighter at the start of their career. It's hard to bet against Bivol, who genuinely does look like one of the hottest young talents in the sport. Saying that however Valera does have the style that perhaps could give Bivol real nightmares. Valera knows how to fight on the back foot, knows how to use the ring, and knows how to ride a shot. If Bivol goes into the bout looking to steam role the Dominican then he may find himself up again a man that really tests him mentally and physically. For Bivol to win he needs to use his intelligence, rely on his strong amateur background, and take his time. 
What a difference a year makes. This time last year we were all raving about Haitian sensation Adonis “Superman” Stevenson (24-1, 20). The Canadian southpaw had had a break through year avenging his sole loss by stopping Darnell Boone, claiming the WBC Light Heavyweight world title with an opening round blow out of Chad Dawson and defended his title with wins over Tavoris Cloud and Tony Bellew. He went 4-0 (4) for the year and seemed on a collision course with fellow big puncher Sergey Kovalev, a man who appeared to be his natural rival for divisional supremacy at Light Heavyweight.
This year we've seen Stevenson go from hero to zero. The bout with Kovalev, that seemed all but signed, vanished after Stevenson signed with “advisor” Al Haymon and since then he has fought just once, taking a less than impressive decision over American based Polish fighter Andrzej Fonfara, who actually dropped Stevenson in round 9. Not only has Stevenson been inactive but we've seen Kovalev show the traits that we thought Steveson had and the Russian went on to beat the division's other top fighter Bernard Hopkins. To end the year Stevenson will be getting into the ring with a Russian opponent. Sadly it's neither of the two, Kovalev or Artur Beterbiev, that we would have wanted to see him in with. Instead it's going to be the strong but very basic Dmitry Sukhotsky (22-2, 16). A man who looked very poor last time he was in North America, losing a near shut out to Cornelius White, and in his last fight, scoring an unconvincing win over Joey Vegas in Russia. Last year Stevenson looked explosive, destructive and genuinely scary. He showed sheer aggression against Boone in genuinely beating him into submission. Perfect timing against Dawson who he flattened with a perfect shot. Brilliant boxing against Cloud who ended up beaten mentality and physically. And no fear against Bellew who, as often does, talked a good fight whilst being unable to deliver. This year, and now at 37 years old, he looks like yesterday's story. The bout with Fonfara, a supposed showcase, was a struggle with Stevenson fighting as if he expected an easy win rather than fighting like a man who wanted to strengthen his position with an impressive performance. At his best, which we may well have already seen, Stevenson was a powerful puncher with solid and under-rated boxing ability, surprisingly quick movement and impressive handspeed. His only question marks were regarding his stamina and chin with his sole loss being a shock knockout to Boone in their first meeting. This year however question marks regarding his heart for the game, his age and training have all cropped up. It may well be that after reaching pinnacle last year Stevenson thinks he's still the man, sadly his avoidance of Kovalev have seen many feel he's more of a mouse. It's a shame as he is talented and has all the traits to be a genuine star and scores the types of victories we all love to see, vicious knockouts and beatdowns. In Sukhotsky really do have a basic fighter who fights like many fighters from the Soviet bloc. His work, at it's best, comes at mid range where he can get his jab landing to set up his powerful straight though he can hold his own, at a lower level at least, on the inside. Where he excels is in his physical strength and power. He's not explosive but he has the thudding and hurtful power which does damage every time he lands, as seen when he disfigured Eduard Gutknecht in one of his biggest wins to date. He is however very slow, basic and his movement is rigid. He needs to set his feet before punching, can be left chasing opponents and at times just looks like a very simple fighter. This was most notable against White who completely out boxed him, out moved him and out landed him in humiliatingly one-sided contest. That loss however was a stark contrast to Sukhotsky's other loss, a rather enjoyable battle with Juergen Braehmer which saw Sukhotsky coming up short on the cards after a compelling late charge at the then WBO champion. The Braehmer bout however did come some 5 years ago and in all honesty it does feel like he's missed out on ever reaching his potential. Sukhotsky has the ability to make this tough for Stevenson if the Haitian puncher isn't at his best. If, however, Stevenson boxes on his toes, makes the most of his sharp and hurtful jab and fights at range he could do a similar job here as he did to Cloud. If Stevenson's lost a little bit of speed however there is a chance Sukhotsky can drag him into a battle, smother the champion's power a little bit and make things difficult for the home town fighter. We suspect Stevenson will come out victorious here but we'd not be shocked if his year from bad to worse and that he ends up looking bad even in victory. |
World Title Previews
The biggest fights get broken down as we try to predict who will come out on top in the up coming world title bouts. Archives
April 2021
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed
