Wednesday, 2 February 2011

Willie Casey vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux Preview & Prediction

Limerick’s favorite son, Willie Casey, is set for the test of his career when he faces two time Olympic Gold medalist Guillermo Rigondeaux. Up for grabs is the interim WBA World super bantamweight belt, which Rigondeaux claimed by split decision in his last bout against Ricardo Cordoba. This fight is intriguing, not least because of the hugely disparate paths the two men have taken to arrive at this point in their careers.

Rigondeaux, a Cuban defector, is an all-time amateur great who has seen more gold around his neck than BA Baracus, while Casey was an undistinguished amateur who may have toiled in obscurity as a professional had it not been for his upset win in Sky Sports’ Prizefighter tournament. The other interesting counterpoint is the clash of styles; Rigondeaux is a highly-technical outside fighter, every bit as adept at racking up points as in his amateur days, whereas Casey is a heavy-handed pressure fighter that likes to box at phone-booth range. Witnessing which man can impose his style on the other and emerge victorious will be one hell of a spectacle.

Willie Casey (11-0, 7 KOs)

Casey is of Irish gypsy stock and, amazingly, is one of 22 siblings. With such a large family, the Caseys are clearly staunch Catholics, so it is safe to assume the moniker ‘Big Bang’ is a reference his punching prowess and not a deliberate slight on the creationist movement.

[Read an exclusive interview with Willie Casey here]

A late starter, the Limerick native was 26 years old when he entered the professional ranks and received the break of a lifetime as a four fight novice by replacing the injured Wayne McCullough in Prizefighter. Sky’s boxing tournament may be little more than a modern-day circus boxing booth but there is no shortage of exposure for the fighter who braves the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune and actually wins the damn thing.

Casey did just that – tearing up the form book in the process – as he steamrollered through Mark Moran, Josh Wale and Paul McElhinney. A shot at the European super bantamweight belt soon followed against fellow Irishman Paul Hyland – a replacement for Spanish knockout artist Kiko Martinez who vacated the belt after suffering an injury. Casey actually bullied the more experienced Hyland before stopping him in the fourth by TKO.

Casey is a big-punching brawler who operates most effectively in his opponents’ pocket. He may lack the technical ability of a world class operator but his high pressure style and tireless work rate goes some way to compensate. Interestingly, his boxing idol is Ricky Hatton and there are certainly stylistic comparisons. Like Hatton, he is an inside fighter that punishes opponents on the ropes and throws rib-breaking body shots. Also like Hatton, Casey is the type of fighter who leaves it all in the ring but whether his blood-and-guts approach can nullify the superior ring-craft of a fighter like Rigondeaux is another matter entirely.

Guillermo Rigondeaux (7-0, 5 Kos)

The Cubans arguably make better amateur boxers than they do cigars, and Rigondeaux is one of the finest they have ever produced. The highlight of his resume is claiming gold in two Olympics and two World Championships. While amateur records are sketchy at best, it is believed he won nearly 400 fights with only 12 losses. After a botched defection in 2007 he got it right in 2009, moving to Florida before announcing his intention to turn professional [and becoming one of many top-flight active boxers who defected from Cuba].

In his third fight, Rigondeaux outclassed the durable but shop-worn Giovanni Andrade, dictating the distance and tempo before stopping him by TKO in the 3rd. A sterner test arrived in his seventh fight against Ricardo Cordoba for the interim WBA super bantamweight belt on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao Vs Antonio Margarito. The fight proved a stinker and Rigondeaux was fortunate to scrape through with a split decision victory, however, it should be recognized that Cordoba is a former world champion and was a huge test for a novice professional.

Many boxers over the years have dismissed the benefits of a distinguished amateur pedigree upon entering the professional ranks (usually the ones who do not possess one) but it’s clear that Rigondeaux is exuding a class and assurance that belies his tender professional experience. He is already highly adept at dictating the distance of a fight, using his mobility and footwork to keep his opponent on the outside, where he can potshot at will. Any attempt to shorten the range is met with monstrous power shots - usually hooks and uppercuts. Rigondeaux has also demonstrated impressive counter-punching abilities. Only Cordoba managed to upset the script, harrying and hustling the Cuban on the inside and refusing to have the terms dictated to him. He even (sort of) dropped Rigondeaux in the 6th by forcing him to place a glove on the canvas.

Casey vs. Rigondeaux Preview & Analysis

Casey’s game plan is always to brawl on the inside and to date he has not found it hard to close the gap and unload on his opponents until they are broken down. Paul Hyland is a skilled boxer but he wasn’t tough or strong enough to hold off the Limerick man. Rigondeaux is a different beast entirely and finding a route past his barrage of jabs and power shots will be instrumental in determining whether Casey has any success in the fight.

In terms of vulnerabilities, it is clear he is not a highly technical boxer and has entered the sport too late to remedy this in any meaningful way. Furthermore, Casey has not fought a live opponent yet, nor gone past eight rounds, so it will be illuminating to discover if his stamina and punch resistance holds up to sterner examination.

Rigondeaux will not want a repeat of his showdown with Cordoba. That fight was fought on the inside too often and the Cuban will need to learn his lesson and work on keeping Casey on the outside. Key to this is a more positive approach – against Cordoba he was too defensive and reactive – so getting busy with the jab and utilizing the whole ring will keep Casey off him. But most importantly, he needs to punish the Irishman every time an attempt is made to encroach inside.

Rigondeaux does not have the technical limitations of his opponent nor will he have any trouble going 12 rounds - as he proved against Cordoba - but perhaps the location of the fight could be an issue. He may have travelled to every far-flung corner of the globe as an amateur but amateur crowds do not bubble with the particular vitriol or partisanship that is the hallmark of professional cards in Europe. How he copes with thousands of inebriated Irishmen calling for his blood could be significant.

Finally, it should be noted that both fighters are southpaws, so it may get scrappy in places with clinching and head butts, but ultimately the polarity in styles should prevent an anti-climatic stalemate.

Rigondeaux vs. Casey Prediction

I actually see this fight as the off-brand version of Hatton Vs Mayweather. Casey may have some early success as the aggressor but ultimately it will prove to be a messy, ill-disciplined aggression and he will get hit more as the fight progresses. Rigondeaux is faster, slicker, a better boxer and - for my money - a bigger puncher, so I cannot see the fight going any other way than his. I believe despite giving it his all, Casey will get caught too many times closing the gap and go out on his shield in the second half of the fight.

Amir Khan vs. Lamont Peterson? Meh...

Golden Boy’s CEO, Richard Schaefer, has left British fight fans distinctly underwhelmed with his recent announcement that Lamont Peterson is the favorite to fight WBA champion Amir Khan. After the real thriller waged between Khan and Marcos Maidana, there were hopes that Khan could build upon the momentum with a name that stirred more excitement in the breast of the common boxing fan than Peterson, so I think we can all be forgiven for the collective Meh uttered soon after the announcement.

Credit: Mark Robinson/Golden Boy Promotions

No disrespect intended to Peterson, but he has next-to-no recognition in the UK. Most boxing fans here only became familiar with him – or his name at least - when he stepped up to face Timothy Bradley for the WBO light-welterweight title – a fight in which he showed a lot of heart but was soundly beaten. The only time I remember him featuring on our TV was on the undercard of Khan-Maidana against Victor Ortiz.

So despite his admirable qualities - tough, awkward and a relentless body puncher – we’re not excited. Not least because he will be a heavy underdog, and should he lose his second world title shot, it’s likely that Peterson will merely serve as some form of high-functioning gate-keeper to the 140lb division.

Is this the best Team Khan and Golden Boy can do for his homecoming at the MEN Arena in Manchester?

At 24 years of age, it is perfectly understandable that Khan cannot go through war-after-war like in his last fight against Maidana. He has a lot of time on his hands unlike, say, Carl Froch, who has to make every bout count at this stage of his career. It’s also a given that Khan has one eye on a title unification with the winner of Timothy Bradley Vs. Devon Alexander. With that in mind, he surely doesn’t want a monstrous Maidana-like right to derail that potential fight, but there are still more compelling fights out there that could have been made.

Why not Zab Judah? There was every opportunity to get him on board before he agreed to face Kaizer Mabuza for the IBF light welterweight title. He is a former undisputed world champion, a recognized name and a big mouth who knows how to sell a fight. Judah is like Floyd Mayweather - many fans only watch in the hope he will get beaten up. He may be a little shop worn and certainly looked less than stellar in his last fight against Lucas Matthysse, but we would take Judah over Peterson any day of the week.

If Judah couldn’t be brought to the table there were even options at domestic level. Kell Brook – ranked No.1 by the WBO - has been mouthing off about Khan in the press, so it would have been as good a time as any to call his bluff. Every boxing fan in the UK wants to know if Brook is as good as he likes to tell us and the fact that he is mandatory to Manny Pacquiao’s welterweight belt should hold some sway with stateside audiences.

Golden Boy could have even signed up Matthew Hatton before negotiations with Saul Alvarez began. He is not a bad boxer in his own right but the very fact he is Ricky’s brother makes it massive – what if Khan opened a can of whoop-ass on Matthew? Maybe Ricky would come back to avenge his little brother and have one last hurrah in the spotlight while he’s at it. A complete fairy tale scenario but we can dream...

We can dream.

Isn’t that that at least half the fun in being a boxing fan? We dream about those legendary fights that captured our imagination. We dream about the potential match-ups that usually never materialize. We dream about hall-of-famers from different eras facing off. We dream about the next big fight with the anticipation building as the date edges closer.

Yeah, we definitely dream, but with every ounce of respect coming to Peterson, this is not a fight that will enter my subconscious any time soon.

Top British Prospects in 2011: The Definitive Guide

2011 has the hallmarks of being a special year for British boxing with title challenges on the horizon for Nathan Cleverly and Kell Brook, while James DeGale, George Groves and Frankie Gavin will be looking to establish themselves on the world stage and build towards their own world titles. Here I preview what the New Year is likely to hold for these young prospects.

Kell Brook

Kell ‘Kid’ Brook (23-0, 16 KOs) is a Brendan Ingle fighter to the core. The rangy, languid stance? Check. Low-slung hands? Check. Reflex-based defence? Check. Lunging shots thrown from unconventional, even bizarre, angles? Definitely. The boxers, with their various strengths, weaknesses and idiosyncrasies may change, but the style never does.

Naseem Hamed, it’s most famous exponent, was one of the finest physical specimens to grace the sport. He had devastating power, rapid hands, lightning reflexes... but his bout against the less physically-gifted Marco Antonio Barrera was a microcosm of every drawback inherent in the Ingle style. Barrera – a top-level technician well schooled in the fundamentals – jabbed and countered so effectively that Nas was kept off-balance, flailing around the ring and unable to plant his feet while being forced to throw wild, lunging pot-shots. The style was totally exposed and although no arguments can be made against the number of fighters trainer Ingle has produced, I have occasionally wondered what would have happened if a young Hamed (or even Herol Graham, Johnny Nelson or Ryan Rhodes) had walked into the Kronk gym instead of the Wincobank.

Brook, 24, is not an athlete of Hamed’s calibre but then few are. He is useful in all areas without actually excelling in any of them... reasonable power, decent speed, good movement and a promising boxing IQ. In 23 fights he has been fed a host of journeymen, with the best name on his resume coming recently, Michael Jennings (36-3, 17 KOs). It’s fair to say he has been matched very kindly and it’s beyond time he stepped up a level. Brook, the British welterweight champion, is ranked No.1 by the WBO but Manny Pacquiao will vacate the belt before he faces such an obscure fighter – I can imagine Bob Arum mulling it over in the Top Rank offices now:

Arum: So this English kid... what’s his name, Brook? Who has he faced?

Flunkey: Well, he once fought a guy who lost to Cotto?

Arum: That bad, huh? Can he bring over 20,000 like Hatton?

Flunkey: I don’t know if he could do 20,000 PPV.

Arum: Where does the WBO get these guys? Is Morales still breathing? Let’s make number four!

So while Brook Vs. Pacquiao is not going to happen any time soon (ever), he has recently being piping up in the press about Amir Khan (24-1, 17 KOs). This could be an interesting fight in the future – once Brook weans himself off the tomato can diet – because right now it would be insanity to take such a gargantuan step-up in class. Frank Warren knows this – despite his comments to the press – and he will be in no hurry to make the fight. More likely is the mooted bout against unbeaten American prospect Mike Jones (23-0, 18 KOs). Jones, at 6’1” looks like a super middleweight and punches like one too, so it should be a good test for Brook and will give the rest of us an indication of how far he can go in the sport. Of course, Jones recently looked less than stellar in escaping with a Majority Decision against gatekeeper Jesus Soto-Karass, and now has a rematch lined up against him to deal with.

Kell Brook quote:

On Amir Khan: “When we sparred together as amateurs they had to separate us because I was giving him a serious hiding. We were young, in a training camp, and he was heading to the Olympics. But when we got in the ring I pasted him. The fact is he is dodging me. I read that Frank Warren offered Amir £1.5m to fight me but it was bigger than that. He doesn't want it – but I'd love the opportunity. He is a nice lad but perhaps over-rated, he is fast but has a rubbish chin.”

Tip for 2011:

Brook needs to face better quality opponents, so hopefully we will see him thrown in against Jones. He may also get a chance to fight for the vacant WBO title should Pacquiao relinquish it in 2011.


James DeGale

It is far too easy to get carried away when an Olympic gold medallist turns pro, before ultimately ending up with egg on your face - the BBC paying Audley Harrison £1 million to broadcast his first ten bouts most prominently springs to mind – but with each passing fight James ‘Chunky’ DeGale (9-0, 7 KOs) looks the real deal.

His professional career got off to a rocky start when he was roundly booed while labouring to an unimpressive points victory over Georgian Vepkhia Tchilaia (9-11-1, 5 KOs) but this says as much about the weight of expectation on his shoulders as it does about the actual performance. Since that fight he has come on leaps and bounds, culminating in the recent clinical dismantling of British champion Paul Smith (29-2, 15 KOs).

DeGale’s bout against the tough, seasoned scouser - in front of a partisan Liverpool crowd - was intended to be the first real test of his career but in reality it proved a mismatch with Chunky barely leaving second gear while showboating some marquee combos. Smith was eventually stopped by TKO in the 9th round.

It’s difficult to say how far DeGale can go - he has only fought domestic level opponents after all - but on paper he seems to have just about everything – lightning speed, decent power and a slickster Philly shell defence that makes him incredibly hard to hit. Indeed, at his best he appears like a rope-a-dope Jedi, bouncing, dodging and parrying his opponents’ attacks to such an extent that he has not actually been hit flush on the chin yet. Whether the 24-year-old can take a bomb is the $64,000 question and could be the definitive factor in whether DeGale will ultimately reach the pinnacle of the sport or flatter-to-deceive like the aforementioned Harrison.

George Groves (11-0, 9 KOs), or “the ugly ginger kid” as DeGale refers to him, is the mandatory to his British title. There is such an intense local rivalry – and no shortage of needle – that UK boxing fans are praying this fight gets made next. Frank Warren, DeGale’s promoter, already offered Groves a career high purse of £50,000 in September for a mooted December bout, which was side-stepped with a counteroffer by Groves’ slippery manager, Adam Booth – so whether it actually happens this time is anybody’s guess.

Provided DeGale avoids any slip-ups in his first British title defense, then Brian Magee’s recently vacated European title will be next on the agenda.

James DeGale quote:

"[George Groves] keeps using my name to get himself in the papers because, quite frankly, he's not going to get talked about talent wise. Anyone who saw his fight with Kenny Anderson would know that he's got about as much chance of beating me as he has winning a beauty contest. He's been comparing himself this week to Bernard Hopkins, but he's about as dangerous as Bernard Cribbins!"

Tip for 2011:

James DeGale is looking like the next-big-thing and I expect him to keep justifying the hype. Whether he faces Groves next or, more likely, another domestic opponent, he should come through unscathed. Despite recently being ranked No.5 by the WBO, a title shot for 2011 is unlikely, instead the smart money will back him to claim the European title before the end of the year.


George Groves

I wonder how many articles have been written about ‘Saint’ George Groves (11-0, 9 KOs) in the past year that haven’t featured the name James DeGale (9-0, 7 KOs)? One hand territory, I would wager, and for good reason.

Both fighters grew up a stone’s throw from each other in London and boxed out of the same amateur club, Dale Youth ABC. An intense rivalry developed, fuelled in no small part by Grove’s sense of injustice at DeGale’s favored-son status amongst Britain’s amateur boxing hierarchy. DeGale, at two years older, was the established choice and represented Britain at international tournaments and the Olympics. Meanwhile, Groves - who won 66 of his 76 fights and two ABA titles - actually beat him in their only encounter, but these stellar accomplishments were never enough to dislodge his rival from the forefront of the selectors’ minds. It could not have been easy for him sitting at home watching on TV as DeGale claimed Gold in Beijing.

Groves, 22, put it behind him and began his professional career like he was supposed to, looking leagues above the motley crew of journeymen and novices served up for him. The boxing world really began to buzz when he produced a masterclass of counter-punching and smart footwork to claim the commonwealth title by stopping Charles Adamu (17-5, 12 KOs) in the 6th – a man who had previously gone the distance with Carl Froch. Finally, it seemed Groves had stepped out of the shadow of his local rival and looked a top prospect in his own right.

But then came his last two bouts.

Fighting on the Juan Manuel Marquez - Juan Diaz undercard in the Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, he came up against Alfredo Contreras (11-9-1, 5 KOs), a boxer who had been suicidally matched for a novice (previous opponents included David Lemieux, Craig McEwan and Rigoberto Alvarez) and was actually a bit better than his record suggested. Contreras, while mostly outclassed, managed to expose worrying deficiencies in Groves’ defense – tagging him far too often - before falling to a TKO stoppage in the 6th.

This could have been put down to a bad day at the office had it not been followed by a fight against unbeaten brawler Kenny Anderson (12-1, 8 KOs). Groves was unable to hold off the Scot with his jab and was punished time-and-again on the ropes for his non-existent defense. In the 3rd he was floored with a left hook and was lucky to be saved by the bell moments later.

In fairness, he displayed heart and grit to turn the fight around and stop Anderson in the 6th but his woeful defense in the a face of a half-decent pressure fighter will not be forgotten in a hurry and Groves would do well to get some more fights under his belt before facing the fast hands of arch-nemesis DeGale.

George Groves Quote:

“I want to fight James Degale. He’s destined for failure. He talks a good game but once he gets in there with someone real and someone live like me then he will be on the floor. It will be like Bernard Hopkins and Kelly Pavlik. Is this the superstar everyone has built up? I know how to take him apart mentally and physically. That’s what will happen.”

Tip for 2011

Despite the question marks raised in his last two fights, George Groves is a bright prospect and will be challenging for top honors in the future. Manager Adam Booth should put the kibosh on any immediate plans to face DeGale. Instead Groves will likely defend his commonwealth title and race DeGale to the European belt.


Frankie Gavin

Frankie ‘Funtime’ Gavin (8-0, 7 KOs) has come a long way since the bitterly disappointing end to his Olympic dream in 2008. For those not in the know, the gold medal favorite wasn’t beaten by an opponent but by the chronic mismanagement of Team Great Britain and, ultimately, the weighing scales – a crushed Gavin was sent home after failing to make the 60kg limit before the opening ceremony had even begun. The inquests and recriminations have long since passed while Gavin has begun his professional career with aplomb and - in overcoming such a setback - he has displayed the mental fortitude that helped make him Britain’s only world champion amateur boxer.

Like all novice prospects entering the professional game, light-welterweight Gavin has been matched kindly so far, but he has done everything asked of him – only tough Galway man Peter McDonagh (16-19, 2 KOs) has managed to go the distance – and on occasions he has boxed with a verve and panache that suggests he might be something special. Gavin, the son of Irish immigrants, claimed the Irish light-welterweight title against Michael Kelly (8-2-1, 2 KOs) last September and will be looking to take the British belt next.

With his offensive style – darting in-and-out with speedy, clinical combos – Gavin is sure to be a fan favorite. He just has to develop his defense – he gets caught a little too often – and continue to refrain from the party-animal lifestyle that led to the moniker ‘Funtime’. His lack of one-punch knockout power means he will never boast the highest KO ratio in the division but he is certainly no powder-puff puncher either and he has enough in the armory to threaten anybody in the division as his career progresses.

Gavin had to pull out of his last scheduled bout against Dean Harrison (16-4, 5 KOs) on December 11th due to a dose of the flu but he will be fighting again soon, probably in February, and has asked promoter Frank Warren to set up a bout with 140lb British Champion Lenny Daws.

Frankie Gavin Quote:

“I'm not saying I'm a massive puncher but I can punch hard. If anyone wants to come and spar me then they'll see that I hit hard enough!”

Tip for 2011:

2011 has come far too soon for Gavin to be considering names like Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana, Timothy Bradley or Devon Alexander but look for him to add the British title to his Irish belt.


Nathan Cleverly

2011 will be the biggest year of Nathan Cleverly’s (21-0, 10 KOs) career to date. He has already claimed the British, Commonwealth – and most recently – the interim WBO light-heavyweight belt, but this year he is going to get a crack at the title proper. The likelihood is that he will face the winner of the bout between WBO champion Juergen Braehmer (36-2, 29 KO’s) and WBA champion Beibut Shumenov (10-1, 6 KO’s), who are fighting on January 8th. With an opportunity to claim both belts, there are exciting times ahead for the brainy Welsh maths graduate.

Cleverly is an edge-of-your seat fighter in the same way Carl Froch was until he decided to dust off the old boxing skills for Arthur Abraham. He is an extremely aggressive, come-forward fighter, blitzing his opponents with fast hands and a high work-rate. So far, none of the 21 Cleverly has faced have been able to live with it – although some of that number have had no difficulty in countering him when he is marauding forward. The problem is that for every counter they land, Cleverly has usually flurried with at least three. As exciting as his fights invariably are - which smart ass just mentioned Nadjib Mohammedi (23-2, 12 KOs)? - this all-out style of attack could work to Cleverly’s detriment once he faces a bona fide knock-out artist like Braehmer. Furthermore, it’s unnecessary, the 23-year-old is a fine boxer – stinging jab, quick hands, strong chin, very mobile – he even has a tight orthodox defense when put under pressure, so he just needs to use his boxing skills more and stop getting involved in tear-ups.

The Welshman has had some decent wins; claiming the vacant European belt against iron-chinned Italian Antonio Brancalion (32-8-2, 8 KOs) and a real standout performance against contender Karo Murat (22-1, 13 KOs) on Frank Warren’s Magnificent Seven card. However, Braehmer – the favorite against Shumenov – is a different proposition entirely. Unlike Cleverly, the German has explosive fists and avoiding such bombs over the course of potentially 12 rounds will be by far the biggest test he has faced.

Nathan Cleverly Quote:

"Shumenov is the easier option for Braehmer. He's avoided me because he knows how dangerous I am. I've picked up three major belts and it's only a matter of time until I get a shot. I'm good enough."

Tip for 2011

Braehmer should beat Shumenov this week, then Cleverly will get his chance. It will be a very tough fight but he has the beating of the German if he boxes smart and curbs those Froch-esque rushes-of-blood to the head.