Boxing Fulcrum

Jack Cullen versus Kevin Lele Sadjo breakdown

This should be an exciting fight as both fighters styles should gel well. Kevin Sadjo is a compact fighter who throws with power if not precision. He’s not a tall super middleweight but he does seem to possess some power and is also fairly strong. He likes to throw overhand rights but the thing you’ll see him do the most is throw six or seven punch combinations of left hooks and right hooks one after the other. This can leave him open when hes punching but no one has taken advantage of it yet as he’s normally close in so it’s hard for people to get their straight punches off.

Jack Cullen is a tall super middleweight who’s been improving fight after fight. He doubles up on his hooks and works to the body well. I was impressed in his last fight versus Avni Yildirim as he boxed to a gameplan on the outside and showed a solid jab along with some good boxing on the outside.

For Jack Cullen to win I think he’ll have to weather an early storm and then box on the outside like he did versus Avni Yildirim. A consistent jab will win him this fight as while Sadjo has some respectable upper body movement he seems to forget to do it once the punches start flying and so Cullen will be able to keep him at range. For Sadjo to win I think he needs to jump on Cullen early and not let him establish a rythm behind the jab. Sadjo should also go to the body to slow Cullen down though I don’t think he will as when watching footage of Sadjo he seemed to be a head hunter.

I think this fight could go either way but i’m picking Jack Cullen to win this fight on points due to the jab he showed in his last fight. Sadjo taking this on short notice also means he may not be completely fight fit which with his style and muscular build isn’t good especially versus a fighter with a lot of heart like Cullen who can dog it out in a war. Cullen won’t have had a long time to make a game plan and practise it but i’m sure his team will recognise that keeping Sadjo behind a jab and staying off the ropes are Cullen’s keys to victory. If Cullen can time Sadjo coming into range with uppercuts then he could even earn a stoppage as Cullen can get quite a bit of power behind his uppercuts and Sadjo’s chin can be a little high when he’s punching.

Zelfa Barrett versus Bruno Tarimo breakdown

This is a really good fight and should be a fun back and forth battle. Barrett is the bigger man who will likely try and box on the back foot and catch Tarimo with left hooks for at least part of the fight. Bruno Tarimo is like a buzzsaw, he won’t stop coming forward and throwing huge amounts of punches. He’s very tough and Barrett will need to land some big punches to keep him off him.

I think stylistically this is a hard fight for Barrett as he doesn’t seem to deal well with pressure fighters as shown in the Ronnie Clark and Kiko Martinez fights. I also think he’s a fighter that is liable to getting upset sometime soon especially with him stepping up in levels recently.

Bruno Tarimo will push Barrett back and out-work him over twelve rounds to win a decision. Barrett has shown in the past he doesn’t deal with smaller pressure fighters that well. i thought he lost to Kiko Martinez and in the Eric Donovan fight he needed a KO to win which doesn’t inspire me to back him to win in a fight approaching world level. The fight is in Barrett’s home town so a robbery in his favour wouldn’t surprise me that much.

Carlos Gongora versus Lerrone Richards breakdown

On paper this should be a competitive fight though it’s not one i’m looking forward to as I personally don’t enjoy Richard’s style of boxing. Carlos Gongora is decent technically and has real power but doesn’t have the style to beat Richards in my opinion. Lerrone Richards is a defensively sound boxer who has great technical skills and is perfectly happy to out-box his opponents for twelve rounds.

I think that the battle at range will be won by Richards who will land just enough to win the rounds while staying defensively sound. Gongora is going to struggle to land on Richards and though he may win a few rounds I think it’s unlikely he does enough to beat Richards who while being unentertaining is very good at doing enough to win. I could be overrating Richards but I think his style is very hard to beat and it’ll take either a rough inside style or one of the true elite at 168 to beat him. My pick is Lerrone Richards by decision after twelve rounds.

Alen Babic versus David Spilmont breakdown

This should be a fairly routine win for Babic who has decided he’s going to try and become a Bridgerweight world champion. Spilmont has come in on very short notice and is a journeyman in France who’s had very mixed results.

Alen Babic should overwhelm Spilmont who while being fairly durable is very limited and isn’t in the best shape. Babic will win by KO in the 3rd or 4th round.

Joseph Parker versus Dereck Chisora 2 breakdown

I’m hoping this second fight between the two will be slightly more entertaining than the first fight as beyond the first round knockdown the fight played out the same in every round.

I think this fight will likely go similarly to the first with Dereck Chisora moving forwards constantly and Parker trying to find space to get his punches off. Parker has come into this fight at his career heaviest which suggests one of two things. He’s either not been training properly and has ballooned up in weight or hes coming in heavy to try and stop Chisora. I think it’s likely the second as he is training with Andy Lee and Tyson Fury who used the same tactic versus Wilder recently in an effort to stop him.

I thought Chisora won the first fight but is unlikely to make any adjustments in this fight so Parker should have the advantage coming into the fight. Chisora will win the early rounds before gassing out and getting out-boxed by Parker enough for Parker to win a close but clear decision. I’ve been disappointed with Parker’s performances for the past few years but I’ve realized this is just his level and it’s not a lack of killer instinct.

Dilshodbek Ruzmetov to make pro debut versus Maxim Smirnov

Ruzmetov had a good amateur career which culminated in him taking part in the 2021 Olympics. He won some sort of local amateur tournament in Uzbekistan just a few days ago which leaves him less than a week turn around to then make his pro debut. I think after watching Ruzmetov in the Olympics that he’ll make a decent pro and has some upside considering he’s only 22. I think he has a style that will adapt to the pro game fairly quickly compared to other fighters from Uzbekistan.

Ruzmetov should have no problems in his debut as while Smirnov is a tough journeyman he simply isn’t good enough to beat any top amateur or prospect. Smirnov hasn’t won a professional boxing match in over a decade so I would be very shocked if he could turn that around here. I’m looking forward to Ruzmetov’s pro career as he was one of the fighters I was impressed with in the Olympics.

Bektemir Melikuziev versus Sergei Ekimov breakdown

This is a solid bounce back fight for Melikuziev who was stopped in a shock defeat to Gabe Rosado in his last fight. Ekimov won his first 18 fights but has lost three in a row after doing that.

Ekimov is tough but doesn’t throw enough punches to be in with a chance of winning this fight in my opinion. Melikuziev is a massive puncher and should have the activity and power to see him to a victory. Melikuziev’s consistent body punching should break Ekimov down leading to a stoppage in the 7th or 8th round. I am interested too see if Melikuziev is gun shy after being stopped recently.

Israil Madrimov versus Michel Soro breakdown

This is a good fight between a long time contender and a rising prospect with the winner going on to a world title fight next as this is a final eliminator. Israil Madrimov was hyped up to be the next big thing until he had a hard fight with Eric Walker last year. Michel Soro has been around world level for years but hasn’t got the opportunities hes deserved over the years. Soro has been inactive since 2019 which may play a factor in this fight. The fight is also taking place in Madrimov’s home country of Uzbekistan which means almost all of the cards are stacked in his favour.

Michel Soro is a good fighter with a lot of power and experience. He’s bigger than Madrimov which will likely cause Madrimov to jump in even more than he usually does. If he is to win I think it’ll likely be by knockout as he’ll catch Madrimov with a huge right hook as he jumps in or out of range.

Israil Madrimov is a decent puncher himself and works well to the body. He has a few bad habits including jumping into range with his hands down.

I think unless Soro has fallen off in the two years since he last fought that he should be able to catch Madrimov jumping in and stop him in the 7th or 8th round. Madrimov could break Soro down with his body punching if Soro is rusty and hasn’t made the weight easily but I would be surprised and impressed.

Artur Beterbiev versus Marcus Browne breakdown

This is a decent fight in the Light Heavyweight division between the number one in the division and a top 15 fighter in Marcus Browne. Artur Beterbiev is a unified champion and one of the biggest punchers in the sport. He currently has a 100% KO ratio and is currently the only champion in the sport with a 100% stoppage record. Marcus Browne is a good contender in the division but has been inactive after losing to Jean Pascal in 2019. He had a good amateur career which included participating in the 2012 Olympics. Beterbiev also took part in the 2012 Olympics and had a deep amateur background which also included taking part in the 2008 Olympics.

Artur Beterbiev is a big puncher who hits like he has hammers in his fists. His power isn’t explosive but more thudding to the point where it will break opponents down and sap their will away until they eventually crumble. He’s very strong and is surprisingly not showing many signs of slowing down considering hes 36. Beterbiev throws good combinations and sets his punches up so that he’s rarely in a position to be cleanly countered. His defense consists of blocking punches with a high guard or simply stepping out of range. I think his right hook to the body and his cuffing overhand rights are some of his most effective punches and will likely also be the key in this fight. Beterbiev has been dropped twice and looked hurt versus Callum Johnson but has recovered and won both of the fights he was knocked down in by knockout.

Marcus Browne has a good left hook and some decent fundamentals but lacks the variety of punches that Beterbiev throws. He also doesn’t throw in combination nearly as much in my opinion. Browne has the height advantage though is unlikely to be the stronger man come fight night. Similarly to Beterbiev, Browne has been dropped multiple times but has come back to win in all but one. If Browne can establish a solid jab he could attempt to make Beterbiev wary of coming into range due to the threat of a big left hand disguised behind the jab.

I think Artur Beterbiev will likely lose the first two rounds before coming on strong and stopping Browne in the 10th or 11th round. I don’t think Browne can keep his jab up enough to keep Beterbiev off him and Beterbiev is also experienced enough to get into range and start breaking Browne down with body shots. Browne will have to land something big to stop Beterbiev or hes going to slowly get crushed by the sledgehammers that Beterbiev calls fists.

Naoya Inoue versus Aran Dipaen breakdown

Naoya Inoue is one of the best fighters on the planet and certainly one of the biggest punchers in a P4P sense. He regularly stops world champions in one or two rounds and makes fights that should be hard look like he’s fighting novice journeymen. Due to all this it makes this fight hard to stomach due to how much of a mismatch it is. Aran Dipaen has had his most significant fights at super flyweight, the weight class below this one which is being contested at bantamweight, and has never truly competed at world level. He doesn’t have the experience, skill and power to compete with Inoue who is one of the more complete fighters in the sport. Dipaen’s record would suggest he holds power but his knockouts have come against very limited competition and when he’s stepped up that power hasn’t shown itself to be effective. He’s not all that responsible defensively which is not a great sign when he’s fighting someone with such power.

I expect Naoya Inoue to knock Dipaen out in one or two rounds due to the massive gap in skill, power and experience. Inoue has competed at world level and dominated for years while Dipaen has fought fighters with losing records and lost his two step up fights. His loss against Tommy Frank is a debatable loss but having a close fight with Frank isn’t a good sign for your chances at world level as Frank himself isn’t world class though isn’t a bad fighter and may achieve a European title at Super flyweight one day. After this fight Inoue needs to have a big fight next as his 2021 has been a waste especially considering the talent that he has.