Boxing Fulcrum

Brandon Figueroa versus Stephen Fulton breakdown

This is an excellent fight between two world champions at super bantamweight who only recently won their world titles. It’s great for boxing that these fighters decided to immediately unify instead of trying to eke out a few easier defences. Both have exciting styles which should gel to watch though Figueroa is the action fighter of the two.

Stephen Fulton can fight in a variety of styles and can also switch between southpaw and Orthodox effectively. He showed in his last fight that he can fight on the inside and can also work at a great pace throughout the fight. He has the skills to fight on the back foot and counter his opponents as well which makes him a very versatile fighter. He’s got decent power but I wouldn’t regard him as a puncher, more as a guy that will break fighters down over time. Fulton is a fairly complete fighter in my opinion though this fight should push him to the limit as Figueroa is a hard match up for anyone at super bantamweight due to his size and power.

Brandon Figueroa is a fighter that carries power and has a come forward all action style where he regularly throws huge amounts of punches in fights that turn out to be wars. If he’s going to win this fight he’ll have to back Fulton up to the ropes and unload a barrage of punches on him again and again. Fulton will likely fight to even terms early on when Figueroa backs him up to the ropes but the key for Figueroa is to keep the pressure on when Fulton tries to take small breaks in rounds 7-9. Fulton knows how to pace himself and sometimes takes a round or two off before making sure he wins the final rounds. If he can’t take a break then Figueroa can come on strong late and edge out a close decision win. If Figueroa doesn’t back Fulton up consistently and lets him dictate when he takes breaks in the fight then i’m not sure he has a path to victory. Fulton wins the boxing battle at range and in short bursts should win the fight on the inside because hes a bit more crisp and clever with his punches and has the better defence. Figueroa has to be consistent and to an extent hope Fulton falls apart late on or can’t take his power especially to the body, which is an area Figueroa should focus on to slow Fulton down.

I personally think Fulton will use his variety of skills to out-box Figueroa who will put forth a valiant effort but will lose the fight 8-4 or 9-3. Fulton will win the battle when they are boxing on the outside and when Figueroa does get inside I think Fulton can compete there enough to win rounds before using his footwork to get out of the danger zone of slugging with Figueroa for too long. Figueroa has been mentioning this will be his last fight at super bantamweight in the build up to the fight so I do wonder how hard it is for him to make weight and how that will effect his stamina as the fight goes on. I predict Fulton to win a unanimous decision after twelve rounds.

Richard Riakporhe versus Olanrewaju Durodola breakdown

This is a really good fight between two big punchers who are at different stages of their careers. Riakporhe is taking his first step towards world level while Durodola has had a long career which has seen him challenge for a world title.

I really think this fight will come down to who lands first and also how Riakporhe’s chin holds up to genuine world level power. Riakporhe is fresher and should be quicker to the punch but Durodola has a massive experience advantage. I personally think Riakporhe will catch Durodola early and stop him but it’s also a fight where I can see Durodola old manning Riakporhe and stopping him in the later rounds after Riakporhe gasses out.

Julio Cesar Martinez versus McWilliams Arroyo breakdown

This is an excellent fight at Flyweight between two hard punching fighters. Martinez is a buzzsaw who fires off long combinations behind a high guard and has shown incredible power for the weight class. Arroyo is a big puncher himself who has a lot of experience and is technically fairly good.

This should be a brutal war with either one having the potential to score a knockout. Arroyo has been dropped multiple times but has never been stopped and often does his best work after getting up. This should be the hardest fight of Martinez’s career while for Arroyo he’s faced better fighters than Martinez and put up good fights against them all.

I personally think Arroyo can do enough to win a decision due to his power, toughness and most importantly his vast experience. Martinez hasn’t faced a world class fighter since he beat Jay Harris and that was a hard fight for him so I think it’s more than possible that Arroyo, who is a better fighter than Harris, can push Martinez and beat him. I’m picking Arroyo by decision in a very competitive fight, he may have to get up from the canvas early on but hes tough enough to get back into the fight.

Murodjon Akhmadaliev versus Jose Velasquez breakdown

I’m glad that Velasquez is getting a big opportunity after really putting the work in throughout the last few years. He’s sprung multiple upsets and has rebounded amazingly well after a hard start to his career where he lost six times in his first twenty fights. Akhmadaliev is a great fighter who has the potential in the future to secure a spot on P4P lists in my opinion. He’s only had nine fights but is already a unified champion.

I think Akhmadaliev’s size and solid jab will end up being to much for the tough but smaller Velasquez who will likely be stopped in the second half of the fight. Velasquez has taken this fight on fairly short notice after Ronny Rios caught Covid and had to pull out of his fight with Akhmadaliev.

Demetrius Andrade versus Jason Quigley breakdown

This should be a fairly routine for Andrade who has shown hes a level above fighters such as Quigley who have struggled in fights far beneath world level. Quigley will try his best but doesn’t have the skill or power to beat Andrade who is a very awkward fighter to fight.

I think Andrade will likely hurt Quigley early with some sort of counter punch but won’t be able to end the show early like he perhaps should do. He’ll either eventually get the stoppage in the second half of the fight or will win a wide points decision. I think the gulf in class will be far to much for Quigley to overcome.

David Benavidez versus Kyrone Davis breakdown

Kyrone Davis isn’t a bad fighter but he hasn’t got the tools to beat Benavidez in any way. Benavidez is a brawler who puts his punches together well and carries crunching power which breaks his opponents down. Davis has shown no power at super middleweight and if he can’t stop Benavidez then I can’t see a path to victory for him.

Benavidez should overwhelm Davis with his volume punching and power in six or seven rounds. Benavidez can finish the fight earlier if he can establish his jab in the first few rounds.

Jaime Munguia versus Gabriel Rosado breakdown

This should be a great action fight as both fighters generally care more about offence than defence. Rosado has improved a lot in recent years and off the back of two good performances he appears to have a real chance at springing the upset in this fight. Jaime Munguia is unbeaten in 37 but Rosado will be one of the best opponents of his career to date.

I personally feel in a back and forth battle that Munguia will come out on top and either win by TKO because of cuts suffered by Rosado or will win a close but clear decision. While Rosado has improved hes still the older man who has been in countless hard fights and in his last fight which he won he was dropped before winning by stoppage himself.

Who should Canelo fight next?

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez made history by becoming the first undisputed super middleweight champion and also the first Mexican to become undisputed. In a good performance he was able to stop Caleb Plant in the 11th round after struggling to get to grips with him early on. This fight marked Canelo’s return to PPV and also his first fight off of the Dazn Platform since his second fight with Gennadiy Golovkin.

Now that he’s completed his objective of becoming undisputed it’ll be interesting to see where his focus goes to next and what opponents catch his eye. I have a few which I think are much more likely than others and I’d be surprised if Canelo didn’t fight one of the five fighters I suggest might be next.

The fight that perhaps makes the most sense to be next is David Benavidez, a former two time world champion at super middleweight who’s only lost his belt outside the ring and still holds an undefeated record. He’s a big puncher with fast hands and at 24 is coming up to his prime years. He fights this Saturday versus Kyrone Davis and if he comes through the fight like hes expected to do then it makes sense for him and Canelo to fight next. Fighting on back to back weekends on the same network puts their names together and Benavidez is the last major challenge at super middleweight for Canelo. If he hadn’t missed weight due to Corona Virus restrictions stopping him from using the hotel gym on fight week then Canelo would have had to fight him to become undisputed anyway. I think this match up makes the most sense though I can’t remember Canelo ever mentioning Benavidez’s name so Canelo may not be hugely interested. If given the option of that fight on PPV then I imagine Canelo might be more interested as his fight with Plant was expected to do good numbers.

A fight which fans have been talking about for a long time now is Canelo versus Jermall Charlo. Back when Canelo was at middleweight, Charlo was his mandatory but due to a strange decision from the WBC Canelo was made “Franchise” champion and Charlo was upgraded to being world champion. What does any of that mean? who knows but what it did cause was Charlo not to get his deserved shot at Canelo. A fight between the two would have a good build up and its a fight that has marinated for long enough. Jermall Charlo needs a big legacy defining fight and for Canelo it’s a very good opponent who also brings in good numbers in the US market. I personally don’t see this fight happening next and think its more likely this fight happens late next year. By the time May comes around, the presumed next Canelo fight date, Charlo wouldn’t have fought for close to a year and also would have never fought at super middleweight. It’s unlikely he gets a fight done for December so I expect a tune up at super middleweight for Charlo sometime early next year to prepare for a showdown with Canelo in the second half of 2022.

The third fight with Gennadiy Golovkin would still be huge presuming that GGG beats Ryota Murata in December. Commercially this should be the biggest fight that Canelo can take but to me he hasn’t seem bothered about taking that fight as he feels hes finished with that chapter of his career. GGG has barely fought since their second fight and hasn’t looked all that impressive since which dampens the allure of a third fight. If GGG moves up and fights Canelo now then I don’t think the fight will be all that competitive and is more of a money grab than anything legacy defining. I think Canelo likely knows that GGG is past his best and beating him doesn’t mean as much as it used to. I could see this fight happening due to commercial aspect especially if Dazn decide they really want to get Canelo back on their platform. Recent comments from the head of Dazn makes me doubt they’ll front up huge amounts of money as he seems to think their venture into the US market was a failure and they’ll be pulling back in the years to come.

A fight with Artur Beterbiev (if he gets through Marcus Browne) would be one of the more interesting match ups in the sport. Beterbiev is a technically sound boxer who is also one of the biggest punchers in the sport. He has two light heavyweight titles which Canelo may want to get his hands on but aside from that doesn’t bring all that much to the fight. Commercially he is one of the worst options out of the five and would be the ultimate legacy over money fight for Canelo. Unfortunately even that wouldn’t satisfy some people as if Canelo were to win he’d be accused of fighting an old inactive fighter. While Beterbiev is old and inactive hes also very, very good and doesn’t seem to be on the decline yet.

The last fighter I could potentially see Canelo fighting is Dmitry Bivol who is a world champion at light heavyweight. He’s an excellent boxer who is one of the more talented technicians in the entire sport. He has a good resume at light heavyweight and has been champion for fours years now. He’s been inactive recently and has lost any momentum due to that and his recent inability to knock his opponents out even if they aren’t on his level. Commercially he’s similar to Beterbiev in that he wouldn’t bring anything and Canelo would have to carry the promotion himself. I’d be a bit surprised if Canelo chose to fight Bivol next as Bivol’s style is dangerous for Canelo and if hes going to go back to Dazn I would presume he’ll fight GGG instead of Bivol.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez versus Caleb Plant breakdown

Canelo versus Caleb Plant is one of the most, if not the most, anticipated showdowns this year in boxing. The two will clash with the undisputed super middleweight title on the line and a chance at becoming the first undisputed super middleweight champion.

Canelo is a great body puncher who doesn’t seem to have many weaknesses at this point in his career. He is capable with both hands which is something which should help him a lot in this fight as Plant isn’t. Plant is an orthodox fighter but his left hand is much more developed than his right. He’s creative with his left and can throw a variety of punches with it but with his right hand hes quite limited beyond the occasional punch to keep his opponents honest. I think if Canelo can circle away from the left hand and negate Plant’s biggest asset then he should be able to make easy work of this by throwing in damaging right hooks to the body which should slow Plant later on. For Plant to win he has to win the majority of the early rounds and make Canelo miss and then make him pay for it consistently. He’ll also need to get Canelo’s respect early so he doesn’t just get walked down and avoiding the majority of Canelo’s body shots are his biggest keys to victory. It wouldn’t surprise me if instead of using movement to avoid Plant’s left hand, Canelo decides to target the arm similarly to how he did versus Callum Smith to take away his best punch.

I don’t think Plant will be able to keep Canelo off him for twelve rounds because he doesn’t have a great right hand and Canelo is clever enough to know that Plant’s left hand is the biggest threat. Plant already slows down towards the end of fights but with Canelo’s body shots added in then I think he’ll get tired much quicker. I think Canelo will stop Caleb Plant around the 9th or 10th round. I can see a scenario where Canelo’s low volume of punches leaves him behind late on and Plant manages to survive a late scare to win via decision. While the Saunder’s performance was good from Canelo I didn’t like that he threw so little punches and I think a fast fighter in their prime with good footwork could take advantage of that, Caleb Plant fits the bill but his gas tank is a major worry and that’s why I’ll be picking Canelo.

Jaron Ennis versus Thomas Dulorme breakdown

I think to an extent this is a backwards step in Ennis’s career as Dulorme is coming off the back of two losses. Lipinets, the fight Ennis fought most recently, was better in my opinion and after the great performance that Ennis put on I was expecting him to step into the ring with a better opponent such as Custio Clayton. Dulorme isn’t a bad fighter at all but he won’t be competitive in this fight due to just how good Jaron Ennis is. It’s not a matter of if Jaron Ennis becomes a world champion, its a matter of when he becomes champ.

Jaron Ennis will knock Dulorme out in six or seven rounds to being the bigger, more skilled fighter who has also shown hes got power. The way Ennis puts his punches together is great and he could be one of the best talents of his generation.