This is a great match up for the vacant WBO featherweight world title. Navarrete over the last two years has proved himself as one of the most exciting fighters in the sport and also shown how good of a finisher he is with four stoppage victories in 2019. Ruben Villa is seen by many as one of the best American prospects due to his technical skills and foot work.
Emanuel Navarrete is a good fighter but also a relatively simple one. He comes forward with his long arms and throws massive amounts of punches and he doesn’t stop until his opponents on the canvas wondering what happened to them. His foot work isn’t great and his defence isn’t the best in the world but with his style it works and there are very few fighters that can deal with his swarming attacks over 12 rounds. He is also one of the bigger punchers at the lower weight classes.
Ruben Villa in certain aspects is the polar opposite of Navarrete. He has great foot work and is technically very good but has almost no power. He also isn’t as experienced as Navarrete and has never fought a truly world class opponent yet. I think he’ll probably be on the back foot a lot for this fight and will need to gain Navarrete’s respect early if he doesn’t want to get bulldozed especially in the latter rounds. Villa’s defence is very good and it relies a lot on his foot work and upper body movement.
Ruben Villa
I think Navarrete will win this fight because he has more experience and in moving up to featherweight will be stronger and have more stamina because hes no longer draining himself to make weight. Villa will cause problems early on but I don’t think he’ll be able to keep off Navarrete the whole fight.
Rodriguez has made the most of lock down by scoring three massive knockouts in Top Ranks bubble in Las Vegas. He takes a step up against gatekeeper Cameron Krael who is probably the best 50/50 fighter in the sport currently.
Elvis Rodriguez has great boxing skills and huge power which seems natural. He has great timing and is very relaxed in the ring which is why I think he gets so many knockouts. His defence is good as well because of his excellent foot work.
Cameron Krael’s best part of his arsenal is his toughness and heart. He is sometimes a bit of a slow starter but as the fight goes on he just keeps getting better and doesn’t let his opponents off the hook. He punches a bit harder than his record suggests but hes not a power puncher by any means. His defence is the thing that will let him down the most in this fight as he is the sort of fighter who takes one to give one and versus a massive puncher like Rodriguez thats not a good idea.
Cameron Krael
I think Elvis Rodriguez will make a statement and be only the second person to stop Cameron Krael. I think Krael gets hit too much to get through eight rounds of Rodriguez’s power and being a slow starter won’t help him at all.
Nikodem Jeżewski is a rising contender in the Cruiserweight division who recently won his first professional title. He was nice enough to answer a few questions from us at Boxingfulcrum.
How did it feel to win your first belt as a professional recently and was that belt one you’ve wanted to win since you turned pro?
Yes, I’m very happy, but its only a next step to bigger challenge.
Who would you say your hardest opponent was?
I think the hardest opponent in my career was Michael Cieslak.
What would you say your long term goals in boxing are?
I want Fights with top 30 Cruiserweight and maybe some title shot
How difficult did you find it training in a global pandemic?
Its a very hard time for all people. But for a Profighters its ok, because we have a private gyms and trainings rooms. I train all Day in a Year because its my Job, and I love This! 😉
I’d like to thank Nikodem for taking the time to answer my questions and wish him luck in his future fights!
This is an excellent fight for Bachkov on his debut and shows he means to move very quickly in the Super Lightweight division. Samuel Gonzalez is a seasoned campaigner who has a record of 22-6 and has pushed good names close on the cards.
Hovhannes Bachkov in the amateurs was an aggressive pressure fighter that still has solid defence because he keeps his gloves up constantly and has good foot work. I’m not sure how much power he has but with his style its likely that he’ll get a lot of stoppages as a pro. He had a great amateur career and with that background is solid in everything fundamentally.
Samuel Gonzalez is a bit of a brawler himself and seems to have good power. His jab is decent but his hands are relatively slow. I also think he keeps his hands low too much. I don’t think he does anything better than Bachkov and his defence is certainly worse.
Samuel Gonzalez
I think Hovhannes Bachkov will win this fight by decision or late stoppage in what would be a bit of a statement victory. I’m excited to watch his career going forward.
This is a solid fight between a battle tested Maxi Hughes and Kazak prospect Kotochigov. Hughes put on a career best performance versus Jono Carroll and will be looking to continue his good run of form here. This is Kotochigov’s big step up to see if hes really ready for fringe world level.
Maxi Hughes is a good solid boxer that has decent fundamentals. He has decent timing especially in his last fight. He doesn’t really have any power but with his style he doesn’t need it. He’s not a massive combination puncher and mostly throws single shots or perhaps two or three at most. His defence isn’t great though he has a decent chin. He has lost at domestic level in the UK multiple times but seems to be on a good run of form now whether he can keep that up is another question.
Viktor Kotochigov had a decent amateur background but nothing too out of the ordinary. Hes had quite a slow pro career so far and this is his first real step up. He has a decent jab and can counter punch really well. His defence is relatively average and he can be timed to an extent. He does have decent power but doesn’t go to the body enough in my opinion.
Viktor Kotochigov
I’m going to pick Maxi Hughes to win this fight by decision because hes in form and seems to have really improved. His timing and straight punches should be enough for him to win at least six rounds. Kotochigov could win if his extra power wears Hughes down late and he can gain Hughes respect early with it.
This is a good domestic level fight in Japan where Rei Nakajima who is seen as a rising prospect takes on a massive test versus Hosokawa who has mixed with good fighters with varied results.
Shinobu Charlie Hosokawa is a good technical boxer who moves around the ring a lot. He generally boxes off the back foot and tries not to engage in exchanges with his opponents too much. He’s accurate and has a really solid jab which I think is the best tool in his arsenal. His defence is solid and he seems to have a good chin as hes never been stopped though he has been dropped before. He has solid power especially considering he often fights on the back foot. If he set his feet a bit more and used a bit less movement I think he would end up stopping most of the opponents hes lost too.
Rei Nakajima has very good technical skills and might be a bit more solid fundamentally than Hosokawa. His record doesn’t show much power but he does seem to hit quite hard. He can box both on the front foot and back but is offensively best when fighting on the front foot. He throws nice combinations and has a good defence considering he has his hands down so much. I think his punches seem a bit more crisp than Hosokawa’s. He is also only 22 so has youth on his side but still has experience because of a good amateur career.
Rei Nakajima
I’m not sure who is going to win this fight but I am leaning slightly towards Rei Nakajima by decision because he is the younger fresher fighter who is combinations seem a bit faster and more hurtful.
Similar to a lot of fights coming out of the pandemic I believe this is a tune up fight. Hiroaki is a real contender at Super Bantamweight and will be looking to move on to world level soon. Shingo Kawamura is on a bad run of form and looks to have been brought in to lose while giving Hiroaki a few rounds.
Hiroaki Teshigawara is a patient fighter who boxes mainly on the back foot but doesn’t move around the ring that much. He sets his feet well and counters when given the opportunity. When he’s not countering hes marauding into his opponents with one or two punches before resetting. He seems to have respectable power and solid timing. His foot work is solid and combined with his upper body movement makes up his defence because he keeps his hands low almost all the time. He throws his punches both to the body and head.
Shingo Kawamura isn’t a bad fighter I just feel he isn’t on Teshigawaras level. He does have some power though not as much as Teshigawara. His defence isn’t the best but he does keep his hands up decently. The problem with his defence is that his footwork leaves him standing in place for punches sometimes and he lacks both upper body and head movement. When he’s on the offensive he does have some nice hooks and straight shots which seem to have power on them. I think if he lets his hands go a little more he would have a lot more success though against an accurate counter puncher like Teshigawara that might not be a good idea.
Shingo Kawamura
I think Hiroaki Teshigawara will win this fight by TKO in the seventh or eighth round after a competitive opening. I think Teshigawara’s more powerful punches combined with his timing will wear Kawamura down enough that a stoppage can be forced.
This fight is in my opinion a bit of a tune up for Berinchyk because Viorel Simion is moving up a weight class and is very clearly past his best.
Berinchyk is very good technically and whiles hes not a big puncher he should carry enough power to stop a sliding Simion who has been brought out of his natural weight class.
Hopefully after this fight we can see Denys Berinchyk mix with the top of the lightweight division and potentially fight in a final eliminator for the WBO where he is highly ranked.
In modern day boxing moving up multiple weight classes is very common for boxers. While this leads to nice sounding achievements such as becoming a four or five weight champion it does lead to boxers resume in a singular division being weaker than previous generations. I’ve gone through the champions in boxing today and picked out ones that are creating legacies and great resumes in one division.
The first boxer who is creating a legacy in one division is Anthony Joshua (Heavyweight). He unlike the other people on this list can’t move up or down a division but hes still building a solid resume with depth to it. He has unified all of the belts apart from the WBC and faced Wladimir Klitchscho and Joseph Parker in unification fights. Notable names on his resume are, Joseph Parker, Wladimir Klitchscho, Alexander Povetkin, Dillian Whyte, Andy Ruiz Jr x2, Charles Martin and Carlos Takam. His next fight will be a defence of his titles versus mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev.
Anthony Joshua
The second boxer creating a legacy in one division is Mairis Briedis (Cruiserweight). He is a three time Cruiserweight champion of the world and holds an underrated resume. He has wins over Mike Perez, Marco Huck, Noel Gevor, Krzysztof Glowacki and Yuniel Dorticos. His only loss is to all time Cruiserweight great Oleksandr Usyk.
Mairis Briedis
The third boxer creating a legacy in one division is Jermell Charlo (Super Welterweight). He recently unified the belts at Super Welterweight and now only needs the WBO belt to become undisputed. His notable wins include Jeison Rosario, Tony Harrison, Jorge Cota, Austin Trout, Erickson Lubin, John Jackson, Vanes Martirosyan and Gabriel Rosado. I think he has the best resume for a single division in the sport currently and to me thats a big thing as its more impressive than weight hopping to get vacant belts.
Jermell Charlo
The fourth boxer creating a legacy in one division is Errol Spence Jr (Welterweight). Similar to Jermell Charlo he recently unified his IBF belt with Shawn Porters WBC belt. He has an often overlooked resume that includes the likes of Shawn Porter, Mikey Garcia, Lamont Peterson, Kell Brook, Leonard Bundu, Chris Algieri, Chris Van Heerden, Phil Lo Greco and Samuel Vargas. He has an upcoming defence of his titles versus Danny Garcia.
Errol Spence Jr
The fifth boxer creating a legacy in one division is Josh Taylor (Super Lightweight). He is another one on this list who holds more than one world title and is clearly trying to become undisputed. He holds wins over, Regis Prograis, Ivan Baranchyk, Apinun Khongsong, Ryan Martin, Viktor Postol, Miguel Vazquez and Ohara Davies.
Josh Taylor
The sixth boxer creating a legacy in one weight class is Kenshiro Teraji (Light Flyweight). I think Kenshiro is one of the most underrated boxers in the sport and if he was in a bigger division would be talked about as having a resume worthy of P4P consideration. He has notable wins over Randy Petalcorin, Jonathan Taconing, Saul Juarez, Milan Melindo, Ganigan Lopez x2, Pedro Guevara and Kenichi Horikawa.
Kenshiro Teraji
The seventh boxer creating a legacy in one division is Chayaphon Moonsri (minumumweight). He is currently the longest reigning champion in boxing with the most title defences of any singular belt among active fighters. He holds wins over Simpiwe Konkco, Tatsuya Fukuhara x2, Pedro Taduran, Leroy Estrada, Melvin Jerusalem, Saul Juarez, Go Odaira, Young Gil Bae, Jerry Tomogdan, Jeffrey Galero and Oswaldo Novoa.
Chayaphon Moonsri
The final boxer who is creating a legacy in one division is Miguel Berchelt (Super Featherweight). Miguel Berchelt only needs a few more wins at the weight to really solidify himself as an all time Super Featherweight great. He has wins over Francisco Vargas x2, Jason Sosa, Miguel Roman, Jonathan Victor Barros and Takashi Miura.
Miguel Berchelt
I personally value work done in one division over weight hopping to get titles in many divisions but never facing the best available. I’ll always root for these boxers over any others due to them creating a real legacy for themselves in one division where many will go down as top 20 all time in their respective weight classes.
This is an interesting fight between two prospects looking to improve their status. Nicklaus Flaz has one loss but that was to another good prospect who was a very good amateur. Bocachica was a good amateur himself and has been making a steady start to his pro career which has seen him win all 15 of his fights so far.
Bocachica throws well in combination and seems to have good foot work. He has some power though not a huge amount and if he does get stoppages its more through a volume of punches rather than one shot. There’s limited footage online but he looks like he can move around the ring well and his defence seems solid enough.
Janelson Figueroa Bocachica
Nicklaus Flaz is described by many as a brawler and while I agree to an extent I think he has a lot of skill as well. He is generally a come forward fighter who throws a lot of punches and out of the prospects in boxing is one of the better ones at fighting on the inside. I think he has excellent power and is likely going to be the puncher in this match up. His defence is better than you would think for someone labeled with the “Brawler” tag though because of how many punches he throws he is still open to counters. He’s had more experience as an amateur than Bocachica and has also faced better people in the pro ranks.
I think Nicklaus Flaz will win a close decision because of his experience of being in tough fights. I also think his superior power and volume will help him win the second half of the fight after Bocachica gets tired from moving so much while taking body shots and being roughed up.
Boxing Fulcrum 