Daniel Geale vs. Darren Barker
This Saturday HBO will reward its fans with some very competitive title fights. Perhaps the biggest fight of that card will be a middleweight title fight in Atlantic City, New Jersey between Daniel Geale and Darren Barker. This fight is particularly intriguing because both fighters are so similar in fighting style, height, and age. All of those factors should make for a good close fight.
Geale will be the man taking the title belt into the ring and he hopes he is also the man who takes it out. He is also the fighter who has slightly more experience in the ring. He holds a career record of 29-1 with 15 knockouts and hasn't lost a fight since way back in 2009 against Anthony Mundine, a loss he avenged his last time in the ring easily outpointing Mundine in January of this year. Geale has a solid fighting style, he keeps his hands held high and loves to work behind a stiff jab. He uses his highly effective jab to get inside and unleash vicious body punches which he uses to perfection. Geale likes to fight small and explode upwards, catching his opponents off guard. One question facing Geale will be how he handles his first fight in the United States. All of his previous fights have come in either his native Australia or Germany so coming to the States will be a new experience for him sure to be filled with plenty of distractions.
Geale's opponent on Saturday night is also not very familiar with the U.S. having only fought there one time. However that fight was also in Atlantic City so Barker should be the more comfortable of the two. That fight came against the number 3 pound for pound fighter in the world, Sergio Martinez. Martinez came into that fight on a hot streak beating Kelly Pavlik, Paul Williams, and Serhiy Dzinziruk, which made Barker a huge underdog. However Barker surprised everyone when he gave Martinez all he could handle in a very close fight before ultimately being knocked out in the 11th round. Barker has a record of 25-1 with 16 knockouts with his only loss being that knockout to Martinez. Barker's fighting style is similar to Geale's in that he comes forward behind high hands and loves to stick out a stiff jab. However he sometimes gets into bad habits, throwing wide looping punches that Geale should be able to take advantage of.
This is a really a "coin flip fight" it could easily go either way. Barker has a slight advantage in the power department but Geale has slightly better fundamentals. Both fighters also have solid chins but not outstanding ones as they have both tasted the canvass in their careers. This fight should provide good sustained action with a ton of body work. Whoever wins this fight could hinge on the fighters ability to steal rounds late because each round should be very close throughout.
PREDICTION: This will be a close fight that could easily end in a draw, but let's hope it doesn't. I think Geale will be slightly busier and that will allow him to put more rounds in the bank. Daniel Geale will get the win via majority decision.
Nathan Cleverly vs. Sergey Kovalev
Another very interesting fight this Saturday on HBO will be a light heavyweight title fight from the United Kingdom. That fight will feature United Kingdom native Nathan Cleverly taking on tough as nails Russian brawler Sergey Kovalev in a battle of unbeaten fighters. And as similar as Geale and Barker are to each other, these two fighters couldn't be more different.
Cleverly can best be described as a boxer. He does have some power but it isn't of the one punch variety and he also is very lanky for a light heavyweight, as opposed to Kovalev who is built like a tank. Cleverly has a perfect career record of 26-0 with a decent 12 knockouts. He is a very patient fighter with good defensive skills that allow him to sit in the pocket and wait for his opportunity to unleash dangerous combinations. This style has worked out perfectly for Cleverly in the past but could be dangerous against the power puncher Kovalev. It would be shocking for this fight if Cleverly used his boxing skills to stick and move all night while trying to avoid danger.
The aforementioned danger comes from the raw power of Kovalev. In Kovale's last ten fights nine of them have been knockout wins and the only fight that didn't end in a Kovalev knockout was a draw because he opponent couldn't continue after an accidental foul. Kovalev has a career record of 21-0-1 with a ridiculous 19 knockouts. In fact the last time a Kovalev fight didn't end in a knockout or draw was three years ago when he won a unanimous decision. Kovalev like Cleverly is also a very patient fighter who waits for his chance to pounce on his opponent and end the fight early. He is probably best known in the U.S. for his last two fights on NBC Sports against Gabriel Campillo and Cornelius White, both of whom he viciously knocked out. For Kovalev to knock out Cleverly he will need to be sharper then ever.
This fight is a battle of differing styles. Will Cleverly, the boxer, be able to stick and move enough to frustrate Kovalev while still landing clean punches? Or will Kovalev be able to cut the ring off from Cleverly and force him into more of a brawl? This fight really hinges on who takes control of the pace and style. If this is a fast fight with a lot of dancing around Cleverly should be able to outboxer the slightly slower Kovalev all night. However if Kovalev can cut the ring off he should be able to punish Cleverly. Either way fans should be in for a good show.
PREDICTION: There is no doubt that Cleverly is the more skilled boxer but Kovalev has a special kind of power not often seen. I think Sergey Kovalev will fight the best bout of his suddenly blossoming career and beat Cleverly via 10th round knockout.
Jonathan Romero vs. Kiko Martinez
Well they could call Saturday night "Title Night" because all three fights featured on HBO are for belts. This fight which will start the night of boxing will be for Jonathan Romero's junior featherweight title. The man who hopes to take it from him is Kiko Martinez. While Romero is the hot prospect, Martinez is the dangerous puncher which will make for an exciting fight.
Romero is a young Colombian fighter who is ultra talented but has yet to be seriously tested. At 26 years old this could be Romero's time to shine and a big win on a stacked HBO card would certainly help his cause. Romero has a perfect record of 23-0 with 12 knockouts. Romero is you typical Colombian fighter, highly skilled but also very awkward. He is slick in the ring but has been down before so his chin is still a big question mark. He moves around constantly with usually frustrates his opponents and allows him to capitalize. Also his height seems to frustrate his opponents being that he stands at 5'9'' which is a giant in the junior featherweight division. What makes his style awkward is that he fights with his land low and seems to jump in from strange angles. That could frustrate Martinez or help him.
Martinez is a solid fighter with much more experience and dangerous power. His record isn't overly impressive, standing at 28-4 with 20 knockouts but his power for such a low weight class is outstanding. Martinez is a pit bull of a fighter. He is small but never stops coming for the kill. He stalks his opponents around the ring no matter how much they run and has tremendous power in both hands. Romero could be in for the fight of his life against Martinez who won't give him an inch. Martinez may not be the slickest or quickest fighter but his power is an equalizer.
This fight should be a lot of fun. While Romero is the hot prospect and the slicker fighter, Martinez is a devastating puncher who no one can take lightly. Romero usually fights with his hands down and jumps in and out which could be deadly against the power of Martinez. If Romero wants to be slick that's fine but he needs to keep his hands up if he doesn't want to end the night on his back. If Martinez can control the distance he could knock Romero out especially since Romero's chin is a question. However if Romero can stick and move he could easily outbox the slugger Martinez.
PREDICTION: There is no doubt that Romero is the more skilled fighter of the two but Martinez has special power that could be perfect against the style of Romero. I fully expect Romero to hit the canvass at least once but he has shown the ability to get up after a knockdown and box very well. This will be a tough close fight but Jonathan Romero will get the win by the way of unanimous decision in a very, very close fight.
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