Adonis Stevenson vs. Tony Bellew
It was only five months ago that Adonis Stevenson became a star in the light heavyweight division. Stevenson knocked out then light heavyweight kingpin Chad Dawson in the first round of their title fight and shocked the world. Than only two months ago Stevenson outboxed Tavoris Cloud to stay on top. Now Stevenson will enter the ring against the dangerous Tony Bellew in a light heavyweight battle, scheduled to go 12 rounds.
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| Stevenson showed against Cloud that he can box |
Stevenson has always been known as a big puncher but not much else. That perception grew even greater after his absolute destruction of Dawson. However in his last fight against Cloud he showed everyone he can also be a slick boxer. Stevenson has a long reach that allows him to be highly effective with his jab, a punch he can stick to the body as well as the head. However his most dangerous punch comes from his left hand which has proven to be lethal.
Stevenson is an aggressive fighter but he doesn't get sloppy when he is on the attack and his defense is surprisingly good. His record stands at 22-1 with an outstanding 19 knockouts and so far in 2013 he is 3-0 with 3 knockouts as he looks to earn the title of 2013 Fighter of the Year. The man standing in the way of Stevenson earning that monicker is a strong puncher from the U.K. trying to make a name for himself in the U.S.
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| Bellew is a big underdog |
Bellew has never fought in North America before and while his name holds some weight in the U.K. it doesn't yet mean anything in the U.S. or Canada where the fight will take place. Bellew can change that very quickly if he is able to beat Stevenson who is a fast rising star. Bellew's best weapon is his jab which he uses very frequently and effectively due to his extremely long reach. Bellew does have a bad habit of forgetting to stay home defensively when he goes on the attack and also doesn't usually throw many combinations, two things he will need to improve against the dangerous Stevenson.
Bellew has an impressive record of 20-1-1 with 12 knockouts but the only notable opponent he has faced is Nathan Cleverly and that fight was two years ago. Stevenson represents a big step up in competition for Bellew and he will need to be perfect if he wants to pull off the upset. Perhaps the biggest improvement he will need to make is his movement inside the ring. Usually Bellew comes straight forward and even worse goes straight back on defense. Against Stevenson he will need to move laterally and do it often so he can avoid the big left hand of Stevenson. Bellew's best chance at the upset will be to try and outbox and out move Stevenson but stand and throw quick combinations when an opportunity presents itself.
This may not be Stevenson's toughest fight of 2013 but he needs to be careful not to look past Bellew and ahead to a possible fight against fellow knockout artist Sergey Kovalev who will be fighting on the undercard. It is Bellew who will need to tweak his style if he hopes to win the fight, for Stevenson things are much more simple, just keep doing what you have been doing because it was been working very well. If Bellew can make Stevenson respect his power early and keep it close during the middle rounds he could give fans a very exciting fight.
PREDICTION: Tony Bellew may give Stevenson a challenge but he won't have enough to pull off the upset. Adonis Stevenson will win this fight and go to 4-0 in 2013. This should be a solid fight while it lasts but Stevenson will eventually end it by the way of 9th round knockout.
Sergey Kovalev vs. Ismayl Sillakh
The other notable fight on Saturday night will also be a light heavyweight bout scheduled for 12 rounds. If this fight were to go the distance it would be a shock because both fighters Sergey Kovalev, and Ismayl Sillakh have one punch knockout power. This fight is particularly big for Kovalev because a win would all but guarantee him a shot against Stevenson.
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| Kovalev just keeps getting better |
Last time Kovalev was in the ring it came against then undefeated Nathan Cleverly in a fight most people saw as a big step up for Kovalev. However it quickly became clear that it was Cleverly who was in over his head. Kovalev is an exciting fighter who doesn't like to use his jab much and instead relies on throwing hard crooked punches that usually end fights early. Kovalev is a very patient fighter who has solid defense without moving around the ring to well.
Kovalev keeps looking better every time he enters the ring and his record proves it. As of now his record stands at 22-0-1 with 20 knockouts and much like Stevenson in the main event, Kovalev has a shot at winning Fighter of the Year. Kovalev should start off fast in this fight to see if Sillakh is able to handle his power.
Unlike Kovalev, Sillakh loves to use his jab and he also moves around the ring much more fluidly. Perhaps the most dangerous part of Sillkah's game is the fact that he can land heavy punches so quickly without having his feet firmly planted beneath him. One thing Sillakh will need to do more of is throw combinations, something he didn't do much of in his only career loss at the hands of Denis Grachev in 2012. Sillakh was ahead on the unofficial scorecard of that fight but just couldn't stand up to the power of Grachev and got dropped hard.
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| Sillakh needs to show a better chin |
That loss to Grachev is the only blemish thus far for Sillakh whose career record stands at 21-1 with a strong 17 knockouts. Questions remain about how good his chin is and those questions should be answered very quickly against the power of Kovalev. Sillakh will need to stay on his horse and move early and often in an effort to frustrate Kovalev. If Sillakh can move quickly early on he could force Kovalev to open up and then catch him with a big punch he doesn't see coming.
This fight really depends on the chin of Sillakh. If he shows early on that he can handle the power of Kovalev then fans could be in for a good fight. However if Kovalev catches him early and wobbles him, look for any confidence Sillakh may have had to evaporate very quickly. Sillakh will need to wait for his opportunities but he will need to be careful not to run all night and not throw enough punches to win any rounds. Whichever way this fight goes one thing is almost certain, it won't go the distance.
PREDICTION: Sergey Kovalev will continue his winning streak and also his knockout streak. The early rounds won't be pretty with Ismayl Sillakh running a little but eventually Kovalev will catch up to him and knock him out in the 5th round.
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