Showtime Quick Picks

Adonis Stevenson vs. Dmitry Sukhotsky: When it comes to the lineal light heavyweight champion of the world Adonis Stevenson (24-1, 20 KO) the only fight people care about is a bout with fellow champion Sergey Kovalev.  It has seemed for awhile now that Stevenson wants no part of Kovalev and instead this Friday on Showtime he will face off against a relatively unknown Russian by the name of Dmitry Sukhotsky (22-2, 16 KO) in a 12 round bout for Stevenson's WBC title.  Stevenson is tough to beat because he is a southpaw with good power who can also box.  He has a great jab and uses that punch well to set up his power shots.  For such a heavy hitter he isn't overly aggressive and will often fight off of his back foot.  As for Stevenson's defense it isn't great and his stamina has come into question late in fights.  What can't be questioned is his power, he has a very good right hook he likes to bang to the body and his left hand is deadly, just ask Chad Dawson.  His opponent Sukhotsky will have him hands full because Stevenson will be much better than anyone he has ever faced.  Sukhotsky is an orthodox fighter with a solid jab and a short, quick left hook.  Sukhotsky also throws a nice right hand to the body which he should use often against Stevenson to slow him down.  Another thing Sukhotsky does well is counter punch which he will look to do against the heavy hitting Stevenson.  Perhaps the best attribute Sukhotsky has going for him in this fight is his great chin and he has never been dropped as a pro.  While Sukhotsky may be a good fighter he isn't at the same level as Stevenson who will win this fight by the way of unanimous decision.


Andre Dirrell vs. Derek Edwards: The co-feature of Friday's bout will feature the talented Andre Dirrell (23-1, 16 KO) going against the underdog Derek Edwards (27-3-1, 14 KO).  The bout is scheduled to go 12 rounds and will be an IBF super middleweight title eliminator.  Dirrell is a southpaw with very fast hands and a piston like jab he uses often.  The southpaw also has a very short right hook that can do some damage.  Dirrell's left hand is also very good and his straight left comes in very quickly.  Dirrell shouldn't have too difficult of a time going against Edwards who will be the much slower fighter come Friday night.  Edwards has a bad chin and has been knocked out twice in his three losses.  Edwards does counter well and he can end a fight if he lands his overhand right clean like he did against Badou Jack.  As long as Dirrell can avoid the overhand right of Edwards he should be in for an easy night.  Dirrell is much faster than Edwards and his skill level is much higher.  The southpaw Dirrell should be able to really touch Edwards up on his way to a 7th round stoppage.


Kevin Bizier vs. Jo Jo Dan: One of the other fights this Friday will be an interesting rematch in the welterweight division that will act as an IBF title eliminator.  That fight will be between Kevin Bizier (23-1, 16 KO) who lost the first fight against Jo Jo Dan (33-2, 18 KO).  Bizier is an orthodox fighter who doesn't move well in the ring.  Perhaps because of that he likes to stand and trade with his opponents.  Bizier has a good straight right hand and also carries with him a strong left hook.  Bizier will have the power advantage in this fight but it won't be easy for him to beat Dan after losing their first fight.  Dan will be the slicker fighter come Friday night and should be confident knowing he beat Bizier in their first fight.  Dan is a southpaw who has a very good left hand which he will throw straight or crooked to equal success.  His right hook isn't great however and he doesn't use it much.  Dan does have a very busy jab he can control rounds with and he is much better defensively than Bizier is.  Because Dan is the better defensive fighter and because he will be confident having already taken car of Bizier he should be able to repeat and get the unanimous decision win.


Artur Beterbiev vs. Jeff Page Jr.: The opening bout of Friday's card should be an interesting one.  Both fighters are undefeated but neither has had much competition.  Artur Beterbiev (6-0, 6 KO) does have a stoppage win over Tavoris Cloud in his most recent bout which could give him confidence going against Jeff Page Jr. (15-0, 10 KO).  This fight is scheduled to go 10 rounds in the light heavyweight division and will raise the profile of the winner.  Beterbiev is an orthodox puncher with big power.  He is a patient fighter who isn't very busy with his punches because he just looks to land the power.  He uses his jab as a measuring stick and has a good right hand.  He can get wild at times but when he lands his uppercuts they do damage as does his strong, sweeping left hook.  As for Page Jr. there is literally no tape of him anywhere online which is never a good sign.  His record indicates that he has good power but he has been fighting bums which isn't a good sign.  Beterbiev seems like the higher quality fighter and he should be able to rough Page Jr. up on his way to a 5th round stoppage.