PBC on NBC Fight Preview

Danny Garcia vs. Lamont Peterson

This Saturday's fight between Danny Garcia and Lamont Peterson on NBC has been a long time coming.  For years the two men have been at, or near the top of the junior welterweight division but have never faced each other.  Now fans will finally get to see two of the three best junior welterweights in the sport go head-to-head in a bout scheduled to go 12 rounds, although, disappointingly  there won't be any titles on the line.  The last time Garcia and Peterson were in the ring they were on the same card and both faced horribly outmatched opposition.  Now both will arguably have their first real test since they both faced Lucas Matthysse in 2013, with Garcia getting a close win, and Peterson getting demolished.

Garcia vs. Salka was a mismatch and a disgrace

Garcia is best described as a boxer-puncher, and he fights out of the orthodox stance.  He is best known for his absolutely deadly left hook which has finished many of his opponents in spectacular fashion.  Garcia also has a fairly good jab but he would be better served if he followed it up with straight rights, something he doesn't often do.  Garcia's right hand isn't great but it is sufficient and with a left hook like his, it doesn't really need to be spectacular.  On defense Garcia is solid but not great but he does have a rock solid chin, something he displayed against Matthysse.  

Fans have been firing a lot of barbs Garcia's way recently because of his opponents.  After his fight with Matthysse, Garcia chose to take on Mauricio Hererra who at the time was a top 10-15 junior welterweight.  Garcia got a gift decision in that fight which most observers felt he lost.  He followed that up by taking on the 77th ranked lightweight in Rod Salka, he is knocked out easily.  Now Garcia is back in the ring with a fellow top junior welterweight and it will be interesting to see how he performs.  As a pro Garcia has been perfect with a record of 29-0 and 17 knockouts and he looks to remain perfect against Peterson.

Peterson will look to give Garcia his first loss

Peterson will be at a disadvantage in power against Garcia but he will be the slicker boxer.  Peterson is an orthodox fighter with a very good jab he can control rounds with.  The slicker boxer also has a nice left hook, although it doesn't land with the same authority that Garcia's does.  One of the weapons Peterson makes use of is a good straight right hand, he also will throw his right overhand which lands with much more force.  Even though Peterson is slicker than Garcia he isn't a Floyd Mayweather or Guillermo Rigondeaux.  He will often put on the earmuffs and wait for his opponent to stop throwing punches, something he can't do against Garcia because he has a weak chin.

The professional career of Peterson has been an up and down one.  He always beats B-level opponents but has had some tough times in step up fights.  Peterson lost to Timothy Bradley in 2009 and was dropped in that fight even though Bradley has no real power.  He was able to beat Amir Khan in 2011 but he was dropped in that fight too and only got the split decision after Khan was deducted two points for pushing.  The low point for Peterson came against Matthysse who destroyed him in only three rounds.  Still Peterson has been able to put together a good record of 33-2-1 with 17 knockouts, but he needs to beat Garcia to prove he can beat the best.

This should be a very good fight with a lot of back and forth action.  Peterson, whose chin is not good, needs to really be mindful of his jab.  He needs to keep Garcia at the end of his punches and use his jab and straight right hand to control the distance of the fight.  While Peterson is doing that, Garcia will be trying to get inside and land his power punches to the body of Peterson.  As he always does, Garcia will be looking to land his deadly left hook, and if it lands it could be lights out for Peterson.

PREDICTION: Lamont Peterson may be a slicker boxer than Danny Garcia but he isn't slick enough.  Peterson's chin will let him down in this fight, which will be close throughout.  Eventually Garcia will be able to catch Peterson with his left hook and hurt him enough to stop him in the 9th round.  

Andy Lee vs. Peter Quillin

The fight between "Irish" Andy Lee and Peter "Kid Chocolate" Quillin should be anything but boring.  The two prizefighters are scheduled to go 12 rounds in the middleweight division for Lee's WBO title.  Lee won that vacant title in his last fight which was a come from behind stoppage of the then undefeated Matt Korobov.  Quillin was the original owner of that title but vacated it, along with a career high payday, instead of facing Korobov.  Now Lee will be looking to hold on to his new belt while Quillin will be trying to earn back what he already had.

Lee stunned Korobov with a 6th round TKO

The southpaw Lee is known for one thing above all else, his right hook.  That punch is solely responsible for his last two wins, both knockouts, the first a one punch knockout, the other a stoppage that started with the right hook.  Lee is a counter puncher who has some boxing skills to go along with his power.  He has a nice long jab which he follows up nicely with a straight left.  Lee's best attribute may be his confidence.  Even though he was down on the cards in his last two fights, he never stopped competing and his belief in his right hook led him to victories.  

During his career Lee has put together some notable wins.  He beat the undefeated Korobov in his most recent fight and also has wins over Brian Vera, and Craig McEwan.  Things fell apart a bit when he lost to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in 2012 and had to work his way back to contender status.  Since that loss Lee has gone 6-0 with 4 knockouts and his overall record stands at 34-2 with 24 knockouts.  Although both of Lee's losses came by knockout and he was down recently against John Jackson his chin is actually pretty solid and it will surely be checked by Quillin.

Quillin hopes to prove he is as good as his record

"Kid Chocolate" is an orthodox fighter with pretty quick hands.  He doesn't jab often and when he does it isn't a punch that does much of anything.  One punch that Quillin has that can do damage is his left hook and overhand right, although the latter often comes in wildly.  Quillin is a skilled offensive fighter with good power but he will often get off balance while throwing punches and he has yet to be tested by a true A-level fighter.  While Lee may not be a top A-level fighter he may be one of the best pugilists Quillin has fought to date.

Quillin has handled, and often easily, many of his B-level opponents.  The biggest name he has fought in his career is Ronald "Winky" Wright but that was when Wright was a few years removed from his prime.  Still, put a good opponent in front of Quillin and he usually beats them up which his perfect record of 31-0 with 22 knockouts indicates.

This fight should be a very close one and could easily go either way.  While Quillin may be viewed as a slight favorite he has faced many opponents who provide the problems that Lee will.  Both of these prizefighters have good power, and that power should be on display come Saturday night.  While Lee has one punch knockout power with his right hook, Quillin's power comes over time as he breaks opponents down.  While both fighters can punch the winner may be the one who can box the best.

PREDICTION: It was been almost one year to the date that Peter Quillin last fought and he may show some rust early.  Quillin has the ability to break Andy Lee down over the course of a fight but Lee is the better boxer and he has the one-punch knockout power.  This will be an extremely close fight but one Lee wins by the way of 10th round stoppage.