Friday Night Fight Quick Pick

Ojeda looks to remain unbeaten

Reynaldo Ojeda vs. Monty Meza Clay: ESPN2's long running boxing program Friday Night Fights is almost at its end.  The series was known for giving young prospects a chance to make a name for themselves and for fading veterans to get one last shot.  Before the series comes to an end a few more prospects will get their chance to win over some fans by appearing in a televised fight.  This Friday undefeated Puerto Rican prospect Reynaldo Ojeda (16-0, 9 KO) will take on veteran Monty Meza Clay (36-4, 22 KO) in a lightweight bout scheduled to go 10 rounds.  While Ojeda has never lost a fight he has also never really faced any top tier fighters.  He is still young and on the rise and Meza Clay may be the toughest test of his young career.  Despite being a veteran of 13 years Meza Clay hasn't fought many top tier fighters himself, and although he will have the experience advantage he is also coming off of a loss to Rod Salka in his most recent fight.  Ojeda fights out of the orthodox stance and has a crisp jab.  The Puerto Rican prospect also has a strong looking left hook, which is much more effective going to the body than it is going upstairs.  Ojeda is also skilled with his right hand, showing a nice straight right, and a wild overhand right that when it actually lands does a lot of damage.  The one thing Ojeda needs to improve is his defense.  He tends to square up to opponents when he is attacking and that puts him in dangerous situations.  Like his counterpart, Meza Clay is also an orthodox fighter.  Meza Clay likes to be the aggressor in fights and that may be a bit of a Napoleon complex coming out since he stands at only 5 feet 2 inches tall.  Unlike Ojeda, Meza Clay doesn't have a great jab and usually looks to land power punches.  The left hook of Meza Clay is a good weapon as is his right hand whether he throws it straight or over the top.  While this is a fairly even fight on paper, Meza Clay looked bad in his most recent fight and may be a little long in the tooth.  This is a big moment for Ojeda and he will capitalize on it and win this fight via unanimous decision.