HBO PPV Fight Preview (Undercard)

Roman Gonzalez vs. Brian Viloria

As if having power punchers Gennady Golovkin and David Lemieux headline Saturday's HBO PPV card wasn't enough the co-feature will have another one of boxing's best punchers in action.  That puncher is Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez and he is set to square off against Brian Viloria in a 12-round bout for Gonzalez's WBC flyweight title.  Gonzalez is the favorite in this fight, he is also boxing's best little fighter and he is Big Time Boxing's number two pound-for-pound fighter.  However, only a few years ago it was Viloria who claimed the title of boxing's best little fighter so this bout should be an exciting one.

Gonzalez is one of boxing's best punchers

Gonzalez is a compact 5-foot 3-inch fighter who punches like a heavyweight.  His style is very fan friendly and he has some of the heaviest hands in the sport which doesn't often happen for such a small fighter.  Gonzalez's jab is a good weapon and he will often follow it with a stiff straight right hand, a punch he can also throws overhand.  His best punch however, is his left hook.  That punch has ended a lot of opponents nights early and he lands it upstairs or to the body will equal success.  Also Gonzalez throws a lot of combinations and likes to mix in uppercuts on the inside.  Part of what makes him so pleasing to watch is that when he has his man hurt he always looks to close the show.  While Gonzalez's defense isn't as great as his offense he is still solid on that end of things and he does a nice job of using subtle movements to avoid punishment.

When you talk about the resume of Gonzalez it is almost unnecessary to name any of his opponents because he has handled them all with ease.  However, he does have impressive wins over Juan Francisco Estrada and Edgar Sosa, along with every other fighter who has ever stepped in the ring with him.  Gonzalez's career record is a perfect 43-0 and his 37 knockouts almost seem like a typo for a fighter in the flyweight division.  There are certainly some big fights for Gonzalez in and around his division but first he will need to take care of business against Viloria.

Viloria has plenty of power himself

Viloria is an orthodox fighter out of Hawaii and he is six years older than Gonzalez.  The Hawaiian has always had quick hands and that quickness is shown with his high level jab that he will often follow with a straight right hand.  With those weapons Viloria also has a strong left hook and an overhand right and while he doesn't have the same type of power that Gonzalez does, he certainly has some pop on his punches.  The best thing Viloria does is bang to the body and many of his knockouts have come from left hooks to the liver.  On defense Viloria is solid and as a pro he has never been knocked down, something that will be put to the test against Gonzalez.

Viloria has been fighting at a high level for a long time and it looked like his career might be on the downside after a 2013 loss to Estrada that helped the young fighter reach new levels in his career.  However, since that loss Viloria has gone 5-0 with 4 knockouts and his most recent fight didn't even make it passed one round.  For his career Viloria has put together a record of 36-4 with 22 knockouts and he was only stopped once which came in the final round of a fight against Carlos Tamara.  While Viloria clearly has some gas left in the tank that gas may not get him passed Gonzalez.

Both Gonzalez and Viloria are action fighters and that shouldn't change come Saturday night.  While Viloria is a bit quicker and lighter on his feet, Gonzalez has more power and he seems to be a more relentless fighter.  Viloria should try to fight his instinct to trade punches and use his quickness to box from the outside.  That won't be easy to do against Gonzalez though he seems like an unstoppable force at this point in his career.

PREDICTION: As a pro Brian Viloria has never tasted the canvas, but that will all change on Saturday night.  Viloria is still very good but Roman Gonzalez is exceptional.  This fight will provide fans with plenty of brutal action but it will be Gonzalez who consistently gets the better of it on his way to a 10th round stoppage of Viloria.

Luis Ortiz vs. Matias Ariel Vidondo

One of the other fights on Saturday's card will be a heavyweight showdown between two fighters, one who boxing heads should be familiar with and another who even the most hardcore fans have probably never heard of.  The recognizable name is Luis Ortiz, a heavyweight from Cuba.  His opponent who most fans have probably never seen fight is Matias Ariel Vidondo from Argentina.  The two pugilists are scheduled to go 12 rounds a the winner will go home with the vacant WBA interim title.  

Ortiz could use an impressive victory

Ortiz started his career five years ago and is no 36 years old.  That means the time is now for Ortiz to really make some moves in his career if he wants to fight some of the best.  Ortiz is a southpaw who likes to double up his jab and that jab is a good one.  Another good weapon for Ortiz is his straight left hand he will dig to the body.  While Ortiz has a powerful right hook that isn't a punch he uses much unless he has his opponent hurt.  Most of Ortiz's knockouts come from the left hand and most come early in fights.  

This will actually be Ortiz's second attempt to capture an interim WBA title.  the first came in 2014 when he knocked out Lateef Kayode in the 1st round to win the title, only to have that win turned into a no contest when he failed a drug test following the bout.  Kayode was Ortiz's best opponent and really the only name opponent on his resume but despite fighting sub par opposition Ortiz has still impressed fans with his power.  His career record is a perfect one and actually could be better but two of his wins were later ruled no contests.  As it stands now his record is 22-0 with 19 knockouts and knockout number 20 could be coming very soon.

Vidondo is almost 40 years old

Vidondo is nearly 40 years old and he has only been fighting professionally for five years.  He fights out of Argentina where fighters are known more for their power than skills.  Vidondo is an orthodox fighter who doesn't look at that smooth in the ring.  The Argentine has a long jab and a decent looking straight right hand but he isn't a very busy fighter.  Also, Vidondo doesn't use his left hook very often and he tends to fall in with his hands down when he throws his punches.  This will be a huge step up for Vidondo who has never fought outside of Argentina or faced anyone near the level of Ortiz.

The good news for Vidondo is that he has power.  The bad news is he has never faced a top opponent so he has only flashed that power against sub par fighters.  His career record is 20-1-1 with 18 knockouts but that record doesn't look as impressive when you go over the names on it.  If Vidondo wants a win over Ortiz he may need a miracle, or at least hope that Ortiz fails another drug test.

Don't expect this fight to last very long.  Both men have good power but it is clear that Ortiz is the better fighter and he should have no problem controlling the action.  Vidondo has a punchers chance but Ortiz has plenty of power and his skills are much sharper than Vidondo's.

PREDICTION: It would be surprising if this fight even made it to the halfway point.  Luis Ortiz is better than Matias Ariel Vidondo in every category and that should be very clear on Saturday night.  Ortiz is going to win this fight and look good doing it and he will finish off Vidondo with a 2nd round knockout.

Eamonn O'Kane vs. Tureano Johnson

The opening bout won't have a title on the line but like on all of the other fights on this card it is scheduled to go 12 rounds.  The fight will be between Ireland's Eamonn O'Kane and Tureano Johnson who hails from the Bahamas.  The fight will act as an IBF middleweight title eliminator and it is an important fight for both men who are already in their early 30s.

Saturday will be O'Kane's U.S. debut

O'Kane is an orthodox fighter with a nice jab and straight right hand.  He likes to make use of feints in his fights and he will use them to help set up his left hook.  Body punching is a big part of O'Kane's strategy and he can surprise opponents every so often with an overhand right that while it can be wild is probably his heaviest punch.  O'Kane doesn't have much power but he has made good use out of the tools he does have, although sometimes when he throws his combinations defensive thinking goes out the window.

While O'Kane has never been in the ring with any top middleweights but he did have a successful amateur career across the pond.  His record as a professional is 14-1-1 but he only has 5 knockouts to his name.  O'Kane hasn't lost a fight since 2012 but that loss did come by the way of knockout.

Johnson has had some tough luck in his career

Johnson is also an orthodox fighter but unlike O'Kane he is very familiar with fighting the the States.  Johnson is a skilled fighter who moves well in the ring and has a good idea of what he wants to do.  He likes to play the role of aggressor and he has pretty good pop on his punches although he definitely isn't a one-punch knockout fighter.  Johnson can also switch things up and fight as a southpaw and he shows a strong right hook when he does that.  Johnson also has a good left hook as an orthodox fighter and goes to the body well.  Usually he likes to plant his head on his opponents chest and then slip to one side and unleash heavy combinations and he does his best work in close.  However, he has gotten in trouble before for being too aggressive and not boxing enough.

That trouble came in 2014 in the biggest fight of Johnson's career when he took on Curtis Stevens.  Johnson was easily handling Stevens for the entire fight until disaster struck.  Stevens, a heavy hitter, caught Johnson with a left hook that had him badly hurt.  That punch happened with about a minute left to go in the fight.  Stevens followed up and got Johnson on the ropes where he unleashed combinations which forced the referee to stop the fight.  At the time of the stoppage Johnson still had his hands up and while it was questionable it could have been avoided had Johnson just tied Stevens up.  That loss is the only one on Johnson's resume and he has a record of 18-1 with 13 knockouts.

This should be an interesting fight because both fighters are already in their 30s and will be looking to prove they belong in big fights.  While Johnson may be more skilled the ring IQ of O'Kane may be higher.  While neither fighter has faced any true top level fighters Stevens is the best name on either resume so Johnson should feel confident knowing he dominated him for nearly their entire fight.

PREDICTION: Eamonn O'Kane is a solid fighter but Tureano Johnson has some real talent.  It isn't that O'Kane isn't talented but Johnson's ceiling is clearly higher.  Of all the fights on this card the opening one will probably provide the least amount of action but fans of Johnson will be happy when he gets the unanimous decision win.