Edwin Rodriguez vs. Michael Seals: It is amazing how little a record can tell you about a particular fighter. Edwin Rodriguez (27-1, 18 KO) is viewed as a fighter who is making a comeback in a sense. For many people Rodriguez has to work his way back to the top because he suffered a loss. That loss however, came against one of the best fighters in the world, Andre Ward. Meanwhile Michael Seals (19-0, 14 KO) has a perfect record that looks very impressive, especially because of his high knockout total. But a closer look reveals that Seals has faced nine opponents with losing records some very bad like his 4-23-1, 6-30, and 9-30-2 opponents. He has also faced three opponents making their professional debuts and the remaining seven opponents had winning records but not by much. Tonight Rodriguez and Seals will meet in a light heavyweight clash on Spike TV scheduled to go 10 rounds. Despite what their records might say this fight should be a huge mismatch. Seals has never been scheduled for a 10-round fight and has never fought passed 6 rounds, while Rodriguez has gone 10 and 12 rounds many times against a much higher level of opposition. This will be Rodriguez's fourth fight as a light heavyweight and so far he has gone 3-0 with 2 knockouts against quality opposition. Rodriguez, who goes by the nickname "La Bomba" is a boxer puncher who likes to mix things up. While he flashes a stiff jab he also has a bad habit of not bringing his hands back for defense after he throws a punch so he often eats counter punches, luckily for him he has a good chin though. The biggest punch Rodriguez has is his right hand which is a cross between a straight right and an overhand right but does land authoritatively. "La Bomba" also has a solid left hook and his throws his uppercuts well on the inside but if he wants to beat the best the 175-pound division has to offer he needs to improve his defense. While Seals may have the resume of a young prospect he is actually 33 years old which as ancient for a prospect. Seals is an orthodox fighter and he likes to employ the shoulder rll and shoot his jab from his hip. His best weapon is his busy jab and while his left hook is solid he may get dismayed when the punches land have knocked out other opponents don't drop Rodriguez. This fight is going to be all Rodriguez, he is simply at a different level than Seals is and the only question is whether or not the fight will go the distance. If Rodriguez decides to push the pace late he should be able to get himself an 8th round stoppage win.
Thomas Williams vs. Umberto Savigne: It will be a night of light heavyweights tonight on Spike TV because the co-feature also has two 175-pound pugilists in action when Thomas Williams (18-1, 12 KO) takes on Umberto Savigne (12-2, 9 KO) in a 10-round bout. A year or so ago Williams was looked at as a nice prospect with wins over Yusaf Mack and Cornelius White which featured both fighters going down in the opening round. However, his career took a serious downswing when he was cut by Gabriel Campillo and didn't know how to handle himself. As the great Teddy Atlas put it on ESPN's telecast of the fight "We are seeing the unraveling of a prospect right now." Williams lost that fight when the doctor stopped the fight but it appeared that he wanted no more of Campillo. Williams has won one fight after that loss but he is still in rebuilding mode. Williams is a southpaw who has a decent jab that he likes to follow up with a strong straight left hand. The southpaw can get a bit wild with his punches at times though and defense is a problem for him along with the fact that he may not be mentally tough enough to rise to the top of the sport. Savigne still remains a mystery. He is a Cuban fighter who had his best win overturned to a no contest for failing a post-fight drug test. In his most recent fight he was stopped in two rounds by Craig Baker and he has also been dropped by a 26-22-7 opponent so his chin is a real question. What Savigne does well is throw crisp punches in the form of his jab and straight right hand. Both fighter have huge question marks about their overall abilities and it will be interesting to see if the chin of Savigne can handle Williams who does throw with some pop. It will also be interesting to see if the crisper punches of Savigne can bother the often wild Williams. Savigne has two losses the loss to Baker and one to a fighter with a 10-14-1 record and while Savigne may be more skilled than Williams he doesn't take a punch as well. This should be Savigne's fight but Williams will win it with a wild punch that hurts Savigne and he will stop him in the 7th round.
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