Showtime Fight Preview

Gary Russell Jr. vs. Patrick Hyland

This weekend will be a busy one for Showtime.  Not only will they have a ShoBox: The New Generation card on Friday but also a Showtime Championship Boxing card on Saturday.  Saturday's card will be headlined by a WBC featherweight title fight between Gary Russell Jr. and Patrick Hyland.  It will be Russell's title that is on the line and this will be his first defense of that title.

Few thought Russell Jr. would KO Gonzalez 

Russell is a southpaw with some of the fastest hands in the sport.  He usually likes to keep his lead hand somewhat low and shoots his jab from his hip.  However, because of his hand speed he can also turn that punch over to a right hook at the last moment.  Along with those weapons Russell also carries with him an accurate straight left hand.  Defensively Russell has been solid but during his career he has really only faced two notable opponents.

Those two notable opponents are Jhonny Gonzalez, who Russell stopped in the fourth round of their 2015 fight, the fight in which Russell won his title, and Vasyl Lomachenko, who handed Russell his first career loss.  Up until his bout with Lomachenko, Russell had been feasting on lesser opponents.  Hopefully that is all behind him now as he looks to continue to grow his record of 26-1 which include a solid 15 knockouts.  If Russell can get by Hyland look for him to try to unify titles with a bout against Leo Santa Cruz, Lee Selby, or a rematch with Lomachenko.

Hyland's promoter is more famous than he is 

Hyland is an orthodox fighter who at 5-feet 8-inches tall is massive for the featherweight division.  On fight night Hyland will have a 4-inch height advantage over Rusell.  Hyland doesn't have the best jab but he does put some pop on it when he throws it.  What he does have is a stiff straight right hand and a good left hook.  However, he will sometimes dive in and give up his height when he throws his punches which will only help Russell who is a master counter puncher.  

Much like Russell, Hyland doesn't have a very impressive resume.  The only notable name he has faced was Javier Fortuna who accounts for Hyland's only career loss.  As a pro, fighting mostly in his native Ireland, Hyland has put together a record of 31-1 with 15 knockouts and a win over Russell would be the biggest of his career.  The win would also make him more of a name in the U.S.S because currently his promoter, former MTV Jersey Shore reality star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi is better known than he is.  

This should be a pretty good fight.  While Russell has a big advantage in hand speed and his punches carry just a bit more pop it is Hyland who is much taller which could bother Rusell of Hyland uses that height properly.  However, sometimes Hyland can punch pretty wide and if he does that against Russell he will be countered all night.

PREDICTION: Patrick Hyland has never been knocked out as a pro and that won't change on Saturday.  What will change is his one loss record because Gary Russell Jr. is too fast for him and he will control the fight on his way to a fairly wide unanimous decision victory.  

Jose Pedraza vs. Stephen Smith

Saturday night's Showtime card will feature two title fights because the co-feature is also scheduled to go 12 rounds.  That fight pits Jose Pedraza up against Stephen Smith and Pedraza will be putting his IBF junior lightweight title on the line.  While that division doesn't get much buzz it is actually one of the more talent rich in all of boxing.

Pedraza should receive much more buzz

Pedraza is a lanky fighter who works out of the orthodox stance.  Like his nickname "Sniper" suggests he is an accurate puncher with a very good jab and a stiff straight right hand.  Pedraza will also mix in a solid left hook and he will use an uppercut from time to time on the inside.  Pedraza is a much better fighter from the outside where he can sharp shoot his punches.  From the pocket he will sometimes get smothered and eat some leather.  Defensively Pedraza, who is a Puerto Rican native, is good but not great.

How a young undefeated Puerto Rican fighter can lack any real buzz is puzzling.  The tiny island of Puerto Rico has a rich history of great fighters and fans their really get behind their local talent.  Yet Pedraza lacks any big time buzz despite his perfect record of 21-0 with 12 knockouts.  While he hasn't yet faced any elite fighters he does have wins over names like Andrey Klimov and Edner Cherry.  This card should be a good opportunity for Pedraza to raise his profile should he win.

This will be Smith's first fight in the U.S.

Smith is also an orthodox fighter and much like Pedraza, he loves to work behind his jab.  That jab is really Smith's best weapon although he also has a pretty good left hook and an awkward looking right hand that can do some damage.  The main difference between Pedraza and Smith is the fact that Smith likes to work on the inside more frequently than Pedraza does.

This will be Smith's first fight in the United States and up until now all of his fights, minus one, have been in his native United Kingdom.  In recent fights Smith has faced some sub par opposition but he does have a fight with Lee Selby on his resume and that fight accounts for the only loss on his 23-1 resume, which includes 13 wins by the way of knockout.  

The winner of this fight could come down to who has the more dominant jab.  The jab is both fighters favorite and most often used punch so whoever throws the better and busier one could come away the winner.  The fact that Pedraza is slightly taller and has the longer reach should allow his jab to be better and in a fight that looks like it will be decided by the judges the jab is the punch to watch.

PREDICTION: Jose Pedraza may finally start to get some of the credit and buzz surrounding his career that he deserves.  This should be a busy fight with a lot of punches thrown and although Stephen Smith will give a good account of himself it will be Pedraza who comes away the unanimous decision winner.