HBO Fight Preview

Roman "Rocky" Martinez vs. Vasyl Lomachenko

On Saturday HBO will air a card headlined by a title fight between Roman "Rocky" Martinez and Vasyl Lomachenko.  The fight will be contested in the junior lightweight division and it will be Lomachenko's first fight at that weight class.  On the line in this fight, besides a potential showdown with Orlando Salido, who both men have faced to varying degrees of success, will be Martinez's WBO junior lightweight title.

Many felt Martinez lost his last fight to Salido

Martinez is an orthodox fighter out of Puerto Rico who is probably best described as a boxer-puncher.  He isn't the slickest fighter in the sport and he doesn't possess the heaviest hands but he is pretty good at both aspects of the sport.  Martinez has a nice jab and when he can get inside he does nice work with his left hook.  Along with those punches Martinez also has a stiff straight right hand.  One reason Martinez has been able to find such success is because he can box pretty well from the outside and in the pocket he doesn't hesitate to let his hands go and put in good work.  Defensively Martinez isn't great and he is prone to cuts because of his high cheekbones but the only time he has been stopped was in 2013 against the highly talented Mikey Garcia.

The resume of Martinez has many notable names on it but a closer look reveals a troubling trend.  Against other top fighters Martinez doesn't always do so well.  He has a loss to Ricky Burns and Garcia and he fought to a draw against Juan Carlos Burgos.  However, he does have wins over Diego Magdaleno and Orlando Salido.  Yet when Martinez and Salido fought a rematch that fight ended in a draw, although most felt that Salido had won.  As it stands now Martinez's record is 29-2-3 with 17 knockouts.  Lomachenko will be arguably the most talented fighter Martinez has ever faced and a win would put him in a new light.  

Lomachenko seems to want a Salido rematch

 Lomachenko is clearly one of the most talented southpaws in all of boxing and in fact he is probably one of the most talented period.  Whats makes Lomachenko so good is his blazing hand speed and pinpoint accuracy.  Along with those weapons the Ukrainian fighter also has solid power, although not overwhelming.  He likes to fight behind a quick jab and he is able to find great success from the outside because his footwork is probably the best in the sport.  His left hook is dangerous as is his very accurate straight right hand.  The only slight knock that can be made against Lomachenko is that he still shows his amateur style at times and he would be better served sitting down on his punches more.  Defensively he is hard to hit because of his footwork and that defense should help him against the naturally bigger Martinez.  

The resume of Lomachenko is not a long one because he only has six professional fights.  His record is 5-1 with 3 knockouts but it can be argued that he should be undefeated.  In only his second career fight Lomachenko got a title shot against Salido and lost a close split decision.  However, Salido landed a high number of low-blows in that fight that could have easily resulted in a disqualification and some still think Lomachenko won that fight outright.  Now instead of staying in the featherweight division or moving down to fight Guillermo Rigondeaux, Lomachenko will move up in weight to face the tough Martinez.

This fight could very well end up a contest between skill and will.  Lomachenko has all the skills in the world and he should have no problem showing them off against Martinez.  However, Martinez is a tough fighter and Lomachenko may need to sit down on his punches to get Martinez's respect.  As for Martinez he can't get discouraged by the speed of Lomachenko.  He will be best served getting inside and roughing things up much like Salido was able to do.  A win for either fighter will be impressive.  For Lomachenko because he is moving up in weight to fight a bigger man and for Martinez because he would have tamed the ultra talented Lomachenko.

PREDICTION: The fact that Roman "Rocky" Martinez has a tendency to get cut in fights will play a huge role in this one.  Vasyl Lomachenko has incredibly fast and accurate hands and if he gets Martinez cut he will key in on that cut and go to work.  Martinez will give a decent account of himself but his skills are no match for those of Lomachenko and the Ukrainian will win by the way of unanimous decision.

Felix Verdejo vs. Juan Jose Martinez

Saturday's co-feature on HBO will be headlined by talented prospect Felix Verdejo.  Verdejo will look to continue his unbeaten streak when he takes on Juan Jose Martinez.  That fight is scheduled to go 10 rounds in the lightweight division and it will be another opportunity for Verdejo to showcase his talents on HBO, while Martinez will be looking to make a name for himself with a victory.  

Verdejo has failed to impress in his last 2 fights

Verdejo has made a name for himself as an athletic boxer-puncher who fights out of the orthodox stance.  Because of that athleticism Verdejo has shown fast hands and with them a quality jab.  One thing Verdejo loves to do is stick that jab to the body much like Floyd Mayweather does.  Along with that jab Verdejo has a stiff straight right hand and a dangerous left hook that is his best punch.  Defensively Verdejo is solid and although he isn't great he could improve going forward and against the competition he has faced defense hasn't mattered much.

This fight is an important one for Verdejo.  Over the last few years he has found himself on a few HBO cards as the co-feature.  That is a great stage for a young fighter but he has failed to impress in his two most recent fights, both of which have gone the distance.  Also, Verdejo has dealt with hand injuries recently and that may be why he hasn't knocked out his last two opponents.  Verdejo's career record is a perfect 21-0 and he has won 14 of those fights by the way of knockout.  While the Puerto Rican has yet to face any top tier talent he is still only 23-years-old and has plenty of time to climb the ladder.

A win for Martinez would be a big statement

Across the ring from Verdejo will be the 30-year-old Martinez.  Martinez is an orthodox fighter who likes to fight from the pocket.  At times he squares up so much that he could be an orthodox fighter and a southpaw at the same time.  While he doesn't have a strong jab he will throw it in order to get inside where he can let loose his left hook, perhaps his best punch.  The problem for Martinez is that he doesn't move that well in the ring so he isn't strong defensively.  However, he hasn't been knocked out since 2010.  Which is interesting to note because Verdejo didn't even turn pro until 2012.

While neither fighter has ever faced top level competition it can be argued that Verdejo has had the tougher opponents in his last few fights.  Martinez is riding a six fight win streak though and won't want to give that up.  His career record stands at 25-2 with 17 knockouts so much like Verdejo he too is a boxer-puncher.

No disrespect to Martinez but this fight is all about Verdejo.  If it wasn't for Verdejo's name this fight wouldn't be getting televised on HBO.  That means this is a huge opportunity for Martinez and a win could change the course of his career.  Verdejo meanwhile needs to impress.  He has looked average in his last two fights and despite winning those fights he had some fans wondering if he has plateaued.  This will be the fight where Verdejo can prove he has not plateaued and he can continue his rise in the ranks.

PREDICTION: Felix Verdejo could really use a knockout and he should find one against Juan Jose Martinez.  Martinez is tough but he doesn't move well and squares up too much.  Eventually Verdejo will catch him and he will win the fight via sixth round stoppage.