Showtime Quick Picks

Davis landing a big uppercut on Jose Pedraza

Gervonta Davis vs. Liam Walsh: On Saturday Showtime will be absolutely jam packed with excellent fights.  In total the network will air four fights, three of which will be title fights.  One of those title fights will be between rising star Gervonta Davis (17-0, 16 KO) and Liam Walsh (21-0, 14 KO) and on the line will be Davis' IBF junior lightweight title.  At just 22 years old it seems like the sky is the limit for Davis.  In his last fight he completely dominated the previously unbeaten Jose Pedraza and really made fans take notice.  He fights out of the orthodox stance and he has a tremendous amount of power, especially for a smaller fighter.  Davis has a nice jab he can score or measuring the distance with and he often follows it with a powerful and accurate straight left hand.  The right hook from Davis is also a nice weapon and he is sharp defensively, at least when he wants to be.  At time Davis seems to take his foot off the gas and when that happens he will eat more punches than usual.  As for Walsh, he is an orthodox fighter who at times will switch it up and work out of the southpaw stance.  While he has enough power to earn respect from his opponents he certainly doesn't have the top end power that Davis has.  Walsh has a pretty good jab but at times drops his right hand when he throws it which leaves him open for return fire.  Along with that jab Walsh also throws a decent straight right hand and an overhand right that is more dangerous.  Although his left hook isn't great he does have a mean right hook as a southpaw.  Walsh isn't easy to hit since he has quick reflexes but he does tend to throw too many punches at a time which give his opponents plenty of countering opportunities.  Early on the movement of Walsh will really frustrate the young Davis but eventually Davis' power will be too much and he will stop Walsh in the 10th round.

Russell dropping Jhonny Gonzalez

Gary Russell Jr. vs. Oscar Escandon: One of the most talented and frustrating fighters in boxing is Gary Russell Jr. (27-1, 16 KO).  The reason for that frustration comes from his low level of opposition despite his excellent pedigree.  However, in recent years Russell has faced some good fighters in Vasyl Lomachenko and Jhonny Gonzalez.  On Saturday Russell will take on another good opponent in Oscar Escandon (25-2, 17 KO) and the two are scheduled to go 12 rounds with Russell's WBC featherweight title on the line.  Russell is a southpaw fighter with some of the fastest hands in the sport.  He works behind a busy jab and he has a very good right hook that can definitely hurt anyone when it lands clean.  While Russell also has a good straight left hand it is the right hook that he does the most damage with and he likes to counter with that punch.  Russell may not have overwhelming power but his blend of speed and accuracy makes him a dangerous puncher.  Defensively Russell is also skilled and is not an easy target to hit consistently.  The man trying to hit him consistently will be Escandon who is the bigger puncher of the two.  He has been in some tough fights and holds impressive wins over Jesus Cuellar and Robinson Castellanos but neither of them present the same problems that Russell does.  Escandon is an orthodox fighter so head clashes could play a significant role in this bout.  He is a an aggressive fighter with a measuring stick jab for his big overhand right.  Escandon also has a solid left hook, especially to the body but he does have one major flaw, defense.  It isn't that he is a terrible defensive fighter, he has never even been knocked out.  Too often though Escandon just waits behind a high and tight guard until his opponent is done punching before he mounts his own attack.  That flaw will be Escandon's downfall against Russell.  Russell's hands are exceptionally fast so if Escandon waits for him to finish punching he may be waiting a very long time.  Russell won't be the first man to knock Escandon out but he will beat him decisively with a unanimous decision.

Uzcategui dropping Julius Jackson

Jose Uzcategui vs. Andre Dirrell: The third title fight on Saturday's Showtime card will be for a vacant IBF super middleweight title.  The two men trying to take that title home are Jose Uzcategui (26-1, 22 KO) and Andre Dirrell (25-2, 16 KO).  Uzcategui is an orthodox fighter with serious power and he rebounded nicely from his lone career loss to Matt Korobov in 2014.  He doesn't have a very good jab but that isn't a punch he uses all that often either, instead relying on his power punches.  Uzcategui also doesn't have very fast hands but when he lands his punches they do damage.  The right hand from Uzcategui is probably his best punch and when it lands clean it often drops opponents.  He also has a heavy left hand but he isn't a very accurate puncher.  The problem for Uzcategui is that he doesn't have fast hands and he throws wide punches which means an accurate counter puncher can really pick him apart.  Head clashes could play a role in this fight since Dirrell is a southpaw.  Dirrell lacks the power that Uzcategui has but he makes up for that by having much faster hands.  He has a very good jab and will follow it with a nice straight left hand.  It will be interesting to see how Dirrell stands up to Uzcategui's power because while he has never been knocked out he has been dropped before.  In this fight Dirrell may have to get up off the canvas early but he will close the fight strongly and his faster hands and more accurate punchers will help him get the split decision victory.

Barthelemy celebrating a victory

Rances Barthelemy vs. Kiryl Relikh: The only fight on Showtime's card that isn't a title fight is still scheduled to go 12 rounds since it will be a WBA junior welterweight title eliminator.  The fighters aiming for that title shot are Rances Barthelemy (25-0, 13 KO) and Kiryl Relikh (21-1, 19 KO).  Barthelemy comes from the Cuban school of boxing but isn't as slick as a Erislandy Lara or Guillermo Rigondeaux.  However, he is a good defensive fighter and is an accurate puncher offensively.  Barthelemy works out of the orthodox stance and has quick hands.  He can score with his jab or use it as a measuring stick and he can also switch up and fight as a southpaw at times.  While Barthelemy isn't a busy puncher, he has never really needed to be because he is skilled at avoiding punches and is an accurate puncher himself.  Aside from the jab Barthelemy has a nice straight right hand and he often fights with his lead hand very low, and he will need to be careful doing that against a big puncher like Relikh.  Relikh hails from Belarus and he will be making his first trip stateside for this fight.  He lost his most recent fight to Ricky Burns and really struggled to make weight in that bout, and had to try to lose the excess weight three times.  Relikh is an orthodox fighter with very good power.  Not only does he have a heavy right hand but he has a monster left hook that he throws with seriously bad intentions, especially downstairs.  Relikh likes to work behind a high guard and he is aggressive, always coming straight ahead.  That aggressiveness usually serves him well but it will fail him against Barthelemy.  Styles make fights and because of Relikh's style Barthelemy will be able to pick him off on the way in on his way to a close unanimous decision win, although he may have to survive a few scary moments because of Relikh's power.