OSAKA, Japan -- In 2018 Rob Brant traveled to Las Vegas to take on then WBA "regular" middleweight champion Ryota Murata. Brant left town better than most people do, leaving with Murata's title in what was the most significant victory of his career. Brant will now defend that title for the second time in a rematch with Murata on July 12 with the fight once again airing on ESPN+.
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| Brant, celebrating his title win over Ryota Murata |
If Brant (25-1, 17 KOs) isn't a spectacular fighter he's a damn good one. The Minnesota native has good, if not overwhelming power and likes to trade punches. Brant will have the hand speed advantage over Murata and that speeds helps him land a nice jab. Behind that jab Brant throws a heavy right hand that can do serious damage. That was never more evident then in his 2016 knockout of Decarlo Perez which was named Big Time Boxing's Knockout of the Year. Brant does tend to reach with his punches though and he can get out of position. He also tends to stand right in front of his opponent but he's able to do that because he has a very good chin.
Despite being the WBA "regular" middleweight champion, Brant's resume really isn't all that impressive. The win over Murata was by far the biggest of his career but outside of that he lacks any other marquee victories. Outside of Murata, the biggest name on Brant's resume is Juergen Brahmer and Brahmer was able to beat him convincingly by the way of unanimous decision. He also lacks name recognition. Rarely do you hear Brant's name brought up as an opponent for other middleweight champions and a rematch with Murata probably won't help him raise his profile very much.
Murata (14-2, 11 KOs) is somewhat of a one-trick pony. His right hand is his best weapon and a punch he really favors. Unfortunately for the Japanese fighter, he doesn't have a tremendous left hook. Murata likes to use his jab as a measuring stick for his right and usually he does a nice job of cutting off the ring. His hand speed isn't great though and he will be at a disadvantage there against Brant. While he does have thudding power Brant has already shown that he can stand up to his power and get the best of exchanges. If Murata wants to get his title back he will need to show more wrinkles to his attack than he did in his first fight against Brant.
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| Murata, looking on as Rob Brant is announced as the winner |
Before his fight with Brant, Murata was being floated as a possible opponent for Gennady Golovkin. Now the 33-year-old will need a win to remain relevant. He doesn't have a very impressive resume and his best win was in a rematch against Hassan N'Dam. While that's a solid victory, it isn't exactly a great sign if that is your best win. It also doesn't help matters that Murata hasn't fought since losing to Brant and back-to-back losses would be a minor disaster for a fighter like him.
In their first fight Brant didn't just win, he dominated on the cards. When the scores were read all three judges had it in Brant's favor with scores of 118-110 and 119-109 twice. Certainly both fighters will make some adjustments but Murata will have to really overhaul his game plan if he wants to secure the victory. Murata is at his best when he's on the attack so look for him to apply plenty of pressure. Brant does everything better than Murata does though and he's a much better inside fighter so if they stand and trade like they did in their first fight the outcome could look very similar.
PREDICTION: Rob Brant might get left out of talks about middleweight title match-ups but that doesn't mean he won't beat Ryota Murata again. Brant is simply the better fighter. He has faster hands, a more varied attack, and he's the better inside fighter. Not only does Brant beat Murata again but this time he does it by the way of 10th round stoppage.
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