Danny Garcia vs Zab Judah Preview: Time to back up the Tweets

By Peter Wells (twitter @boxingpeter):

Danny Garcia and Zab Judah have for the last six months or so expressed their mutual dislike of each other in no more than 140 characters at a time, until Saturday 27th April when the tweeting stops, and the fighting begins. For those of you who have not witnessed the "twitter war" between the two fighters, then you are most probably wondering why this fight is receiving so much attention from fans. The two boxers online squabbling and the near brawl between the two camps has quite simply sold the fight. Suddenly fight fans have gone from "couldn't care less" to having a rather childish excitement that you usually get at school when you hear a fight is happening on the playground at lunch time.

After a double postponement Garcia-Judah is now going ahead, in what logically will be Zab's final shot at world glory. But then again when has boxing ever been logical. At 35 Judah knows that time is no longer on his side, and another comprehensive knockout defeat could leave him as gatekeeper for on-the-cusp-of-world-title fighters. For Judah to upset the odds though will take the type of performance that we haven't seen enough of from Judah. The Brooklynite was all talk before crumbling in 5 against Amir Khan before a victory over Vernon Paris earned him an unlikely shot at the WBC and WBA Light Welterweight titles.

The undisputed champion Danny Garcia currently stands in a position of power that every boxer dreams of reaching. A surprise destruction of Amir Khan last year was followed up by a one-punch KO of Erik Morales. The father-son, trainer-fighter relationship has worked brilliantly so far, in and out of the ring. Charismatic father Angel does all the talking, while son Danny backs it up in the ring. In the build up to Saturday's contest, saying Angel Garcia has gotten under Judah's skin would be a ridiculous understatement. During the initial press conference to announce the fight, Judah and Angel almost came to blows when Angel threw an insult about the cap Zab was wearing.

Judah may be wound up, but this may also spur him on to do what many consider impossible. Judah has moments of brilliance, but that brilliance is all to sporadic. That is why the pick is for Garcia to take his time in controlling the pace of the fight behind his jab, before unleashing those vicious left hooks. Sooner or later Judah will be caught and after a knockdown or maybe two, the referee will have no choice but to stop the contest in the middle rounds.

Sergio Martinez vs Martin Murray: Murray looks to spoil Maravilla's homecoming

By Peter Wells (twitter @boxingpeter):  

                            

It has been 11 long years, and many, many wins and titles since Sergio "Maravilla" Martinez fought in the country that raised him. That night Francisco Antonio Mora was the opponent and no one in the same building as Sergio would have had the slightest clue of what greatness Martinez would achieve in the that time before returning to his homeland. He left Argentina an unknown novice and he returns a national hero. Martinez's status is so large in Argentina he is now even bigger in his homeland than football superstar Lionel Messi.

So who better to take on the daunting task than the un-nerved and quietly confident Englishman, Martin Murray. Murray is relishing the opportunity and joins a trio of Englishmen to face the Middleweights best. Murray hopes though that he will not suffer the same fate as his fellow countrymen (Darren Barker was stopped in the 11th and Matthew Macklin was pulled out at the end of the 11th). Murray is a huge, and I mean HUGE underdog going into tomorrow night, but the odds didn't favour him much better when he set foot in Felix Sturm's homeland of Germany in December 2011. Murray not only proved he was capable at the top level but he so nearly took the WBA title out of Germany, instead though he had to settle for a draw in which one judge scored him ahead 116-112.

Unlike Sturm, Martinez is not in decline, and has proven he goes above and beyond his closest rivals, who all seem to be scrapping for second place. That is not to say Murray does not have a chance here, but to beat Martinez will take something just a little special.

Murray poses a similar style to Matthew Macklin in some regards. His defence is tight and most of his work comes from a sharp and accurate jab. Martinez will find it hard at times to land cleanly on Murray's chin, but is as patient as a fighter can possibly be. Expect a slow start, as both fighters are not known for coming out of the blocks fast. It shouldn't take long though for Martinez to react to the home crowd and start working Murray up and down in between plenty of circling his opponent. Murray will have his moments but as the fight wears on, he will have to take more risks if he wishes to avoid a shut-out. And when Murray takes those risks, Martinez can take advantage. Murray may be durable, but Sergio's sharp quick punches will catch him off balance more than once and this can allow for Martinez to force the referee to take action in about the 8th or 9th rounds.

Amir Khan vs Julio Diaz Preview: Khan's rebuilding continues with return to the UK

By Peter Wells (twitter @boxingpeter):

No one ever said filling ones potential would be easy, and when one hits a roadblock or two it takes a person of un-teachable determination and will power to fulfil that promise which has been shifted upon ones shoulders. So when Amir Khan suffered defeat number three it would take someone with that incredible will power to bounce back and reach the heights that he was expected to reach.

Yet another change in trainer and Khan is set to go again. So here we go. Take four! Now with Virgil Hunter in Khan's corner, the Bolton born Olympic Silver medallist will take to the ring for the second time since Danny Garcia took Khan out in 4 explosive rounds. First up was the undersized and over matched Carlos Molina (not the Carlos Molina competing at 154lbs), whom was outclassed for 10 rounds before his corner decided enough was enough.

Next up... the experienced Julio Diaz who's career highlight has been holding the IBF Lightweight title twice. Diaz despite coming off an unlikely draw against Shawn Porter has been stopped in 5 of his 7 defeats, the most recent in 2011 when Kendall Holt scored a third round knockout. A veteran of 48 fights, Diaz will come in the naturally smaller fighter, and despite 29 knockout wins, will lack the power at Welterweight to seriously trouble Khan on Saturday night.

Khan will be returning to the UK for the first time since defeating Paul McCloskey, two years ago. Khan dominated that fight and looks favourite to dominate again here. Diaz will believe the same as every Khan opponent, that he will be able to take advantage of Khan's needlessly aggressive style and suspect chin. But like 27 of those previous opponents he will likely falter to Khan's own power. Expect Amir to box to the game plan early before starting to dominate and hurt Diaz in the second half of the fight. Diaz may hit the canvas on the way to a unanimous decision loss.

This is only the beginning of Khan's rebuilding job, but afterwards we will know more about whether Khan is any closer to completing his quest or if we have all been expecting just too much.

Austin Trout-Canelo Alvarez Preview: Mexican idol puts Mayweather superfight on the line against rising star Trout

By Peter Wells (twitter- @boxingpeter):

Since shocking almost everyone in the Madison Square Garden last December, Austin Trout's life has changed drastically. He may not have reached the super-stardom of Floyd Mayweather or Manny Pacquiao, but in upsetting Puerto Rican superhero Miguel Cotto, Austin is now in the position where he calls the shots. Trout took his opportunity in the limelight to shout out Golden Boy's new Golden Boy, Canelo Alvarez, a fight GBP did not want their superstar to take. But Canelo wanted to show to fans why he is unlike other fighters who tell the press they'll fight who their promoters put in front of them. Canelo took the bait, backing up his claims that he wishes to fight the best and setting up a Light Middleweight superfight on Saturday 20th April.

Light Middleweights top man, Austin Trout still seems to be an underrated fighter he
was when stepping in with Miguel Cotto. Despite the unexpected victory for Trout, Light Middleweights new king is not being hailed with appreciation like royalty. In the other corner Canelo Alvarez is for some overrated. He is yet to be tested by someone who is not past their peak or not a blown up Welterweight. Canelo has now given himself the chance to prove he is deserving of the bundles of praise heading his way while a Trout win may finally unlock the door to superstardom that a victory over Cotto failed to bring.

To say Alvarez fights in the same way as Miguel Cotto would be a false statement, but Alvarez does indeed share traits with Cotto that made the Puerto Rican so destructive in his heyday. Body punches, controlled aggression and solid defence are all things the two have in common. For many Trout will have to fight in the same manner as he did against Cotto, but with a higher intensity. Canelo is younger and much quicker than Cotto was and is unlikely to fade as much as Cotto did late in his fight with Trout.

Canelo may be quick but his speed does match that of Trout, and for myself, although he is the bigger puncher I can't see Canelo really hurting Trout to the head - although body shots could be different. So my pick is for Trout to keep the fight at a good distance for the first half of the fight, moving more than punching, which should give Canelo a lead on the scorecard by the half way mark. Canelo will use his ability to cut off the ring and then dig in body shots when the chance arrives. As the fight wears on Trout will start to enjoy success with quick combinations as he hauls himself back in front in a close back and forth fight. A strong finish will be needed by both fighters but Trout can take a points decision by doing enough work on the outside before tying up when the two get in close.

If my prediction is correct then GBP will work hard to build Alvarez back up, until they feel he's ready for a superfight with Mayweather. As for Trout, let's just hope that his promoters and the boxing world gives him the opportunities and exposure that his talents deserves.

Donaire-Rigondeaux Preview: The 'Filipino Flash' takes on one of the Greatest Amateur fighters of all time

By Peter Wells - (twitter- @boxingpeter):

So, after a slow and somewhat uninspiring start to boxing in 2013, the big fights are now raining in on us. Fight postponements didn't help either but now fans are being fed a whole load of tasty match ups in the coming weeks. March had some sensational, fight of the year candidates in Bradley-Provodnikov and Rios-Alvarado 2, and now April and May are ready to deliver their own batch of entertainment.

To give you a quick preview of what follows this weekends Super Bantamweight clash, on 20th April Austin Trout and Saul Alvarez clash in a fight between Light Middleweights top unbeaten fighters. Following that on 27th April is the originally postponed fight between Danny Garcia and Zab Judah, before Mayweather takes on Guerrero a week later. On May 18th, Devon Alexander faces Kell Brook, while on the same card Lamont Peterson defends against hard hitting Lucas Matthysse. And to round May off, is Carl Froch's highly anticipated rematch against Mikkel Kessler.

This weekend's clash may be the most anticipated of them all as two of the sports premiere fighters step into the ring to settle a rivalry that began when Donaire first claimed that Rigo needed to prove himself in order to merit a shot at the now WBO Super Bantamweight king. Rigo did just that, destroying whoever, promoter Bob Arum put in front of him. Rigo was floored by Ricardo Cordoba, before winning a split decision, in only his 7th professional fight. Then Willie Casey, Rico Ramos and Teon Kennedy suffered 10 knockdowns between them, as Rigo proved to the world he was a class above.

Rigo's amateur record is something special. He boasts nearly 400 fights, and only 12 of those were defeats, which is exactly why most people are calling him one of the greatest amateur boxers of all time. In 2009 Rigo had to make the hard decision of leaving behind his family, including his 7 year old son in Cuba, to turn professional in Florida, USA.

His opponent, Nonito Donaire is no stranger to struggles either, growing up in the Philippines, Nonito has followed national icon, Manny Pacquiao into the pound-for-pound rankings. His career was kick-started when he shocked Vic Darchinyan in five rounds, and has since grown and grown. Knockout wins over Moruti Mthalane, Hernan Marquez and most impressively, Fernando Montiel have transformed him into a boxing superstar. His sole defeat came in only his second fight, meaning Rigo will have to snap Donaire's 30 fight winning streak.

I have a high opinion of both fighters, making this a real hard fight to predict. Nonito has the speed and power advantage, but Rigo has that rare ability to slow even the fastest of fighters
down to his pace. His counter punching is also at a level that simply cannot be taught.

It may be tough to call, but from the moment I first saw Rigo, I believed he had the beating of Nonito, and since then he has only improved. The pick is for Rigo to survive some scary moments early on before taking control of the fight, picking Donaire off with single shots to take a close but unanimous decision.

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