Miguel Vazquez vs Denis Shafikov Preview

By Peter Wells:



Miguel Vazquez (left) & Denis Shafikov (right)


Not many fighters will share the ring with Canelo Alvarez and Timothy Bradley and remain an unknown quantity outside of hardcore boxing fans. But for Mexico's Miguel Vazquez, that is exactly the case as the reigning IBF Lightweight champion gears up for his 6th and possibly toughest defence.

On his pro debut he was placed in with then 2-0 Alvarez - clearly showing no one expected Vazquez to go far in the boxing world - whom he lost to on a split decision. Then after a run of 18 wins he faced 20-0 Timothy Bradley, losing a near shut-out decision over 10 rounds. 7 months later and he lost again to Alvarez, this time via a unanimous decision.

Now as a legitimate world champion - and rated by many as the best 135lb fighter in the world - Vazquez 33-3(13) still seems to carry around the tag of a fighter who is meant to lose. One has the feeling that his last opponent, Mercito Gesta, was set up to dethrone the man whose style is often unattractive for most viewers. Instead the unbeaten Filipino did little to discourage Vazquez's boxing rhythm, losing on points by wide margins.

After over a year out of the ring Vazquez returns to face another undefeated fighter in Russian Denis Shafikov 33-0-1(18). The 5ft 5in southpaw is an aggressive boxer, who enjoys swarming his opponents with fast and powerful combinations. The 28 year old has received a valuable education on the way to his first world title shot beating the likes of Albert Mensah (UD 12), Lee McAllister (RTD 8), Giuseppe Lauri (RTD 8) while drawing with and beating Brunet Zamora (D 12 & W UD 12).


Vazquez dominates an uninspiring Gesta

That initial draw with Zamora may well highlight limitations in Shafikov's game, but a victory in the rematch showed he was ready for the next step.

That next step will be a tough one as it will prove difficult to locate the 5ft 10in Vazquez, who loves to box at a safe distance while side-stepping quickly around the ring when not in punching range. Shafikov will have to cut the ring off, but that sounds a whole lot easier to say than do.

Mensah had his short moments behind the jab against Shafikov but the tough African fighter spent far too much time leaning against the ropes, allowing the Russian to control the contest. And while Mensah was down twice, the Ghanaian took a lot of punishment, yet never looked like being a stoppage victim. When caught in the past, Vazquez has proven to have a solid chin, further enhanced by sharing 14 rounds with the much bigger and stronger Alvarez.



Shafikov gets inside against McAllister

Shafikov can snatch a few of the early rounds as judges will lean to the aggression of the challenger, but by round 5 the champion will up his work rate, leaving Shafikov to eat several long jabs. As the contest wears into the 2nd half, Shafikov may start to tire having used a lot of energy just trying to catch up with Vazquez and attempting to make the most of the occasional bursts he is able to get off when inside. This is when Vazquez can begin to sit down on his shots, especially the trailing left hand against the southpaw.

It would be nice to see Vazquez close the show but I see him coasting to the finish line. In some close rounds Shafikov may get the nod which could leave the scorecards looking closer than the fight actually was, but Vazquez can take his 34th victory with a decision win.

In the feature bout is an extremely interesting match-up between Akifumi Shimoda 28-3-2(12) and Marvin Sonsona 17-1-1(14).

Shimoda has been in rebuilding mode since a one-punch KO defeat to Rico Ramos when he was ahead on the scorecards. Sonsona has been doing relatively the same since his 4th round defeat to Wilfredo Vazuqez Jr. Since that contest in 2010, the Filipino has fought three times - once in each year.

That inactivity could prove crucial but while Shimoda is the favourite, I feel that Sonsona can spring an upset, stopping the Japanese fighter in the latter stages of this 12 rounder.