Corrales vs. Castillo Fight Predictions
 Compiled by Anthony Cocks, Site Editor (May 5, 2005)
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Photo Tom Casino/SHOWTIME
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In the first four months of 2005 boxing has already turned out some early ‘Fight of the Year’ candidates, but don’t lodge your ballots just yet. This Saturday on SHOWTIME at 10pm Eastern Time/7pm Pacific Time Jose Luis Castillo and Diego Corrales meet in a WBC/WBO unification bout that is almost certain to be considered for top honours at the end of the calendar year. Read on to find out who the Doghouse Boxing scribes believe will win this compelling match-up and why.
Benny Henderson: I have made my mind up and changed it several times looking at this match-up. The only conclusion that I came up with is that this fight is going to be a barnburner of a bout. Both are superior warriors in the ring with excellent skills and awesome power. If I make a call now it will change by fight night so all I can say is that somebody is going down, and they are going down hard.
Aaron Imholte: I think Castillo's chin will hold up to Chico's power and he will gradually break down Corrales in a masterful boxing performance. Castillo by 12th round TKO or slim UD. This is a fight that makes me wish we had the 15 round championship fights again.
Anthony Cocks: As much as I like Corrales as a ring warrior and person, I think he’ll come up a little short against the chronically underrated Castillo. Look for Castillo to smother Corrales on the inside as he bangs away to the body and outworks him down the stretch.
Sean Newman: Corrales has shown marked improvement in his battles with Casamayor and Freitas, but we cannot forget that until his big punches started to get through, he was on the short end against ‘Popo’. Castillo is a hard-nosed fighter who can probably withstand Corrales’ best punches and keep coming. I see Castillo putting the pressure on and gutting out a clear cut decision win.
Rob Scott: This is one fight that I think the saying, "Who ever wants it more", will definitely come into play. Both will be facing the toughest opponent of their careers. A lot of times fighters who are knockout fighters become victims when someone is able to take their best. Who will want it? Both. Draw in the fight of the year.
Gary Pino: Corrales vs Castillo will be a war. The only thing that keeps my focus on my decision here is the chin and power of Corrales. How many guys could make ‘Popo’ pull a "NO MAS"? This fight will also end in a knockout and will be very entertaining to say the least! Corrales by KO. I can't say which round, but I would say it may happen late in this fight once Castillo realizes he cannot hurt Diego.
Tom Gray: I pick Castillo to beat Corrales by late TKO or a tight decision. Castillo is a fantastic pressure fighter who will be able to get under Corrales long range bombs and cause damage. You need to be ultra slick to get past Castillo and Corrales isn't slick enough. It's a dynamite match up though!
Andrew Mullinder: Corrales is a terrific fighter, with a huge punch and an even bigger heart, but I think he’s on a loser against Castillo. Corrales’ win over Casamayor wasn’t that impressive and Freitas was an accident waiting to happen. Of course, tall, heavy punchers usually do well against pressure fighters, and no doubt Corrales will charge Castillo a high price for entry to the inside. But Castillo is one of the hardest men in boxing, and he can take Corrales’ heat – especially if Goossen has ‘Chico’ on his toes rather than setting himself. By the later rounds, Castillo will have found the range and softened up Corrales enough to force a late stoppage. Castillo KO10.
Bobby Jones: This is a very tough fight to pick a winner for. Corrales and Castillo both have the ever present punching power that can send anyone home early. They are both also very good boxers. I think Corrales takes advantage of the fight in the mid to late rounds and squeaks out a narrow unanimous decision.
Jess E. Trail: Corrales will box intelligently. I see both fighters getting busted up a bit but in a terrific fight that goes the distance. Corrales is most susceptible to fast, hard counterpunchers and potshotters, not as much aggressive sluggers. Corrales wins a hard-earned decision.
Wayne Richardson: I am choosing Corrales by decision. It's really a pick ’em
fight but I like Diego’s boxing skills to overcome Castillo’s tenacity. Hard one to choose.
Ric Solivan: In Castillo and Corrales, you have two of the most celebrated and respected anomalies of the sport. Two fighters who posses a level of toughness, power and courage, that is matched and barely surpassed by a mere handful of fellow pugilists. Throughout their careers, both ‘Chico’ and Jose Luis have displayed these attributes in the squared circle, both in victory and defeat against some of the biggest names in the sport, names like Mayweather, Casamayor and Freitas to name a few. However come Saturday they have the opportunity to prove to the world, just who is the better man between them, in what will likely be an edge of your seat thriller until the end. You have a better chance of winning the lottery than correctly picking a clear winner here, yes it’s that close. However, this fight is so difficult to call mainly because it is a fight to be determined more by mental than physical endurance, it will be about who can push and be pushed to the edge and adapt, survive and overcome.
However it is my opinion that the pride of Mexicali will declared the victor by unanimous decision. I base my answer strictly on Castillo’s past performances against Floyd Mayweather, Juan Lazcano and Joel Casamayor. What do these encounters tell us? They show us that Castillo has the ability to adapt, even in a losing effort and that his will to secure himself a spot amongst Mexican legends such as Chavez, Sanchez, Morales and Barrera drives him to overcome every step of the way, and that will include Corrales on Saturday.
Scott Mallon: This is a tough fight to call and it really could go either way. Will Castillo break down Corrales with relentless pressure or will Corrales have the firepower to take him out? Castillo can be a bit robotic at times but is not going to lay down so it should be a great fight. Corrales will not be denied though. Look for Corrales to come on in the middle rounds and put Castillo down and out in round ten.
Coyote Duran: I think Corrales’ long layoff can actually benefit him in his upcoming meeting against the real World Champion Castillo. It's given ‘Chico’ a chance to do a little extra leisurely studying for his big test. Long story short: Castillo's not taking on a brittle-handed Floyd Mayweather, but a long-tall KO artist who's looking to blow off some pent-up steam by continuing his raid on the 135 pound division by administering a 10th round KO (3 of 4 of Castillo's losses by KO have come in the 10th heat. I've just got a zany feeling here), adding the WBC trinket and the real belt, The Ring Magazine's title, to his own WBO strap.
Brent Hedtke: Both of these two have been on a roll lately and are just about as evenly matched as two lightweights can be. We all know how soft Chico's chin can be but what he lacks in whiskers he more than makes up for in heart. This one is going to come down to punching power, where the obvious advantage goes to Corrales. Castillo has a rock solid chin and this will undoubtedly be a war but I see Chico getting up off the canvas to win close, but unanimous decision based on his cleaner, harder punches.
Peter Chhim: Castillo KO Corrales. Corrales may be a beast, but Castillo is a monster. In a war of attrition, I'll favour the guy with the better armour. Chico’s been dropped more than a few times, and although he’s got quite a bit of firepower, I doubt he’ll surprise Castillo with anything he hasn’t seen yet. After all, Castillo was once the main sparring partner for a prime 140 lb Chavez.
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