TV Fights & Boxing Predictions: October 15-16, 2010 By Brian Gorman, Doghouse Boxing (Oct 15, 2010) Doghouse Boxing - Tweet
Friday, October 15 in Montreal (ESPN3.com, and on tape-delay Sunday on ESPN): IBF Champ Lucian Bute (26-0, 21 KOs) vs. Jesse Brinkley (35-5, 22 KOs), super middleweights (168 lb.)
Prediction: Bute by TKO
How should a challenger with almost no chance put together a fight plan? Here's a suggestion for Brinkley: Bute's recently shown early knockout power against bull rushers like Edison Miranda and Librado Andrade, so Brinkley should take some lumps early and concentrate on Bute's body, hoping for a late fade. If he can hang around in the late rounds, perhaps Bute will wither like he did against Andrade in their first bout and Brinkley can pull off a huge upset. Can that work? Highly unlikely, but it's the best I could do. That's not a knock against Brinkley, who deserves credit for even willing himself to this title shot, but how much of a longshot is he? He upset an opponent in a title eliminator (Curtis Stevens) who would have been a huge underdog.
Friday, October 15 in Miami, Okla. (Showtime):
Antonio Tarver (27-6, 19 KOs) vs. Nagy Aguilera (16-4, 11 KOs), heavyweights (201+ lb.) Prediction: Tarver by KO
Back in the day, when a light heavyweight wanted to enter the heavyweight ranks, they didn't put on much weight, they just fought bigger guys and used their speed. Nowadays, apparently it's a misconception (or perhaps an excuse for them) that they should just get fat to do so. Tarver apparently thinks packing on almost 50 pounds will make him more suited for the heavyweight ranks; we'll get a glimpse Friday night, when he faces a reasonble challenge in Aguilera, although not one that deserves a premium cable slot. Having said that, Tarver is a world-class boxer with a big left hand, and once he finds his range, one of them should take out Aguilera.
Shawn Porter (16-0, 12 KOs) vs. Hector Munoz (18-3-1, 11 KOs), welterweights (147 lb.) Prediction: Porter by TKO
What a disappointing opener for an unusually lackluster ShoBox card. What has Munoz done in order to make the cut here? He's 0-2-1 in his last three since 2008, with two knockout losses and a technical draw. Additionally, he owns no notable victories in his career. Showtime usually does better than this. Porter should prove too fast and too much, and Munoz will absorb too many blows to last the distance.
Saturday, October 16 in Hamburg, Germany (ESPN3.com and on tape-delay Sunday on ESPN):
Since we all know that Briggs has merely a puncher's chance in this one, if even that, I won't waste time analyzing the inevitable outcome but will instead focus on a marginally more interesting issue: Briggs' outrage at Klitschko's questioning of his asthmatic condition. Why Briggs thinks that Klitschko's comments were anything other than a direct indictment on him is beyond me. Briggs has proven to be the opposite of many boxers out there - he continues to reap benefits despite underachievement (and he has a positive banned substance test on his record). Perhaps the fact that the pre-fight controversy here surrounded Briggs' asthma is an appropriate barometer of the importance of this mismatch.
Saturday, October 16 in Kissimmee, Fla. (Integrated Sports PPV): WBO Champ Wilfredo Vazquez, Jr. (19-0-1, 16 KOs) vs. Ivan Hernandez (28-4-1, 17 KOs), junior featherweights (122 lb.) Prediction: Vazquez by TKO
Though he gained instant name recognition as the son of a Puerto Rican legend, Vazquez has earned his stripes in the ring, dominating other contenders before knocking out Marvin Sonsona for the WBO title last year and defending it once against another undefeated opponent. As a former WBO titlist who stopped Mark "Too Sharp" Johnson in 2004 to win the belt, the Mexican Hernandez presents an interesting second defense for Vazquez, for yet another chapter in the ongoing Mexico-Puerto Rico rivalry. Three of Hernandez's four losses came in title fights, including one each against Fernando Montiel and Israel Vazquez.
