Boxing April 2nd

[Tinfish]

Wayne Braithwaite & Jean-Marc Mormeck sq.off on ShoBox 4/2 Sat. nite @ 11pm in what has the makings of a great PrizeFight!

I clearly like; (not love; but like); WB in this one.
WB just had a 15 straight KO/TKO streak end at his own hands v. Luis Azille. WB had knuckle hurts to both hands; but still kicked LA's A on the Judges ScoreCards; & caused LA to be his 16 straight opponenet to taste the canvas. JMM packs some high voltage Power himself. JMM has a 12 straight Stoppages streak to his cred. JMM has recently had some shoulder trouble & some foot issues as well.

I give WB a slight better then mild Power edge; a strong SouthPaw edge; a minor def. edge (via WB's superior footwork & lateral quicks; & JMM's above foot injury); a decent HomeRing edge (the fight is in Mass. & WB lives in Brooklyn); & a decent stamina edge as well. JMM does have the heavy DK-card to play should this one go to the Judges ScoreCards. That is a concern should this fight go the Distance. But my $'s on WB.

W.Braithwaite-130!!!

[Tinfish]

Here are my other bets for the night

Guillermo Jones-Steve Cunningham 'Over' 9.5 Rounds -240

This is a fight between an up-and-coming cruiserweight (Cunningham) against a seasoned veteran of 35 professional bouts. Neither one of these men have an extreme knockout ratio and I have no doubt in my mind that both these fighters will take it the distance. Jones knocked out his last two opponents in the first round but you won't see that again versus the quick and witty Cunningham. The Philly native is 16-0-0 with 9 KO's but I really doubt he can knock out Jones who has only been down once in his career. Both fighters are fit for a 10 rounder and this is a decent price for a sureshot decision bout.



Keith Holmes-Roman Karmazin 'Over' 11.5 Rounds -115

This is a tricky one to predict but once again I see both guys going the full distance. These two middleweights both have enough power to knock the other out but both are equally efficient defensively. This is going to be a boring bout with a possible knockdown here and there. Keith Holmes is 39-3-0 lifetime and is a very seasoned veteran in the ring. He recently fought Bernard Hopkins only to lose via UD in 12 Rounds. His three career losses have all come via Decision and he has never been knocked out. He possesses very good power but I honestly don't see him taking out the robust Russian. Roman 'Made in Hell' Karmazin is 32-1-1 lifetime and is fighting in the US for only the second time. His last time out, the fight was ruled a ND because Papillon was cut too badly by an accidental headbutt. His only loss came via UD in 12 Rounds and he has never been knocked down. Both fighters are coming off nearly a full year off and we are surely going to see some rust. This is almost a gift taking the OVER.



Jose Antonio Rivera WINS INSIDE DISTANCE -126

There is absolutely no value in taking Rivera to win at high chalk because when Don King is involved, just about anything can happen. Both these fighters are Don King promoted and that either means knockout, upset or total diaster. Collazo is a little too cocky coming into this fight and he is actually a late replacement for the scared Damangaard. El Gallo as they call Rivera is a 41 fight veteran who currently holds the WBA Welterweight belt. His hometown is Worcester (location of fight) and you can bet your bottom dollar the crowd is going to be all over a knockout! Rivera has knocked out 24 opponents in his carreer and is coming off an admirable performance against the previously unbeaten Michel Trabant. Not only did Rivera beat him by decision, but he had Trabant down in Round 2. Collazo is 24-1-0 lifetime but has been fighting a bunch of nobodies. His last two opponents were a combined 8-42-1 and as mentioned before, he is a late replacement for an ill/scared fighter. Rivera has been ready for months and he said he would not settle for anything other than a knockout. Collazo's only loss came against Cassiani in 2002 when he was knocked silly in Round 3. I expect this to be done in the 6th or 7th Round as we will witness Collazo hit the canvas on more than one occasion. This is a very bad mismatch if you ask me and Rivera will show why he is Champion.