There are quite a few great fights coming up. And it’s a good thing because we need the distraction it provides.
Let’s look at a few bouts that are just around the bend.
Sunday, October 4th | Joshua Buatsi vs. Marko Calic
On Sunday, October 4th, we’ll see if Marko Calic can put his money where is mouth is— so to speak. Calic is 11-0 with 6 by way of knock-out and he’s has vowed to put down Joshua Buatsi.
In a recent interview, the Croatian stated that he expects Buatsi to pressure him and move forward, bringing the fight to him. As such, his game plan will initially rely on counter-punching, but he said he’s ready to fight fire with fire. He went on to say that he will prove himself on this big stage, and the win will mean a lot to him.
At 6’3”, 200 pounds it’s not a stretch to think that Marko Calic will put up a fight. But the Odds at SportsBookReview.com show that he is still a massive underdog. Not just a significant underdog, but a massive underdog. Joshua Buatsi is currently sitting at -2591. To put that into perspective, to win just $100, you have to risk over $2500. That just shows what the bookmakers in Vegas around the world think.
This is for WBA International Title, and Buatsi is an up and coming star. So, in some ways, he has a lot more to lose and much more pressure on his shoulders. It’s also been a year since Joshua Buatsi has been in the ring. So, we could see a bit of rust on the light-heavyweight. That said, the resumes are quite different. Still, Buatsi is a technically sound boxer, but Calic is a technically-sound boxer as well.
I expect Calic to put up a valiant fight that goes into the later rounds, but we’ll likely see a TKO or KO in the later rounds.
Sunday, October 17th | Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Teofimo Lopez
There is some long-standing tension between these two fighters—at least according to Sports Illustrated. Well, on Oct. 17th at the MGM Grand in Vegas, they’ll get the chance for them to settle it. Lomenchenko is a -350 favorite, but in the boxing world, it’s not massive; if anything, he’s a moderate favorite. Which, says a lot for Lopez, considering that Lomenchenko is the unified WBO/WBA lightweight world champion and WBC champ. This will be the first fight for both fighters in 2020. Lopez has been the more active fighter despite a 2020 that was put on pause by COVID. And I have to say, I am impressed with what Lopez did in 2019. He had a couple of impressive victories. Particularly when he absolutely smashed the then IBF Champ, Richard Commey in the 2nd round. Before that, he took out the previously undefeated Masayoshi Nakatani and took down Diego Magdaleno with a 7th-round KO. After that fight, he knocked out Edis Tatli with a heavy right to the guts in the 5th round.
Loma fought just two fights in 2019. But the competition was no less difficult. Loma took out Anthony Crolla in the 4th round with a short hook to the ear. He fought Luke Cambell in August for the WBC lightweight title and although he didn’t get the knockout, he thoroughly dominated the fight and the judges gave him a unanimous victory.
So, now we have around 14 or 15 months of inactivity for Lomachenko and around 10 months for Lopez. Neither of these fighters has taken this much time off, so it will be interesting to see how they fare. The one thing that might come into play with the long layoff is age. Lopez is just 23, and Lomachenko will be just shy of 33 on fight night.
A couple of other things are working against Loma. He’s naturally a smaller fighter, and Lopez has more power. That said, no one creates off-center-line angles like Loma. Not to mention the fact that Loma has a lot more experience on the big stage and an incredible resume.
Honestly, I don’t know who will win this fight. I think if it goes to a decision, Loma will probably get the nod. But, Lopez is young, talented, and powerful so, there is a good chance that he could land one of those hard rights that puts the best of fighters down.
Strap in, because this fight is going to be amazing.
