Jermell Charlo vs. Jorge Cota

Mandalay Bay Casino, Las Vegas, NV, June 23

TV: Fox

By Peter Lim

In the first round, Charlo demonstrates that he has the speed and ring IQ to box Cota's ears off all night. He snaps his jab, sidesteps Cota's charges and befuddles the Mexican with accurate counter punches.

But Charlo unexpectedly switches from boxer to brawler in the second and meets Cota head on. He beats the Mexican at his own game savagely ripping in punches to the head and body, like he's taking out his frustrations of missing the rematch with Tony Harrison on Cota.

Despite being outgunned, Cota remains in the pocket and trades with Charlo, knowing that his only chance of pulling off an upset is to land a lucky punch. Midway through the third, both fighters unleash left hooks simultaneously. Charlo's is shorter, sharper and more compact and it gets to Cota's jaw first, sending him crashing face first to the canvass for the full count.

Anthony Joshua vs. Andy Ruiz Jr.

Madison Square Garden, New York, June 1
TV: DAZN
By Peter Lim

Strange as it may seem, fat and chubby has the edge in hand speed over sculpted and muscular in this heavyweight match up. But that's just about the only advantage that Ruiz has against Joshua who is superior in size, power, skill set, defense and big fight experience.

After a shaky first round, Joshua establishes a rhythm to control the action from the second round onwards. Utilizing his bigger frame and longer reach, Joshua easily beats Ruiz to the punch as the Californian comes chugging forward aggressively but ineffectively. Joshua methodically shoots straight punches to the head before digging hooks to Ruiz's ample belly.

The accumulation of blows visibly takes its toll on Ruiz who begins fighting in retreat in the fourth allowing Joshua to turn up the heat and mercilessly pummel him upstairs and down from corner to corner. Desperate and depleted, Ruiz decides to go for broke and attacks with reckless abandon in the fifth round only to walk into a decapitating right uppercut that drops him for the full count.

Josh Taylor vs. Ivan Baranchyk

SSE Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland, May 18
TV: DAZN
By Peter Lim

On paper, Taylor vs. Baranchyk looks to be a 50/50 matchup; Taylor has a slight edge in speed and Baranchyk a slight edge in power. But Taylor’s style will be more of a mystery to Baranchyk than vice versa and that will tip the balance of the fight.

Baranchyk's hard-charging right handed style is something Taylor has dealt with all his life. Taylor on the other hand, is not only a southpaw, but a southpaw who fires the right hook in doubles and triples upstairs and down. It will throw Baranchyk off and deny him the opportunity to establish any kind of momentum all night.

Taylor is faster on the trigger with his right jab, which sets up sharp combinations to the head and body from the outset. Baranchyk is befuddled by the incoming fire coming at him from angles and sequences he has never seen before, rendering him unable to connect with more than one punch at a time.

Baranchyk finds a measure of success in the middle rounds by fighting from a shell, catching Taylor's punches on his gloves and arms before returning fire. But Taylor quickly makes the right adjustments to avoid Baranchyk's most damaging shots, resumes dominating the exchanges and cruises to a clear-cut victory in the 117-111 to 118-110 range.   

Naoya Inoue vs. Emmanuel Rodriguez

SSE Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland, May 18
TV: DAZN
By Peter Lim

The suspense and intrigue in this fight stems not from who will win but from how fast and how brutally the fight will conclude. Rodriguez might be a rugged talented and cagey fighter but Inoue’s devastating one-punch knockout power will negate anything Rodriguez brings to the table. The Japanese phenom has the capacity to end a fight with either hand from any angle to the head or body.

Rodriguez finds a measure of success by crowding and bullying Inoue with his superior size in the first two rounds. But that success is short lived. In the third round, Inoue delivers a crackling left hook to the liver that folds Rodriguez and sinks him to his knees. Rodriguez survives the round but never completely recovers from the debilitating body blow.

Rodriguez is reduced to fighting on survival mode with his elbows glued to his rib cage as Inoue continues to zero in on the torso in the fourth round. But just when it seems Inoue will stop his opponent with an accumulation of punches downstairs, he explodes with a one-two to the chin that sends Rodriguez down and out for the full count.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. Danny Jacobs

T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV, May 4
TV: DAZN
By Peter Lim

Many fans and pundits have pegged Jacobs as past his prime based on his recent track record - two close struggles against obscure and unheralded fighters with difficult-to-pronounce names. But few realize that Sergiy Derevyanchenko and Maciej Sulecki are two talented and tough world-class fighters who have gone under the radar. Going 24 rounds with these two underratedEast European fighters has only sharpened Jacobs‘ skills and upped his game.

Still, Canelo is a notch above Derevyanchenko and Sulecki and leaps and bounds ahead in terms of championship-level experience. Arguably among the top-notch fighters in the world today, Canelo has faced a parade of fellow pound-for-pounders in his career, losing just once to a boxer named Mayweather. Love him or hate him, it’s undeniable that, at age 28, Canelo has already accomplished hall-of-fame credentials. Guess what? The guy might not have reached his peak yet.

Canelo and Jacobs engage in an evenly-contested chess match in the early rounds with both fighters trying to figure each other out. But Canelo begins putting his foot on the accelerometer in the fourth round and gradually gains control. Forcing Jacobs into retreat mode, Canelo mixes his attack to the head and body with equal ferocity. Jacobs manages to catch Canelo coming in with sharp one-twos but they ar too few and far between to stymie Canelo’s momentum.

Aware that he is behind on the scorecards, Jacobs ups his punch volume in the ninth and tenth rounds, finding a measure of success by beating Canelo to the draw with double jab-straight right combinations. But just as he seems to be getting back into the fight, he is dropped by an overhand right-left hook combo in the eleventh round.

Canelo refuses to allow Jacobs to shake it off by going after him with a reinvigorated intensity but Jacobs survives the round by covering, clinching and switching to southpaw. Canelo continues to apply controlled pressure in the final round and Jacobs seems content to just survive the fight rather than go for broke. The judges award the fight to Canelo in the 117-110 to 116-111 range.

Regis Prograis vs. Kiryl Relikh

Cajundome, Lafayette, LA, April 27
TV: DAZN
By Peter Lim

Both Prograis and Relikh have beaten 23 opponents, stopping 19 of them. Relikh has lost twice, both by decision, while Prograis is undefeated. But throw in the fact that Relikh captured a world title while avenging one of his losses and what we have here are two evenly matched well-rounded fighters with formidable punching power. Prograis is a southpaw and Relikh’s right-handed.

The evenness of this matchup will be reflected during the first half of the bout as both fighters trade  punches on  relatively equal terms. But while Relikh is mostly headhunting, Prograis mixes his attack upstairs and down with similar ferocity.

Prograis’ body work makes the difference. By the sixth round Relikh’s movement is visibly slowed and his punches lack the pop they had in the early rounds. Prograis, though, inexplicably abandons his body attack and begins zeroing exclusively to the head in the seventh and eighth rounds, allowing Relikh to regain some momentum and resume his offensive surges.

But it turns out to be a trap. In the ninth round, as Relikh is getting back his confidence and unleashing punches with more gusto, Prograis freezes him in his tracks with a southpaw right hook to the ribcage. It sets up a pinpoint left to the liver that folds Relikh and renders him incapacitated on his hands and knees for the full count.

Terrence Crawford vs. Amir Khan

Madison Square Garden, NY, April 27
TV: ESPN
By Peter Lim

Ar first glance, Crawford vs. Khan might seem like an intriguing, competitive matchup, but given that Khan's most glaring weakness plays directly into the Crawford's best asset, it turns out to be a mismatch.

As quick-handed as Khan is, he is also very fundamentally flawed; when he misses his punches, his fists stray all over the place, his chin is floats invitingly up in the air and his balance is way off. It's precisely the type of mistakes that Crawford thrives on.

Utilizing his speed, Khan is first on the draw with one-twos in the early goings but Crawford kills his momentum every time by tying him up in a clinch. By the third round Khan begins flailing as Crawford figures him out and eludes the incoming fire. In the fourth round, Khan falls forward as he misses a combination and Crawford pounces with a left uppercut from a southpaw stance that drops Khan for the full count.