Nonito Donaire against Rafael Concepcion for the WBA interim super flyweight title at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas is the main fight this weekend. Donaire recently relinquished his IBF flyweight title to move up in weight and draw closer to a highly anticipated sequel against his former knockout of the year victim, Vic Darchinyan. Most of the focus will be on Donaire’s bout against the Panamanian slugger but in its undercard and halfway around the world are two promising challengers that can steal the limelight from the “Flash”.
USA’s Steven Luevano [36(15)-1(0)-1] vs. Philippines’ Bernabe Concepcion [29(16)-1(0)-1]
Luevano‘s WBO Featherweight (126 lbs.) title
August 15 (Saturday) – Las Vegas, NV
Top Rank PPV for $34.95 (9:00 PM ET)
This fight was originally scheduled in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton clash last May but an injury to Luevano’s torso forced the postponement. Luevano will defend his title for the fifth time against the number 1 ranked mandatory challenger, Concepcion. In the lower weight classes, Luevano is considered as one of the better skilled fighters but the knock against him is his limited power. He moves well and consistently uses his jab from the southpaw stance to score at will. He may not be that exciting but he gets the job done. If there is a blueprint in defeating the Los Angeles native, the closest is his controversial draw against Mario Santiago last year. Santiago often tagged Luevano with straight lefts and was busy majority of the fight. If the Puerto Rican did not let up in the final round, it could have been him defending the title this weekend.
Concepcion may not be as seasoned as Luevano but still has a respectable jab to speak of. He may not be that far behind, skill-wise, but because of his length disadvantage he still cannot afford to stay in front of Luevano. He needs to bob and weave to get inside and make it a phone booth fight. His stamina will play a big role as he needs to make this a brawl. He cannot outlast Luevano nor leave the decision to the judges. His only chance against a technically proficient fighter is to knock him out. If he can withstand Luevano’s average power then he has more than a decent chance of capturing his first world title and gives the Philippines its third active champion.
Prediction: The normally busy Luevano has not fought since October and my gut feeling is that will be a factor against an active and well conditioned Concepcion. I am going against the odds and take Concepcion via late stoppage.
Spain’s Gabriel Campillo [18(6)-2(1)-0] vs. Kazakhstan’s Beibut Shumenov [8(6)-0(0)-0]
Campillo WBA Light Heavyweight (175 lbs.) title
August 15 (Saturday) - Astana, Kazakhstan
Controversy and legal wrangling surrounds this fight which may affect the defending champion’s psyche going in to his first title defense. Universum Promotions of Germany is claiming to have promotional rights on Campillo after dethroning former titleholder Hugo Hernan Garay. Spanish courts agreed pending appeal from Campillo’s team. In any case, Spain’s justice system does not have jurisdiction over Kazakhstan and the WBA already sanctioned the title fight. Team Campillo already stated that Campillo never signed an option with Universum.
Campillo took a majority decision win over fatigued stricken Garay last June in what was considered a minor upset. He can prove his title win was no fluke as he takes a risky voluntary defense against the fast rising star from Kazakhstan. A risk justified with the highest payday of his career.
Shumenov is a flashy hard hitting machine. His daunting power and tremendous skills are perfect components to a world title. Team Shumenov’s handling of his career is on rapid phase as he is on the verge of winning a world title with the least number of fights in boxing history. Since his impressive debut on November 2007, he fought six times last year including a win against former titleholder Montell Griffin. Last May he stopped another former world champion, Byron Mitchell, in the fourth. It is unfortunate that American TV is not picking this up but rational sense tells me that it will not take long before he gets noticed. If he overcomes Campillo and current WBA mandatory Vyacheslav Uzelkov later on, he will be ready against world class fighters like Jean Pascal and eventually Chad Dawson.
Prediction: I am continuing my challenger-inclined picks as Shumenov will prevail in front of his home crowd by mid-fight stoppage.
Titleholders Tally by Country
|
Rank |
Country |
No. of Titles |
Titleholders |
|
1st |
USA |
10 |
|
|
2nd |
Mexico |
9 |
|
|
3rd |
Puerto Rico |
7 |
|
|
4th |
Ukraine |
5 |
-
Sergiy Dzinziruk - WBO154
-
Vitali Klitschko - WBC200+
-
Wladimir Klitschko - IBF200+;WBO200+;Ring200+ |
|
5th |
Panama |
4 |
|
|
6th (2 are tied) |
Argentina |
3 |
-
Sergio Gabriel Martinez - WBC154
-
Omar Andres Narvaez - WBO112
-
Victor Emilio Ramirez - WBO200 |
|
6th (2 are tied) |
Japan |
3 |
|
|
8th (8 are tied) |
Armenia |
2 |
|
|
8th (8 are tied) |
Hungary |
2 |
-
Karoly Balzsay - WBO168
-
Zsolt Erdei - WBO175 |
|
8th (8 are tied) |
Philippines |
2 |
-
Donnie Nietes - WBO105
-
Manny Pacquiao - Ring140 |
|
8th (8 are tied) |
Poland |
2 |
|
|
8th (8 are tied) |
South Africa |
2 |
|
|
8th (8 are tied) |
Thailand |
2 |
|
|
8th (8 are tied) |
UK |
2 |
-
Carl Froch - WBC168
-
Amir Khan - WBA140 |
|
8th (8 are tied) |
Venezuela |
2 |
-
Jorge Linares - WBA130
-
Edwin Valero - WBC135 |
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Colombia |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Denmark |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Dominican Republic |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Germany |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Ghana |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Haiti |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Indonesia |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Italy |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Nicaragua |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Romania |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Russia |
1 |
|
|
16th (12 are tied) |
Spain |
1 |
|
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