By Ian S Palmer
WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Adonis Stevenson will be defending his crown against Dmitry Sukhotsky of Russia this Friday, December 19th at the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City, Canada. Stevenson was born in Haiti, but now fights out of Quebec. This 12-round bout can be seen live in the U.S. on Showtime while British fans can catch the action on BoxNation. Canadian fans will have to cough up for the pay-per-view version.
The 37-year-old Stevenson has a fine record of 24-1 along with 20 big Kos. The 33-year-old Sukhotsky will climb into the ring with a mark of 22-2 with 16 Kos to his name. Both boxers are just over 5-feet-11-inches in height and they both have pretty good power in their fists, as proven by their Kos records. The only major difference in the fight is the fact that Stevenson is a southpaw. Sukhotsky has a slight edge in professional experience as he’s fought 136 rounds while the champion has gone just 106.
Stevenson was a relative unknown until June of last year when he stopped former champion Chad Dawson in the very first round and won all four of his fights for the year by stoppage. The win over Dawson gave Stevenson the lineal championship as well as the WBC version. While the champion’s looking for a big-payday fight he won’t get it against Sukhotsky, who is also a relative unknown in most parts of the world. Sukhotsky’s two losses since turning pro in 2005 have been against Juergen Braehmer by 12-round unanimous decision in 2009 and to Cornelius White by another 12-round unanimous decision in 2012.
His best wins have been against Aleksy Kuziemski by sixth-round TKO in 2010 and Nadjib Mohammedi by a second-round TKO in 2011. Stevenson’s loss came via a second-round knockout at the hands of Darnell Boone in 2010. He’s beaten the likes of Marlon Hayes, Aaron Pryor Jr., Don George, Tavoris Cloud, Tony Bellew, and Andrzej Fonfara since he turned professional in 2006. He also stopped Boone in the sixth round in their 2013 rematch. Stevenson’s basically in a no-win situation here since he’s expected to beat Sukhotsky and will lose his title if he fails.
Stevenson’s biggest weapon is his power, but he does have good but not great boxing skills. His chin could also be called questionable since Boone stopped him. Sukhotsky’s power may not be as good as Stevenson’s and his overall boxing skills may be equal at best. He’s tough, aggressive and has a good chin. He also realizes that may be his one and only shot at a world title and should be suitably motivated. To be successful though he’ll need to make sure he snaps his punches and doesn’t leave himself open for Stevenson’s power shots.
Stevenson needs to be aggressive and makes sure he wins his fair share of rounds on points just in case he can’t put the challenger away. This means he’s going to have to box and let his hands go freely instead of stalking his prey and looking for a one-punch knockout. As for Sukhotsky, he’s going to have to make sure he keeps his hands up and doesn’t move towards Stevenson’s power. He can do this by keeping his distance and firing off shots as soon as Stevenson’s within range. He needs to keep the champion on the defensive so he has to protect himself rather than unleash his bombs.
Prediction
Stevenson’s got enough skill to win a decision if he can’t stop Sukhotsky, but his chin will have to hold up, unlike it did a few years ago against Boone. The Russian challenger has the power to stop Stevenson and vice versa, but there’s also a good chance this fight will go the distance. This will basically depend on Sukhotsky’s ability to take Stevenson’s best shots. A Sukhotsky win wouldn’t be a huge surprise here, but let’s give Stevenson the benefit of the doubt and expect him to retain his title. There could be a knockdown or two along the way even if it goes the distance.
