By Ian S Palmer
The vacant WBA interim Junior Lightweight Title will be on the line in Philadelphia this Saturday, January 18th when southpaw former champion Jezzrel Corrales of Panama meets unbeaten Chris Colbert of Brooklyn, New York. The 12-round bout can be seen live in North America on Fox and Fox Deportes. Corrales last fought in July when he dropped a 10-round split decision to Ladarius Miller after being deducted a point for holding in the final round. Colbert last saw action in September when he stopped Miguel Beltran Jr in the first round for the vacant NABA-USA Lightweight Title.
The 28-year-old Corrales won the interim WBA World Jr Lightweight crown in 2015 when he stopped Juan Antonio Rodriguez in the 11th round and then became the full champion in April, 2016 with a second-round stoppage of Takashi Uchiyama. He beat Uchiyama by split decision eight months later and then defended the belt against Robinson Castellanos by a 10-round technical decision in 2017. However, he lost the title in October, 2017 when he failed to make weight in a defence against Alberto Machado and was stopped in the eighth round.
Since then he’s stopped Onalvi Sierra in the second round last April before losing to Miller in July. His bout against Sierra came after an 18-month layoff following the defeat to Machado so he hasn’t been very active over the past couple of years. Still, he enters the fight with a pretty good mark of 23-3 with 9 Kos. He was enjoying a 21-bout winning streak before being halted by Machado after losing his second pro fight by four-round unanimous decision to Jhonatan Arenas in 2009. Corrales doesn’t have much in the way of power as his current knockout ratio is just 33 per cent and he’s been stopped once.
Corrales’ biggest pro wins have been over Castellanos, Uchiyama (twice), Rene Alvarado, Irving Berry, Jonathan Perez and Walter Estrada. However, his bout against Perez was changed to a no-decision when Corrales tested positive for cannabis. He turned pro in 2009 and has boxed 157 rounds since then. Corrales stands 5-feet-6-inches tall with a 67-inch reach and is a good counter puncher and defensive fighter. But when those traits are combined with his lack of power it means he’s not exactly the most exciting boxer to watch. However, his power may be a little underrated.
Colbert is just 23 years of age and carries a perfect record of 13-0 with 5 Kos. He’s fought 70 rounds since making his pro debut in 2015 following a fine amateur career. He was the Daily News Golden Gloves champion of New York City in 2014. He then won gold at the 2015 National Championships and qualified for the 2016 U.S. Olympic trials, but decided to turn pro as he believed there was too much politics in the amateurs.
Since turning pro his biggest wins have been over Alberto Mercado and Beltran Jr in his last two fights so he’ll be taking a step up in class against Corrales. Colbert stands 5-feet-8-inches tall with a 71-inch reach which means he carries a two-inch height advantage over Corrales with a four-inch edge in reach. Like Corrales, he’s not a very powerful puncher though with a current knockout ratio of 38.5 per cent and relies on his slick boxing skills to get by. However, he has stopped to of his last three opponents, Beltran and Mario Briones.
Prediction…
Corrales is a bit of an awkward boxer and there are question marks about his chin and power but he’s a good test for the youngster Colbert. I believe if Colbert utilizes his edge in size then he has the skills to pass this test with a close win over Corrales.
