By Ian S Palmer
Australian middleweights Jarrod Fletcher and Daniel Geale are set to meet each other at the Horden Pavilion in Moore Park, New South Wales, Australia this Wednesday, December 3rd in a 12-round bout. Both boxers are coming off of losses and are looking to get back in the win column and a possible future shot at a world title belt. This fight is for the IBF Pan Pacific/Interim WBO Asia Pacific Middleweight title.
The 33-year-old Geale stands 5-feet-10 inches tall and has a 71-inch reach and he’ll be climbing through the ring ropes with a record of 30-3 along with 16 Kos. He’s been beaten by IBO and WBA World Super Champion Gennady Golovkin, as well as former world champion Anthony Mundine and Darren Barker. Golovkin stopped him in the third round at Madison Square Garden in New York back in July. Geale has now lost two of his past three fights and needs to turn his career around before the slump is extended.
The 31-year-old Fletcher has half-an-inch height advantage over Geale, but he’s an inch shorter in the reach department. He’ll be entering the fight with a record of 18-2 along with 10 Kos to his name. He’s been beaten by Billy Joe Saunders of England and American Daniel Jacobs, who both stopped him. Jacobs knocked him out in the fifth round of their bout at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York back in August when the two met for the vacant WBA World Middleweight crown and Saunders stopped him in two rounds in 2012.
Fletcher isn’t an elite boxer by any stretch of the imagination, but he does have some good boxing skills to go along with his average power. Geale is widely recognized as being the more skilled of the two and also has a bit more power in his fists. However, both boxers have questionable chins. Fletcher prefers to box from the outside and use his jab as a rage finder, but if he’s pressured by Geale he’s going to have a hard time of it.
Fletcher was is riding a six-fight winning streak before he met Jacobs by beating the likes of Tim Kanofski, Max Bursak, and Randy Suico. Fletcher’s best chance of pulling off a win here is to stay on the outside and jab. However, he’s also going to need a solid chin when Geale tags him on it. Geale is a former IBF World Champion, but he’s not really a Grade A boxer. He’s fought some good opponents such as Mundine and Barker, but lost to both of them by split decision.
However, he does have wins over Felix Sturm, Roman Karmazin, and Sebastian Sylvester. He also avenged his loss to Mundine by unanimous decision last year. Geale’s an aggressive boxer who likes to stay busy with his right hand being his best weapon. Geale is used to being the aggressor and taking the initiative while going forward. If he can keep Fletcher on the defensive it could be his best tactic. He needs to land shots and then make sure he’s not in the line of any return fire.
Prediction
This is another tough test for Fletcher as he’s going from Daniel Jacobs to Geale. However, Geale is stepping down in class since he faced Golovkin the last time out. At this stage of their careers Geale has to be able to handle the likes of Fletcher if he hopes to remain a legitimate middleweight contender. Geale is the better boxer and also possesses more power and a better chin. He should win this bout by a comfortable decision or stoppage in the second half of the fight.
