By Ian S Palmer
Former two-division world champion Jessie Vargas of Las Vegas will be taking on Puerto Rico’s Thomas Dulorme at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago this Saturday, October 6th. The 12-round welterweight bout can be seen in North America on DAZN and on Sky Sports in the UK. Vargas last fought in April when he battled to a 12-round majority decision draw with Adrien Broner while Dulorme’s most recent outing was a 10-round unanimous decision defeat to Yordenis Ugas.
The 29-year-old Vargas is a former junior welterweight and welterweight world champion and enters the bout with a mark of 28-2-1 along with 10 Kos. He has some excellent boxing skills, but isn’t known as a big puncher even though his power seems to be improving with each outing. However, his current knockout stands at just 32 per cent. Vargas has shown he has a pretty solid chin, but has been down on the canvas a couple of times in the past, most notably to Manny Pacquiao.
Vargas stopped Sadam Ali in the ninth round to win the vacant WBO Welterweight Title in March, 2016, but dropped a unanimous decision to Pacquiao eight months later. His other defeat came at the hands of Timothy Bradley by a controversial 12-round unanimous decision in June, 2015. Vargas struggled early, but staggered Bradley in the 12th round and appeared to have him out on his feet. However, the referee made a crucial mistake by halting the fight with about seven seconds to go as he thought he heard the final bell.
Vargas earlier won the WBA Junior Welterweight Crown in April, 2014 against Khabib Allakhverdiev and defended it against Antonio DeMarco and Anton Novikov before meeting Bradley. He’s a talented boxer/puncher with exceptional skills, but as mentioned earlier, lacks a big punch. Vargas likes to establish his jab to set up short, quick flurries to both the head and body. His other notable wins have been against Steve Forbes, Josesito Lopez, Walter Estrada and Vivian Harris.
As far as size goes, Vargas stands 5-feet-10-inches tall with a wingspan of 71 inches. He turned pro back in 2008 after a fine amateur career which saw him go 120-20 and he has fought 223 rounds since. Vargas previously held the WBC Continental Americas Welterweight title and has gone 4-1 in world championship fights with a knockout. He’s also gone 5-2-1 against former or current world champions with a pair of stoppages under his belt.
The 28-year-old Dulorme was born in French Guyana, but resides and fights out of Puerto Rico. He has a mark of 24-3 with 16 Kos and is a good boxer with decent power and a solid chin. Dulorme’s pro losses came in his last bout to Ugas as well as at the hands of the hard-hitting Luis Carlos Abregu when he was stopped in the second round in 2012 and to world champ Terence Crawford by sixth-round stoppage in 2015. His biggest wins have been against Hank Lundy, Karim Mayfield and DeMarcus Corley.
Dulorme stands 5-feet-10-inches tall and has a reach of 70 inches which means he’s the same height as Vargas with a minimal one-inch disadvantage in reach. Dulorme has fought 136 rounds since turning pro in 2008 and has previously captured the NABF, and NABA USA Welterweight Titles. His best chance here is to get off to a quick start and try to pile up as many points as he can in the early rounds. But he’s going to have to stay on top of Vargas all night long if he hopes to pull out a win.
Prediction…
Vargas fought a good, exciting fight against Broner and arguably won it, but seemed to slow down a bit in the later rounds. He’ll need to keep the pressure on this time and be wary of Dulorme’s power. Vargas is probably underrated by many, but he’s a solid pro and doesn’t shy away from taking on the top names in the sport. He should be able to do enough to beat a game and willing Dulorme here.
