By Ian S Palmer
Undefeated J’Leon Love of Inkster, Michigan of will be taking on veteran Rogelio Medina of Mexico in a 10 round super middleweight bout at the Pearl at Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas this Saturday, August 30. American boxing fans can catch all of the action live on Showtime while fans in Canada can check it out on Super Channel. The 26-year-old Love will enter the ring with a perfect record of 18-0 along with 10 Kos while the 25-year-old Medina’s record stands at 32-6 with 26 Kos.
Love’s last bout took place in May against Marco Antonio Periban of Mexico and he was dropped in the sixth round, but got back to his feet to take a unanimous decision. Love admitted that he was hurt, but also gained a lot of experience from that fight. He said it showed he can handle adversity in the ring and that will help him against the rugged Medina. Love believes he shouldn’t have any problem with Medina as long as he doesn’t stand in front of him. He feels his footwork will keep him out of range of Medina’s power shots.
He remarked, “I fight guys all the time with boxing power, but at the end of the day your hands can’t hit what your eyes can’t see. If I’m not standing in front of him then I’m not really worried about it. People say that my progress in my career has been questionable, but at the end of the day tell those critics to get in my shoes. I don’t try to prove a critic wrong. To me, a critic is a hater because they obviously had to sit down and talk about me.”
The 5-foot-10-inch Love turned pro back in 2010 and has faced the likes of Derrick Findley and Gabriel Rosado. Love was decked in the sixth round against Rosado in May of 2013 and was originally awarded with a split decision victory after 10 rounds. However, that was overturned when Love tested positive for a banned diuretic after the contest.
Medina, who stands 6-foot-1, turned pro back in 2007 and has had 38 pro fights even though he’s just 25. His chin is questionable since he’s been stopped three times in his six losses. He went three years before suffering his first loss when Gilberto Sanchez stopped him in the sixth round in 2010. Luis Ramon Campas did the same thing to him a year later as did Badou Jack last December. In fact, Medina’s on a cold streak as he’s lost four out of his past six contests.
Prediction
Both Love and Medina have tasted the canvas in the past, but Love has managed to get up from it. There could be a knockdown or two in this encounter, but Love will probably try to stick to boxing. He has the better skills while Medina arguably has more power. Love doesn’t want to get into a slugfest since he could come out on the wrong end of it. However, if he uses his feet and know-how, Love should be able to do enough here to take the bout by a late stoppage or a fairly comfortable decision.
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