By Ian S Palmer
Former WBO Super Bantamweight Champion Isaac Dogboe of Ghana will be taking on Joet Gonzalez of Glendora, California this Saturday, July 23rd for Gonzalez’s WBO International Featherweight Belt. The fight is also supposed to be a WBC title eliminator. The bout from Hinckley, Minnesota can be seen in America on ESPN+ while fans in the UK can catch it on Sky Sports Action. Gonzalez last fought in March when he stopped Jeo Santisima in the ninth round to win the vacant title while Dogboe beat Christopher Diaz by a 10-round majority decision in his last outing in November to retain his NABF Featherweight Title.
The 28-year-old Gonzalez owns a record of 25-2 with 15 Ko’ s and now fights out of Los Angeles. He stands 5-feet-6-inches tall with a 70-inch reach. Gonzalez made his pro debut in 2012 and has 150 rounds of experience since then. He possesses pretty good power with a current knockout ratio of 56 per cent. Since turning pro he’s also captured the WBO NABO Featherweight Belt.
Gonzalez’s biggest wins have been against Miguel Marriaga, Rafael Rivera, Rodrigo Guerrero, Derrick Murray and Jose Miguel Tamayo. His first defeat came at the hands of Shakur Stevenson via unanimous decision in a shot at the vacant WBO Featherweight Title in October, 2019. His second defeat was also in a WBO World Featherweight title shot when he dropped a unanimous decision to Emanuel Navarrete last October.
Gonzalez possesses a fine jab and combines it with good footwork while keeping his guard high for defence. He had a fine amateur career which saw him beat and lose to Gervonta Davis and also competed in the World Series of Boxing. He performed well against Stevenson and Navarrete, but fell short of pulling of an upset in each fight. However, he did gain some invaluable experience against world-class opposition.
The 27-year-old Dogboe hails from Accra, Ghana but fights out of London, England. He’ll climb into the ring with a fine mark of 23-2 with 15 Kos. Dogboe enjoyed a fine amateur career and boxed at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. He turned pro a year later and has fought 160 rounds since then. He’s also won several regional and minor titles since turning pro including the West African Boxing Union, WBO Africa, WBC Youth Silver and WBO Oriental Featherweight Titles as well as the WBO International and WBO World Super Bantamweight Titles.
Dogboe won the interim WBO Super Bantamweight Belt in January, 2018 when he stopped Cesar Juarez in the fifth round. He then earned the full belt when he stopped former champion Jessie Magdaleno in the 11th round of a thriller just three months later after being dropped in the first round. He defended the title with a first-round stoppage over Hidenori Otake and then lost it by unanimous decision to Emanuel Navarrete in December 2018 and was stopped in the last round of their rematch five months later.
Dogboe stands 5-feet-4-inches tall with a 64-inch reach which means he gives up two inches in height and six inches in reach to Gonzalez. He also has pretty good power with a 60 per cent knockout ratio but has gone the distance in his last two fights. Dogboe also has wins over the likes of Adam Lopez, Chris Avalos, Javier Nicolas Chacon and Julian Aristule.
He made a name for himself and burst on the international boxing scene after his very impressive performances against Magdaleno and Otake. He then showed a lot of fight and heart in both battles with Navarrete but has slipped below the radar slightly since then. However, he’s won all three of his fights since losing two in a row to Navarrete.
Prediction…
This is a very even matchup between two fine boxers who are hoping to land another world title shot. As usual, Dogboe has a size disadvantage and will need to work his way inside. He’s usually not afraid to let his hands go and the same can be said of Gonzalez so this could turn into a firefight. This is a bit of a tossup but I think Gonzalez’s size advantages will see him through.
