By Ian S Palmer
Former IBF Super Featherweight Champion Jose Pedraza of Puerto Rico takes on former IBF Lightweight Champion Richard Commey of Accra, Ghana this Saturday, August 27th. The 10-round junior welterweight tilt from Tulsa, Oklahoma can be seen live in America on ESPN and ESPN+ while fans in the UK can catch it on Sky Sports Arena and those in Canada can see it on TSN 5. Pedraza last fought in March when he dropped a 12-round unanimous decision to Jose Ramirez while Commey last boxed in December when he lost a 12-round unanimous decision to Vasyl Lomachenko for the vacant WBO Inter-Continental Lightweight Belt.
Jose Pedraza’s December loss to former world champ Jose Ramirez snapped a three-fight winning streak. His previous defeat was by Jose Zepeda via a 10-round unanimous decision in September, 2019 for the vacant WBC USNBC Junior Welterweight Title. He bounced back from that loss first by beating Mikel LesPierre by 10-round unanimous decision then downing Javier Molina by 10-round unanimous decision and stopping Julian Rodriguez in eight rounds.
The 33-year-old Pedraza is a former IBF Super Featherweight Champion who won the vacant belt in June, 2015 when he beat Andrey Klimov by unanimous decision. He defended the crown twice by beating Edner Cherry and Stephen Smith by split and unanimous decisions respectively. Pedraza then lost his belt in his third defence when Gervonta Davis stopped him in the seventh round in January, 2017.
After that he managed to beat Jose Luis Rodriguez, Antonio Moran and Raymundo Beltran by unanimous decisions. Pedraza then ran into Vasyl Lomachenko in December, 2018, was dropped twice in the 11th round and lost a unanimous decision in a shot at the WBO and WBA World Lightweight Belts. After that he stopped Antonio Lozada Torres in the ninth round and lost to Zepeda.
After all that action Pedraza climbs through the ropes with a record of 29-4 with 14 Kos. He stands 5-feet-8-inches tall with a reach 70.5-inch reach and has boxed 250 rounds since making his pro debut in 2011. He prefers to fight from the outside if possible and isn’t much of a banger as his current knockout ratio is 42.4 per cent, but his power shouldn’t be underestimated.
Pedraza also owns a unanimous decision over Alberto Garza and a seventh-round TKO over Sergio Reyes. He enjoyed a fine, extensive amateur career and represented Puerto Rico at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing where he lost in the second round of competition. Since turning pro he’s also won the WBC Youth World, USBA, and IBO World Super Featherweight Titles to go along with his WBO Latino Lightweight Crown.
Commey is now 35 years old and fights out of New York City. He decided to make a comeback after a devastating second-round knockout loss at the hands of Teofimo Lopez in December 2019. He fought again in February, 2021 and stopped Jackson Marinez in six rounds but was then derailed by Lomachenko last December. He enters the fight with a mark of 30-4 with 27 Kos. Commey won the vacant IBF Lightweight Title with a second-round stoppage over Isa Chaniev in February, 2019, then stopped Ray Beltran in the eighth round in his first defence in June.
He won the title in his second shot at it as he fought Robert Easter for the vacant belt in 2016 and dropped him in the eighth round but lost a split decision. His other career loss came three months later when he dropped another split decision, this time to Denis Shafikov. Commey turned pro in 2011 and has boxed 191 rounds since. He’ obviously got some power as 27 of his 30 wins have been by stoppage and his current knockout ratio is an impressive 79.4 per cent.
Commey is 5-feet-8-inches tall with 71-inch reach which means he’s basically the same size as Pedraza. Commey’s biggest career wins have been against the likes of Chaniev, Beltran, Bilal Mohammad, Gary Buckland and Yardley Cruz. Since turning pro, he has also won the Ghanaian, IBF Continental Africa, African Boxing Union, Commonwealth, IBF Inter-Continental, and WBC International Silver Lightweight Titles.
Prediction…
Both boxers are former world champions and solid pros but aren’t really in the elite class anymore. It’s definitely a competitive matchup as both have proven they can be a handful for anybody when they’re at their best. Commey definitely has the edge in power while Pedraza’s the better boxer. As long as Pedraza can handle that power I think he should be able to take this fight in a close affair.
