By Ian S Palmer
WBA World Light Heavyweight Champion Juergen Braehmer of Germany will be defending his title against fellow countryman Robin Krasniqi of this Saturday, March 21st in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The 36-year-old Braehmer will climb through the ropes with an impressive record of 45-2 with 33 Kos while the 27-year-old Krasniqi is 43-3 with 16 Kos to his name. The champion won his title back in December of 2013 by beating Marcus Oliveira. His defences so far have come against the likes of Roberto Feliciano Bolonti, Enzo Maccarinelli and Pawel Glazewski.
Krasniqi has already had a title shot against then WBO champion Nathan Cleverly of Britain in April of 2013 and lost a unanimous decision. He’s got a lot of experience for a 27-year-old with 46 fights under his belt since turning pro in. He recently told the press, “My dream has always been to become world champion. I missed my first opportunity two years ago, but this time I will take my chance and dethrone Braehmer.”
Braehmer doesn’t have much of a fan base outside of Germany and likely won’t until he starts meeting world-class fighters such as Sergey Kovalev, Jean Pascal, Adonis Stevenson, Lucian Bute, Bernard Hopkins, Beibut Shumenov or , Isaac Chilemba. But that’s not likely going to happen since he’s already 36 years old. His last title defence came in December when he stopped Pawel Glazewski in the first round. Glazewski had previously lost to former world champion Roy Jones Jr.
Even though he’s face mostly Grade B opponents over the years, Braehmer does possess pretty good power in his punches while Krasniqi doesn’t. Krasniqi stands 6-feet-1-inch tall with a reach of 74 inches. Prior to losing to Cleverly, he had a seven-ear undefeated streak going. He’s boxed 241 rounds since turning pro in 2005, but has also faced limited opposition. You may notice that he beat Tomasz Adamek by a unanimous eight-round decision in 2013, but this isn’t the former world champion Adamek of Poland.
The champion is a southpaw who stands just under 6-feet tall with a 71.5-inch reach. His knockout percentage is 70.2 per cent and he has 257 rounds under his belt since turning pro in 1999. His first loss came to Mario Veit in 2006 by way of a 12-round majority decision and his second defeat was a 12-round unanimous decision in 2008 to Hugo Hernan Garay. Braehmer is a decent boxer with a good jab and enough power to stop most opponents, but he’s yet to be tested by a world-class boxer and won’t be on Saturday night.
Prediction
Braehmer has the skills and power to stop a limited opponent such as Krasniqi, but he can’t afford to take him too lightly. Krasniqi will be motivated for this encounter and should do well in the early stages, but he lacks the power to hurt somebody with such a solid chin as the champion. Therefore, look for Braehmer to successfully defend his belt via a decision or late stoppage.
