By Jack Price @PriceyJ97.
The whole of Britain were waiting… Waiting for what was guaranteed to be one of the most action-packed fights of the year so far; British banger Lee Purdy up against tough and gritty American brawler Carson Jones. Unfortunately, this fight has been cancelled for the second time in 4 months and looks like it may never happen. So instead Purdy will take on Mexcian veteran Cosme Rivera (35-15, 24 KO’s).
Now, let’s be honest, this fight is nowhere near as exciting as Purdy Vs Jones, but it is still a decent test for Purdy, and Rivera is probably the best opponent we could ask for at just 5 days notice. So still make sure that you do not miss this fight on Saturday night. It’s taking place on the undercard of Darren Barker Vs Simone Rotolo at Wembley Arena and will be televised live on Sky Sports.
Purdy (19-3, 12 KO’s) is on an extremely impressive run right now, winning his last three fights by knock out and is looking to move further and further up the rankings in search for a world title shot. A win over Rivera will not likely move him any further up the rankings but it will be a good opportunity for Purdy, his team and the fans to see just about where he is right now. Purdy’s last three victims were never tested at world level whereas Rivera has been. The 36-year old has shared the ring with Alfredo Angulo, Andre Berto and Zab Judah who are all considered as serious contenders in the light-welterweight, welterweight and light-middleweight divisions right now.
Rivera has 15 losses on his record and only 3 of these have come against world-class opponents. The rest have been against fringe contenders or just basically average-at-best opponents. ‘Chino’ has been campaigning at light-welterweight for the last year or so and, although slightly taller than Purdy, he will most likely lack the strength to hold his own against the British bruiser. One field he does have the advantage in is experience. He has over twice as many fights as Purdy and a career spanning more than 20 years. Purdy has sort of learned on the job as a pro. The 25-year old had little amateur experience and has been matched tough in his pro career. Rivera will look to use his experience in every way possible, even if it means frustrating Purdy by holding and making it a boring fight for the fans.
I predict that Purdy will look to make a statement and blast the Mexican out of there in the same way Zab Judah did back in 2005. This will be his best bet as Rivera has good movement and looks to throw shots from angles whilst on the move, so the longer this fight goes and the slower pace it is fought at, the more it suits him. All it takes is a fast but controlled start from Purdy and a few big shots landed, and he could have his man out of there extremely early. I’ll go with Purdy to put on a statement-making performance and stop Rivera in rounds 4-6.
