By Ian S Palmer
Two of the top two junior welterweights on the planet collide at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday September 14 when WBC and WBA World Champion Danny Garcia of Philadelphia takes on the hard-hitting Lucas Matthysse of Argentina. The 12-rounder is on the undercard of the Floyd Mayweather vs Saul Alvarez bout and can be seen live on Showtime pay per view.
The 30-year-old challenger Matthysse will enter the ring with a record of 34-2 along with 30 Kos. However, arguably he could be unbeaten at 36-0 since the two split decisions he lost to Zab Judah and Devon Alexander were highly controversial and the Argentine dropped both men to the canvas during their bouts. He’s faced some of the top boxers in the 140 lb division and has impressive stoppage wins over Lamont Peterson, Humberto Soto, Mike Dallas Jr, Vivian Harris and DeMarcus Corley. His last but was in May when he stopped Peterson in the third round.
The 25-year-old Garcia, who is unbeaten at 26-0 with 16 Kos, could be a slight cut above all of his previous opponents and Matthysse will have to be at his best to beat him. Garcia made a name for himself back in 2011 when he beat Kendall Holt by a split decision and then walked over Mexican legend Erik Morales by a unanimous decision to take the vacant WBC belt. He went on to win the WBA title when he stopped Amir Khan of England in the fourth round of a short, but exciting contest. He stopped Morales in the fourth round of their rematch and in his last contest in April earned a unanimous decision over former champion Judah.
Garcia took his foot off the gas late in the Judah bout and the challenger made things interesting because of it. If he does the same thing against Matthysse there’s a good chance he’ll pay for it with his title belts. While Garcia is a fine boxer with decent power he’s meeting a challenger who has a tremendous knockout record one who claims to have dropped every opponent he’s met as a pro. On top of his power, Matthysse is also a decent boxer.
Both fighters rise to the occasion when they’re in the ring against the best of the division. They both have experience in big bouts and are able to take advantage of their opponents’ weak spots. Each boxer will be facing their toughest opponent yet in this bout and it has the potential to be a classic. Garcia will be trying to land clean, hard shots while making sure he doesn’t get tagged clean on the chin while doing so.
Matthysse is a patient and relaxed boxer who then suddenly jumps on his prey out of nowhere and can often end a fight with just one well-placed shot. Garcia is no slouch in the power department though and he’s quite accurate and throws a wide range of punches effectively. There’s no doubt that Garcia is the boxer in this fight though and Matthysse is the puncher.
Neither boxer has a discernible weight or reach advantage, but Garcia possesses the better boxing skills and Matthysse has the better power. Sooner or later Garcia is going to get nailed with a heavy shot from the challenger and how he reacts will tell the story of this bout. If he can handle it then he should be able to earn a close decision win to hang onto his belts. If Matthysse’s power is too much then the Argentine challenger should take the titles with a late stoppage. Look for the latter scenario to take place with Matthysse being crowned the new champion.
