Tito virtually all the way.
Posted: 12 May 2005, 11:30
Here's the maxboxing picks, including my own.
MaxBoxing's Fight Picks for (HBO) (PPV) Felix Trinidad (42-1) vs. Ronald Wright (48-3) May 14.
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Michael Katz - I like Tito in this one
(Even up, I like Tito in this one, barely, but at the odds where Winky is an underdog, I LOVE Ronald. Yes, decision. and it will be this week's fight of the year.)
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Doug Fischer - Trinidad by close decision or late stoppage
(Wright is the biggest, strongest, toughest and most experienced technician that Tito has faced since Bernard Hopkins at his peak. It's a tough fight, but I think Tito is a great fighter and great fighters find a way to win. Wright will give Tito trouble, but I don't see the Winkster boxing a perfect 12 rounds the way Hopkins did four years ago. He's gonna get hit - hard and often, and I don't think he'll be able to fight his fight and go the distance with Tito. If it goes the distance, Wright will have to go into survival mode, and least to an extent, and he won't win on points like that.)
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Gary Randall - Trinidad W12 Wright
(I don’t think Wright’s high guard will stop Tito’s huge left hook come late in the fight.)
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Jason Probst - Trinidad TKO 10 Wright
(Should be an awesome fight, but I suspect Tito's "creeping death" style proves too much for game Wright down the stretch. If he bangs the midsection he'll be doing himself a big favor for the second half of the fight. If he goes headhunting, Wright will give him a lot of trouble. But in the end he just has too many chances to land bombs and I don't see Wright dissuading him enough to take the duke.)
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Lee Groves - Wright W 12 Trinidad
(We can't base anything on Trinidad's spectacular KO of Mayorga. Mayorga was a right-handed, wade-in slugger who was a blown-up welterweight while Wright is a defensively skilled southpaw who regularly comes down from light-heavyweight poundage to make 154. Tito looked great against a perfect foil but Wright's chin won't be so readily available for Tito's bombs. Winky's in-ring activity will also serve him well against a man who has fought only twice since his KO loss to Bernard Hopkins Sept. 29, 2001. Plus, Wright's style could easily frustrate Trinidad and more opportunities to counter will present themselves as a result. Still, it won't be easy for Wright because of Trinidad's spectacular skills. Wright doesn't have the power to KO Trinidad and Trinidad won't hit Wright enough to knock him out. Thus, Wright by decision.)
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Sugar Lee Santiago - Trinidad by TKO in the 10th
(I think this a dangerous fight for Tito and it will be a hard for him in the early rounds but I think Tito will hurt Winky late and finish him by the 10th round.)
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German Villasenor - Winky in a tight, controlled decision..
(Winky Wright will show more pop in this fight vs the powerful and bigger Trinidad, using his naturally stronger right jab (as he is a natural righty, who fights out of the southpaw stance) the jab and tight defense will keep tito's vaunted power in check as he piles on the points, managing to wobble the Puerto Rican hero on route to a suspensful decision in his favor.)
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Tom Hogan/ HoganPhotos.com - Trinidad vs Wright - DRAW!!.
(Felix and Winky trade bombs in few instances but the fight boils down to a chess match with both fighters fighting cautiously. Winky's movement causes problems for Felix and Felix's ability to land hard shots on few occasions keeps Felix in the fight. My money says DRAW!)
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Armando Alvarez - Felix "Tito" Trinidad TKO 10 Winky Wright
(Very tough fight for Tito. The Puerto Rican superstar will have trouble early with the master boxer that is Wright. The unidisputed junior welterweight champions' career is at it's peak after two very convincing wins over Sugar Shane Mosley. This time he has his work cut out for him, as he faces one of the hardest punchers in the history of boxing. Very few times do you see a man with such debilitating power like Trinidad. Quoting Drago's manager in Rocky IV, "Whatever he hits, he destroys." I don't know if Tito's power measures 1850 pounds, but he has made strong men look weak with his power. I expect Wright to outbox Trinidad and win most of the early rounds, but as soon as Trinidad figures him out, he will be able to stop him. Wright has never faced someone with the power that Trinidad possesses, and he'll be fighting at 160. Hopkins was able to handle Trinidad pretty easy, but he not only beat him with ring skills, but also with mind games. Hopkins is also a stronger guy than is Wright, so the result will not be the same. I'm picking Trinidad to stop Wright in 10, and in no way will it be a shameful loss for Wright because I expect him to perform real well..)
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Peter Mooney - Trinidad TKO 9
(Wright has a lot more boxing skill than Mayorga, but Trinidad is just too strong.)
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Allan Scotto - Trinidad by decision.
(This is an extremely tough fight to call, and I think it will be very, very close. In the end I think that Trinidad's power will make the difference. In fairness though, it wouldn't surprise me at all if it went the other way.)
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Deigo Morilla - Felix Trinidad TKO 11 Ronald Wright.
(Trinidad might show some rust, but his power is undeniable, and Wright has problems with heavy punchers –Vazquez, Simon, Vargas, etc -. Tito is simply too experienced and strong to let this one slip by him).)
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Stephen Tobey - Wright by decision.
(As long as his chin holds up, Wright should be able to out-box Trinidad.)
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James McDonnell - Trinidad W12 Wright.
(I've wrestled with this fight in my mind for months now. When the fight was first announced I was sure it would be Wright, but over time, I've been persuaded by several arguments and now believe Trinidad will prevail, but only just.I initially though Wright would box Tito's ears off utilising his defence, but one problem Wright has, is that he is not a mover in the traditional sense. The men to give Tito the most problems, DLH and Hopkins, both used a lot of lateral movement, which simply isn't Winky's style. Standing in the pocket with Tito is very dangerous, and Vargas and Harry Simon, both aggressive fighters with a dig, both managed to pull out close results over Winky. Tito hits harder than either of those men, and though he tends to miss a lot against quality foes, the ones he does land are like heat seeking missiles.
A lot is made of Tito being the smaller man, but Tito looks to have filled out nicely as a middleweight, and has stopped genuine middleweights in Joppy and Cherifi with ease, something career middleweight Eastman couldn't do, though he did get Cherifi to retire. Winky is a tough nut, but I think he will have to move to prevent Tito getting through with enough to get him in trouble. If Mosley can hurt Winky, then Tito who throws more shots these days and hits a lot harder certainly can. Winky's trainer Dan Birmingham may well get his man to change up his style and utilise a lot more movement, but as Michael Watson discovered against McCallum, changing style in a big fight is a difficult ask.Winky uses the ring and his jab, winning the tactical war, but losing a perhaps controversial decision against a rampaging Tito, who lands enough to convince the judges he won it. PS If Winky decides to get brave and toe to toe it, the fight is over before the last 3 rounds.)
MaxBoxing's Fight Picks for (HBO) (PPV) Felix Trinidad (42-1) vs. Ronald Wright (48-3) May 14.
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Michael Katz - I like Tito in this one
(Even up, I like Tito in this one, barely, but at the odds where Winky is an underdog, I LOVE Ronald. Yes, decision. and it will be this week's fight of the year.)
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Doug Fischer - Trinidad by close decision or late stoppage
(Wright is the biggest, strongest, toughest and most experienced technician that Tito has faced since Bernard Hopkins at his peak. It's a tough fight, but I think Tito is a great fighter and great fighters find a way to win. Wright will give Tito trouble, but I don't see the Winkster boxing a perfect 12 rounds the way Hopkins did four years ago. He's gonna get hit - hard and often, and I don't think he'll be able to fight his fight and go the distance with Tito. If it goes the distance, Wright will have to go into survival mode, and least to an extent, and he won't win on points like that.)
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Gary Randall - Trinidad W12 Wright
(I don’t think Wright’s high guard will stop Tito’s huge left hook come late in the fight.)
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Jason Probst - Trinidad TKO 10 Wright
(Should be an awesome fight, but I suspect Tito's "creeping death" style proves too much for game Wright down the stretch. If he bangs the midsection he'll be doing himself a big favor for the second half of the fight. If he goes headhunting, Wright will give him a lot of trouble. But in the end he just has too many chances to land bombs and I don't see Wright dissuading him enough to take the duke.)
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Lee Groves - Wright W 12 Trinidad
(We can't base anything on Trinidad's spectacular KO of Mayorga. Mayorga was a right-handed, wade-in slugger who was a blown-up welterweight while Wright is a defensively skilled southpaw who regularly comes down from light-heavyweight poundage to make 154. Tito looked great against a perfect foil but Wright's chin won't be so readily available for Tito's bombs. Winky's in-ring activity will also serve him well against a man who has fought only twice since his KO loss to Bernard Hopkins Sept. 29, 2001. Plus, Wright's style could easily frustrate Trinidad and more opportunities to counter will present themselves as a result. Still, it won't be easy for Wright because of Trinidad's spectacular skills. Wright doesn't have the power to KO Trinidad and Trinidad won't hit Wright enough to knock him out. Thus, Wright by decision.)
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Sugar Lee Santiago - Trinidad by TKO in the 10th
(I think this a dangerous fight for Tito and it will be a hard for him in the early rounds but I think Tito will hurt Winky late and finish him by the 10th round.)
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German Villasenor - Winky in a tight, controlled decision..
(Winky Wright will show more pop in this fight vs the powerful and bigger Trinidad, using his naturally stronger right jab (as he is a natural righty, who fights out of the southpaw stance) the jab and tight defense will keep tito's vaunted power in check as he piles on the points, managing to wobble the Puerto Rican hero on route to a suspensful decision in his favor.)
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Tom Hogan/ HoganPhotos.com - Trinidad vs Wright - DRAW!!.
(Felix and Winky trade bombs in few instances but the fight boils down to a chess match with both fighters fighting cautiously. Winky's movement causes problems for Felix and Felix's ability to land hard shots on few occasions keeps Felix in the fight. My money says DRAW!)
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Armando Alvarez - Felix "Tito" Trinidad TKO 10 Winky Wright
(Very tough fight for Tito. The Puerto Rican superstar will have trouble early with the master boxer that is Wright. The unidisputed junior welterweight champions' career is at it's peak after two very convincing wins over Sugar Shane Mosley. This time he has his work cut out for him, as he faces one of the hardest punchers in the history of boxing. Very few times do you see a man with such debilitating power like Trinidad. Quoting Drago's manager in Rocky IV, "Whatever he hits, he destroys." I don't know if Tito's power measures 1850 pounds, but he has made strong men look weak with his power. I expect Wright to outbox Trinidad and win most of the early rounds, but as soon as Trinidad figures him out, he will be able to stop him. Wright has never faced someone with the power that Trinidad possesses, and he'll be fighting at 160. Hopkins was able to handle Trinidad pretty easy, but he not only beat him with ring skills, but also with mind games. Hopkins is also a stronger guy than is Wright, so the result will not be the same. I'm picking Trinidad to stop Wright in 10, and in no way will it be a shameful loss for Wright because I expect him to perform real well..)
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Peter Mooney - Trinidad TKO 9
(Wright has a lot more boxing skill than Mayorga, but Trinidad is just too strong.)
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Allan Scotto - Trinidad by decision.
(This is an extremely tough fight to call, and I think it will be very, very close. In the end I think that Trinidad's power will make the difference. In fairness though, it wouldn't surprise me at all if it went the other way.)
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Deigo Morilla - Felix Trinidad TKO 11 Ronald Wright.
(Trinidad might show some rust, but his power is undeniable, and Wright has problems with heavy punchers –Vazquez, Simon, Vargas, etc -. Tito is simply too experienced and strong to let this one slip by him).)
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Stephen Tobey - Wright by decision.
(As long as his chin holds up, Wright should be able to out-box Trinidad.)
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James McDonnell - Trinidad W12 Wright.
(I've wrestled with this fight in my mind for months now. When the fight was first announced I was sure it would be Wright, but over time, I've been persuaded by several arguments and now believe Trinidad will prevail, but only just.I initially though Wright would box Tito's ears off utilising his defence, but one problem Wright has, is that he is not a mover in the traditional sense. The men to give Tito the most problems, DLH and Hopkins, both used a lot of lateral movement, which simply isn't Winky's style. Standing in the pocket with Tito is very dangerous, and Vargas and Harry Simon, both aggressive fighters with a dig, both managed to pull out close results over Winky. Tito hits harder than either of those men, and though he tends to miss a lot against quality foes, the ones he does land are like heat seeking missiles.
A lot is made of Tito being the smaller man, but Tito looks to have filled out nicely as a middleweight, and has stopped genuine middleweights in Joppy and Cherifi with ease, something career middleweight Eastman couldn't do, though he did get Cherifi to retire. Winky is a tough nut, but I think he will have to move to prevent Tito getting through with enough to get him in trouble. If Mosley can hurt Winky, then Tito who throws more shots these days and hits a lot harder certainly can. Winky's trainer Dan Birmingham may well get his man to change up his style and utilise a lot more movement, but as Michael Watson discovered against McCallum, changing style in a big fight is a difficult ask.Winky uses the ring and his jab, winning the tactical war, but losing a perhaps controversial decision against a rampaging Tito, who lands enough to convince the judges he won it. PS If Winky decides to get brave and toe to toe it, the fight is over before the last 3 rounds.)
