By Scott Gilfoid: Welsh fighter Gavin Rees (37-1-1, 18 KO’s) will be the visiting fighter on Saturday night against heavy favorite WBC lightweight champion Adrien Broner (25-0, 21 KO’s) at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Some boxing fans have already branded the 32-year-old Rees as the sacrificial lamb for Broner to slaughter on HBO in front of the entire United States. I think Rees is a little better than a lamb, but he’s pretty much up against it in this fight. Rees is going to have to raise his game a huge amount for him to even stay in there fir Broner for a few rounds.
I mean, this fight is a dreadful mismatch, but you’ve got to thank Golden Boy Promotions for that because they’re the ones that made the fight. They could have just ignored Rees and let him continue to fight European level opposition like he’d been happily doing for the past few years, but they chose to take him away from all of that briefly.
Okay, so if Rees is going to win this fight he’s going to have to really put it on Broner in the first two rounds and look to connect with something big. Once the fight gets past the 2nd, Rees’ chances are going to drop dramatically because he’ll likely start bleeding from cuts and/or a bloody nose. He’ll have problems breathing through his nose once the blood is streaming out of it, soaking and staining his trunks a bright red.
It’ll be the beginning of the end once Rees is bleeding from the nose and eyes. This is why it’s imperative that he go all out to get to Broner in the first two rounds of the fight. The window closes after the first two rounds for Rees, as he’ll be little more than a red punching bag for Broner to batter at will. Rees has the power to win, but the talent is just not there for him.
I’m just hoping that Rees can give it a good effort before it’s over with. I don’t see him winning this fight, but if he at least can go out on his shield in a respectful manner by giving it a good effort, then he can come home to the UK like a hero.
Rees is the first of two UK fighters that Broner will likely be fighting in 2013. He’d like to fight WBO lightweight champion Ricky Burns after he takes care of Rees, but that fight hinges on a number of things starting with Burns getting past his March 16th fight against IBF lightweight champion Miguel Vazquez.
If Burns can get past that fight, and that’s big IF, then it’s possible in theory that a fight between Burns and Broner can take place, but I’m not counting on it happening. Burns would then have two titles in his possession instead of just one, and that will likely cause him to ask for WAY too much money for a fight with Broner, and that’ll cause the fight not to get made.
You have to remember that American boxing fans don’t care about a Broner vs. Burns fight because they’ve never heard of Burns before except for the hardcore boxing fans. So it won’t matter if Broner fights someone else. It only matters to UK fans and Golden Boy. American fans would prefer that Broner faces Vazquez or someone more recognizable to them.
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