By Sean McDaniel: Breidis Prescott (21-1, 18 KO’s) is looking to take Kevin Mitchell (29-0, 22 KO’s) out in the 4th round on Saturday night on the undercard of the Amir Khan vs. Dmitriy Salita bout for Khan’s World Boxing Association light welterweight title at the Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, Tyne and Wear. Prescott, 26, let writer James Slater of East Side Boxing know that he will be taking Mitchell out in the 4th round in their bout for the vacant WBO Inter-Continental lightweight title. Prescott says “As Soon As Mitchell Tastes My Power He Will Start To Run!”

I don’t think that Prescott knows Mitchell very well if he believes that. Mitchell likes to slug, especially when he has an opponent that is willing to mix it up with him. If anything, if Prescott comes out head hunting early in the fight, Mitchell will return fire and try to match the Colombian punch for punch. That seems to be the way that Mitchell has always fought. He won’t run.

I hope Prescott isn’t banking on that happening, because he’ll be disappointed. Prescott needs to be prepared for Mitchell’s power, because he hits harder than most of Prescott’s previous 21 opponents and he also throws likes to throw a lot of punches per round. Mitchell has a real live chance to win this fight if he can get Prescott throwing a lot of punches and missing.

In Prescott’s last fight against Miguel Vazquez in July, after a shaky first round where Vazquez was dropped, he didn’t lose his composure and kept firing shots at Prescott and ducking the return fire from the Colombian. Before long, Prescott began to take power of his shots just so that he could hit anything. That’s when Vazquez had him, because once Prescott had taken the power out of his shots he was a rather ordinary fighter and not particularly accurate with his punches.

The trick for Mitchell is to make sure he ducks or blocks Prescott’s big left hooks and right hands early in the fight and makes him hesitant to load up with his shots. If Mitchell can get Prescott throwing shots with moderate power on them, then he’s on easy street for the rest of the way. Prescott already has the crowd going against him in this venue, and I can see him getting out of his game very easily. But Mitchell has to make sure he focuses on his defense in this fight and doesn’t go out swinging for the fences in his fight with Carl Johanneson in March of 2008.

Mitchell ended up stopping Johanneson in the 9th, but he took a lot of needless punishment against him. Mitchell can’t afford to fight the same way against Prescott, because he hits much harder and is a lot more busier than Johanneson. But I see Mitchell being too smart to fight that way against Prescott. He knows that he can’t let the tall Colombian hit him all night long without something bad happening. Once Mitchell tires Prescott out in the later rounds, then he needs to turn up his offense and try to take Prescott out. I think he can do it if he’s smart and careful.