By Jim Dower: WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez will be facing a tough obstacle this Saturday night in the form of Australian powerhouse puncher Michael Katsidis in their fight at the MGM Grand, in Las Vegas, Nevada. On paper, this looks like a fight that Marquez, based on experience alone, should be able to win without any problems. Katsidis has been beaten by recent Marquez victims Joel Casamayor and Juan Diaz, and that would normally tip you to who will probably win Saturday’s bout between Katsidis and Marquez. However, Marquez hasn’t looked like the same fighter he once was in a loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. last year and the way Marquez struggled in his July rematch with Diaz.

You now have to give Katsidis a good chance of beating Marquez based on those fights. Katsidis can punch, and has great power with every shot he throws. He completely blitzed his last opponent Kevin Mitchell in a 3rd round TKO in May, taking him out in a hurry with a flurry of shots after jumping all over him in the round. Katsidis carries around a lot of size, unlike Marquez, and it’s likely that Marquez will be giving up at least 10 pounds or more to the thick Katsidis come fight time. Katsidis uses that size to generate a lot of power on his shots and he’s really hard to beat when he’s able to land shots on the inside. Katsidis is a Gatti-like type fighter, but quicker and an arguably bigger puncher.

Katsidis is able to get a lot of power even on short punches. He’s got really heavy hands and he loads up on everything he throws. But what makes him even better is that he sets a high pace and tends to wear out his opponents. He’s young enough to take Marquez deep and drown him in the later rounds with his work rate and fast pace. This is a much different fight for Marquez compared to the slow pace that most of his last fight with Diaz and his fight with Mayweather took place at.