Huck-Lebedev: Look for Lebedev to destroy Huck

By Boxing News - 12/17/2010 - Comments

Image: Huck-Lebedev: Look for Lebedev to destroy HuckBy Jim Dower: World Boxing Organization (WBO) cruiserweight champion Marco Huck (30-1, 23 KO’s) will be making his 5th defense of his WBO title on Saturday night against what could be his toughest foe year with unbeaten Russian southpaw power puncher Denis Lebedev (21-0, 16 Ko’s) at the Max Schmeling Halle, Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin, Germany. Huck, who at one time was a raw fighter with not much skills, has improved dramatically in the past three years since being stopped by Steve Cunningham in 2007.

Huck has put together an 11 fight win streak and beaten quality fighters like Matt Godfrey, Brian Minto, Ola Afolabi and Victor Emilio Ramirez in the past two years. The problem for Huck is that he’s facing what could be the most dangerous fighter in the cruiserweight division in the 31-year-old Lebedev. He’s certainly the biggest puncher in the division, and his southpaw stance and fast delivery make even harder to fight.

Lebedev reminds me of a smaller version of heavyweight Corrie Sanders. He has a way of jumping in fast the way that Sanders did and is devastating with his powerful left hands and right hooks. He’s very, very hard to beat because of the way that he shifts forward quickly to land straight left hands. In his last fight, Lebedev destroyed top cruiserweight contender Alexander Alexeev in a 2nd round knockout in July, breaking his nose in the 1st round and leaving him unable to get back to his feet in the 2nd. Last year, Lebedev destroyed Enzo Maccarinelli and the tough Ali Ismailov, making it look easy both times.



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