By Jordan V Marry: This past Friday, November 9th, up-and-coming featherweight star Mr. Gary Russell Jr. (21-0, 13KO’s) added another sensational knockout to his resume. The talented southpaw flattened an over-matched Roberto Castaneda (20-3-1, 15KO’s) in the 3rd round with one picture perfect right hook. However, Showtime color commentator Steve Farhood was quick to put this win in perspective by consistently reminding the viewers that Russell Jr.’s level of competition has been much less than world class.

At the opening of the broadcast, Farhood stated “Gary Russell Jr. is WAY too talented to be facing the level of competition that he is,” and went on to say that he is doing himself and his audience “no favors” by continuing his career at such a slow pace. At only 24, it would seem that this 2008 Olympian still has some time to work his way up to a big money title fight, but let’s look at how Russell Jr. presently compares crème of the crop at 126lbs.

Mexico native Orlando Salido (39-11-2, 27 KO’s), the current WBO and Ring Magazine featherweight champ, has been considered the best in the division since defeating former champ, and pound for pound contender, Juan Manuel Lopez by TKO in April of 2011. At 31 years of age, Salido is a rugged veteran who fights at a level far beyond anything that Russell Jr. has seen before. That’s not to say that he would be outclassed however. Russell Jr. may have the fastest hands in boxing, which would be a major advantage over the much slower Salido. He also is the more polished boxer of the two, with a diverse skill set which allows him to lead or counter-punch equally well, maintaining perfect balance and technique at all times. Where the American may have trouble is with Salido’s pressure and experience. The Champion has a great chin and relentless style, sometimes throwing upwards of 100 punches a round. Unlike many other pressure fighters, Salido puts impressive power behind all of his shots, which is demonstrated by the fact that he has scored knockouts in his last five fights against quality opposition. How is the young Gary Russell Jr. going to react when he hits Salido with some of his best shots, round after round, and the Mexican warrior is still right in his face bringing serious firepower?

Based on how carefully Russell Jr.’s manager, Al Haymon, has matched him so far, it’s safe to say that he won’t be thrown in with the likes of Salido, or anyone else of that caliber, in the near future. But now that he has fully recovered from his injury, and bounced back with an exciting knockout victory, I would expect Mr. Russell to stay active and use the momentum to carry himself steadily into more challenging bouts. I would like to see him take about two or three more fights against some legitimate contenders such as Daniel Ponce De Leon or Cristian Mijares before trying to take out Salido. If Russell Jr. is able to grab a world title he would then be in position from some exciting match-ups, such as the Super Bantamweight Champion Nonito Donaire, who is expected to move up to featherweight soon, or Cuban sensation Yuriorkis Gamboa.