Arum thinks Algieri will beat Provodnikov tonight

By Boxing News - 06/14/2014 - Comments

provod63222(Photo courtesy Star Boxing (by Rich Villa) By Chris Williams: Top Rank promoter Bob Arum thinks tonight’s underdog Chris Algieri (19-0, 8 KO’s) has a good chance of pulling off an upset against WBO 140-pound champion Ruslan Provodnikov (23-2, 16 KO’s) in their fight at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Arum also would likely to match Algieri up against his fighter Manny Pacquiao. Algieri vs. Pacquiao. Arum didn’t say when and where he’d like to stage that fight, but I assume he’s hoping to put it in Macao, China in November.

“The fight that I’m going to try and zero in on and put together is Pacquiao vs. Algieri, after Chris beats Provodnikov on June 14th,” Arum said to Fightsaga.com. “I really think Algieri has a good shot to win this fight. I think he has the style to beat Ruslan Provodnikov.”

I thought all this time that Arum was high on Provodnikov, but I guess he’s not. It could be that Arum sees the potential of Algieiri being able to lure a lot of East Coast fans into watching a Pacquiao-Algieri fight, because Algieri is from New York. He could likely pull in more fans than Provodnikov for a Pacquiao fight. It’s a smart move by Arum in backing the guy with the bigger money potential.

With Freddie Roach as Provodnikov’s trainer, anything is possible. You can expect Roach to have Provodnikov off the leash in the full attack mode tonight; that’s a given. Provodnikov will be working hard to try and trap Algieri wherever he goes. Whether he can catch up to the New Yorker is hard to say. Algieri doesn’t really move that well around the ring. He’s got a great jab, but he’s kind of stiff and slow with his feet. He might not be able to elude Provodnikov’s attacks in this fight. If that’s the case then I can’t see Algieri lasting long against the big shots from Provodnikov.

I kind of doubt that Arum will choose to match Provodnikov against Pacquiao next if he destroys Algieri tonight. Provodnikov is all wrong for Pacquiao, and he could ruin the gravy train cornering Pacquiao and knocking him out cold the way that Juan Manuel Marquez did. That’s why I think Arum is more excited about Algieri for Pacquiao, because he can’t punch and he’s a safe choice. And like I said, he’ll bring in the East coast fans in the U.S the same way a guy like Paulie Malignaggi would if he were to fight Pacquiao.



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