(Credit: Leo Wilson/Premier Boxing Champions) By Tim Fletcher: #1 WBC, #2 IBF 154lb contender Jermell Charlo (26-0, 11 KOs) isn’t known for being a big puncher like his brother Jermall Charlo, but he still believes he’s going to KO 38-year-old high level journeyman Joachim Alcine (35-7-2, 21 KOs) tonight in their fight on Premier Boxing Champions on NBC Sports Net from the NRG Arena, in Houston, Texas.
Charlo, 25, hasn’t scored a knockout in two years since he defeated Jose Angel Rodriguez by a 10th round knockout in 2013. In Charlo’s last fight, he arguably lost to Vanes Martirosyan by a 10 round decision last March, but the judges somehow saw him winning the fight.
The decision wasn’t popular with the boxing fans on the internet, and it was booed loudly by the fans at ringside at the Palms Casino Resort, in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Charlo was given the win, but his lack of punching power and the flaws his game were badly highlighted by Martirosyan in that fight.
Start time: @ 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT.
Where to watch Charlo-Alcine? NBC Sports Net
Location of fight: NRG Arena, in Houston, Texas
You can bet that we probably won’t be seeing a rematch between those two fighters anytime soon if ever. Charlo clearly needs to be steered around punchers because he doesn’t have enough pop in his punches to compete with them, and he can’t depend on the judges giving him controversial decisions his entire career.
“I don’t necessarily have a prediction, but I’m going to knock him out. I don’t know what round it will be, but he’s going down,” Charlo said about Alcine.
Alcine, 38, is definitely there to be knocked out. He’s been knocked out three times in the last five years in stoppage defeats to the light hitting Brian Rose, Matthew Macklin and Alfredo Angulo. Rose isn’t a puncher at all, yet he was able to get Alcine out of there in their fight two years ago in 2013 in stopping him in the 12th round.
The Charlo-Alcine fight will be the main event. It’s not really a main event type of fight, but the card is a thin one, so it’s not surprising that it’s the main event. It’s a classic match-up between an A-side fighter being put in with a weak B-side guy who has seen better days.
Alcine was a decent fighter seven years ago, but age is definitely starting to catch up to him now. He’s the better puncher than Charlo, but he’s slowed down in the last five years and isn’t what he once was.
“Joachim Alcine does certain things in the ring that I’ve seen and taken note of,” Charlo said. “There are some things I believe I can take advantage of. Hopefully he makes those mistakes and I can make him pay. But he puts in hard work. I know I’m not just going to go in there and beat him up.”
Charlo needs to prove that he can beat the quality fighters with big punching power in order for him to get to the next level. He clearly failed against Martirosyan. Even if you want to say that Charlo won the fight, and there are few fans who are saying that, you still have to admit that he really struggled badly the entire 10 rounds and failed to shine. Charlo’s lack of punching power was really brought to the forefront in that fight. If he could punch like his brother Jermall, then that would have been an easy fight for him. But for some reason, Jermell doesn’t have his brother’s punching power, and that’s going to be a lingering problem for him in the future when he starts mixing it up with guys like Julian Williams, Austin Trout, Anthony Mundine and Joshua Clottey.
Charlo out-weighed Alcine during Friday’s weigh-in. He weighed in at 155.75 to Alcine’s 152.75.
On the undercard, middleweight prospect Tony Harrison (21-1, 18 KOs) will be trying to bounce back from a 9th round knockout loss to Willie Nelson in his last fight in July. Harrison is facing the 30-year-old Cecil McCalla (20-2, 7 KOs), who has lost his last two fights by lopsided decisions to Ishe Smith and Chris van Heerden.
While McCalla has a good record at first glance, his wins have come against weak opposition for the most part. This fight is a mismatch for Harrison, and it would be surprising if it goes the distance. If it does go the full 10 rounds, then you can expect Harrison to win all 10 rounds.
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