Provodnikov-Herrera2: The Rematch Nobody is Talking About:

By Boxing News - 12/16/2015 - Comments

provodnikov034By Nate Estrada: Often when we watch boxing, our expectations are more than seeing a good fight. Some of us want to see a slugfest, a KO or a great comeback. Sometimes we get them, sometimes we don’t. Then there are times when we see something great and don’t even know it. Like that time Mauricio Herrera (21-5-0, 7 KOs) fought Ruslan Provodnikov (25-4-0, 18 KOs).

It’ll almost be 5 years since Herrera and Provodnikov got into that war on ESPN’s “Friday Night Fights” in January of 2011. The fight turned out to be a slugfest while both boxers displayed boxing skills and will from start to finish. Also at the time, they weren’t as popular as they are today. If you saw their fight that night, hopefully they won your attention with their brutal match and made fight fans want to see more. A rematch.

We got an unexpected slugfest the first time around, think about what we’ll get the next time? Both fighters had over 800 punches thrown in the fight, leaving a statement on each other’s faces.

Regardless who you had winning, it was boxing fans who won for witnessing two boxers give their all in the ring. They deserve the respect for their showdown that night and deserved the careers they continued to establish moving forward.

Provodnikov gained the WBO junior-welterweight championship title in 2013 then lost it the next year. Herrera lost the WBA interim light welterweight title last year but gained the NABF light welterweight title this year. Clearly they’ve won some and lost some. Still they continue to fight to be back on top, yet according to the bible of boxing, Ring magazine, they are still top 10 junior-welterweights. Maybe being on top isn’t about winning titles at this point for both fighters. They’ve proven they have the will to put on battles despite taking losses. So why not give the fans another battle with each other? It doesn’t even have to be a title fight. Instead, it can make a regular bout turn out to be an instant classic. Almost continuing where they left off.

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It’s surprising nobody mentions this rematch should happen especially since both fighters have a bigger attraction now. More importantly, boxing is in a good place as the era of Pacquiao, or Mayweather is coming to a close and boxing fans are getting a glimpse of the sports next superstars. A rematch between Ruslan “The Siberian Rocky” Provodnikov and Mauricio “El Maestro” Herrera may not earn them stardom but instead earn them a place in the history of boxing for a great showdown.



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