(Jennifer Halger/DiBella Entertainment/Premier Boxing Champions) By Patrick McHugh: Chris Arreola (36-4-1, 31 KOs) says he has a game plan designed to bring out the weaknesses’ in WBC heavyweight champion Deontay “Bronze Bomber” Wilder’s game this Saturday night in their fight at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama. Arreola recently said that he needs to get inside the tall 6’’7” Wilder’s long reach to prevent him from loading up on his shots the way that he likes/needs to in his fights for him to be successful. Arreola’s arms are shorter than Wilder’s, and needs to be closer for him to get maximum power on his shots, especially with his left hook.
“Weaknesses are something that I have to bring out of Deontay. Someone different shows up every fight,” Arreola. “We have a plan but we’ll have to expose him while I’m in the ring. You can see videos all day, but it might not be the same guy in the ring.”
Arreola, 35, definitely needs to keep Wilder from being able to tee off on him from the outsidem because he’s dangerous when he can get the maximum leverage on his shots from a long ways away. But even when isn’t loading up on his shots from the outside, he’s still a pain to deal with because he’s got a decent jab that he likes to throw repeatedly to win rounds. Wilder’s jab isn’t in the same league as guys like Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko, but it’s effective enough for him to control his fights For this fight, Wilder would prefer not to get hit by any of Arreola’s big power shots, because he’s a dangerous puncher.
Wilder didn’t need to worry about the power too much for his last two opponents Artur Szpilka and Johann Duhuapas, because neither of them had the kind of punching power that was hazardous to Wilder. Arreola does have the kind of power that can plant Wilder on the canvas and incapacitate him for the fight. If Arreola can hit Wilder with a big enough shot to cause his legs to go wobbly, the fight could be effectively over because Wilder won’t be able to survive once he’s hurt.
“Arreola definitely has a style prone to a knockout. He’s a pressure fighter who will come forward all night,” said WIlder. “That plays to my style. I love pressure fighters who give me a challenge. They keep me moving and thinking. I love the sweet science and the art to it.”
Deontay is going to need to fight hard early in this fight, because Arreola is going to be looking to knock him out early. He’s not going to want to let the fight go into the later rounds because that only increases the chances that Wilder can end the fight with one of his big right hands. Arreola will fall hopelessly behind the longer this match lasts because he doesn’t have the reach to get to Wilder. He’s got to look to KO him as soon as possible on Saturday night.
The Wilder vs. Arreola fight will be televised on Premier Boxing Champions on Fox Sports. Also on the card is unbeaten welterweight contender Sammy Vasquez (21-0, 15 KOs) facing Felix Diaz (17-1, 8 KOs) in a 10 round fight in the co-feature bout. Junior middleweight contender Erickson Lubin (15-0, 11 KOs) puts his unbeaten record on the line against Ivan Montero (20-1, 8 KOs) in a 10 round fight.
40-year-old former two division world champion Vic Darchinyan (42-8-1, 31 KOs) will be facing Enrique Ouevedo (16-7-1, 10 KOs) in a 10 round fight at super bantamweight. Darchinyan has won his last two fights against Prayoot Yaijam and Cris Paulino. Before that, Darchinyan lost to WBA featherweight champion Jesus Ceullar by an 8th round knockout last year in June. Darchinyan has also suffered recent losses to Nicholas Walters and Nonito Donaire. Darchinyan is a good fighter, but his career hasn’t been the same since moved out of the super flyweight division.
Unbeaten welterweight Jamal James (19-0, 9 KOs) will be facing the hard hitting Wale Omotoso (26-2, 21 KOs) in a 10 round fight. This should be an interesting fight.
Unbeaten heavyweight contender Gerald Washington (17-0-1, 11 KOs) will be fighting 45-year-old journeyman Ray Austin (29-7-4, 18 KOs) in a 10 round fight. Washington was held to a controversial 10 round draw last year in October against Amir Mansour. A lot of boxing fans thought Washington deserved to lose the fight.