Lee vs. Saunders

Loeffler: Golovkin wants Lee-Saunders winner

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1-GolovkinLemieux_HoganphotosBy Dan Ambrose: It looks like there’s going to be some competition to face the winner of this Saturday’s fight between WBO 160lb champion Andy Lee and Billy Joe Saunders. WBA “regular” middleweight champion Daniel Jacobs said today that he wants the winner of the Lee-Saunders fight. But now Tom Loeffler, the promoter for IBF/IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (34-0, 31 KOs), says they want the winner of the Lee-Saunders fight.

Golovkin has the option of making a defense of his IBF title against his #1 IBF mandatory Tureano Johnson or possibly facing the Lee vs. Saunders fight.

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Jacobs wants Lee-Saunders winner

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Daniel Jacobs vs Peter QuillinBy Dan Ambrose: IBF/IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin isn’t the only interested observer who will be watching this Saturday’s contest between WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) and Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs). WBA World “Regular” middleweight champion Daniel Jacobs (31-1, 28 KOs) will be watching the fight, and he hopes to face the winner of the fight next.

However, Jacobs is rooting for the 31-year-old Lee to beat Saunders, because he sees that as a potentially bigger fight for him than a fight against Saunders.

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Booth has strategy for Andy Lee to negate Saunders’ speed

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lee4By Scott Gilfoid: Trainer Adam Booth has come up with a strategy for his fighter WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) to use on challenger Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs) this Saturday night to try to nullify his natural hand speed advantage. Booth does not want Lee to be attacking the 26-year-old Saunders or trying to put any pressure on him, because he feels this is something that won’t work for Lee because Saunders does well against fighters that come after him.

Much of Saunders’ career has seen him get the better of fighters that applied pressure on him in his fights. So instead of having Lee pressure Saunders, Booth wants Lee to focus on throwing shots each time that Saunders throws his own. In other words, Booth wants Lee to punch with Saunders so that he can take advantage of Saunders’ natural aggressiveness.

“When you’ve got someone who has the speed advantage, if you go before you won’t land because they’ll move out of position,” Booth said to skysports.com. “If you try to go after, they could be in and out before you can get your shot off. The key is punching with people with good hand speed,” Booth said.

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Andy Lee: This is just another fight for me

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saunders#1WBO World Middleweight Champion Andy Lee is boxing’s Jekyll and Hyde by saying he can turn on a nasty switch.

The Irishman is usually a happy character, but he knows his mean side will come out in the titanic battle against undefeated rival Billy Joe Saunders this Saturday night at the Manchester Arena when he puts his title on the line.

Lee and Saunders came face-to-face today in the final press conference before Saturday’s fight and the pair while previously friendly, the tension is definitely increasing between the two.

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Saunders: Andy Lee is no Golovkin; I can punch with him

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saunders#1By Scott Gilfoid: Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs) is unafraid of the punching power of WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) despite the success he has had recently in defeating dangerous opposition by knockout.

Saunders, 26, says he will stand and trade with Lee at times in their fight this Saturday night on December 19that the Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK. Saunders says he doesn’t see Lee as having Gennady Golovkin type punching power, and he plans on getting in the trenches and slugging with him toe-to-toe.

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Andy Lee wants Golovkin fight after Saunders

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lee65By Scott Gilfoid: If WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) can successfully defend his WBO title this Saturday night in his second defense of his strap against unbeaten #1 WBO Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs), he’d like to then face IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady “Triple G” Golovkin (34-0, 31 KOs) in a unification fight in 2016.

Lee, 6’2”, thinks he has the punching power, boxing skills and the experience to give Golovkin his first defeat. Golovkin is also interested in facing Lee for his WBO title. However, for that fight to happen, Lee must find a way to get past the 26-year-old Saunders, and that might not be an easy thing to do.

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Saunders: I’m going to beat Andy Lee

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saunders43By Scott Gilfoid: #1 WBO contender Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs) is feeling pretty good right now about his chances to beat WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) in their fight in a little over two weeks from now on December 19th at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK.

New heavyweight champion Tyson Fury is picking the 26-year-old Saunders to beat the older 31-year-old Lee in their important fight. Fury is the cousin of Lee, which makes it somewhat odd that he’s picking Lee to lose the fight.

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HBO considering televising Andy Lee vs. Billy Joe Saunders

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By Scott Gilfoid: The December 19th fight between WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2, 24 KOs) and #1 WBO Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs) could be televised by HBO Championship Boxing. HBO is evaluating whether to televise the fight or not. The fight is taking place at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK.

The likely reason why HBO is thinking of televising the fight is because it would help build up a future unification fight between the winner of the Lee-Saunders fight against IBF/IBO/WBA heavyweight champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin in 2016.

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Andy Lee says he has equal power as Golovkin

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lee564By Scott Gilfoid: WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) faces #1 WBO mandatory challenge Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs) on December 19th at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Lee, 31, looked horrible in his last fight against Peter Quillin last April in getting dropped twice and then having to settle for a 12 round draw in this non-title fight. Quillin failed to make weight for the fight, so Lee’s WBO title wasn’t on the line.

Lee’s career has been an up and down affair with him doing well for stretches at a time, but he’s also failed big time in knockout losses to journeyman Brian Vera and former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

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Andy Lee not looking past Saunders towards Golovkin clash

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By Scott Gilfoid: WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) says he’s not looking past his title defense against #1 WBO challenger Billy Joe Saunders (22-0, 12 KOs) on December 19th at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK.

There has been talk that Lee, 31, is already in discussions for a good money unification fight against IBF/IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin, but Lee denies this. He says he’s totally focused on his title defense against Saunders, as he should be. Saunders has enough boxing skills to beat Lee, and we’ve already seen Lee have to rally to win his recent fights against John Jackson and Matt Karobov.

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