CANELO VS. LARA UNDERCARD PREVIEW
By James Lopez, RCM Boxing Correspondent
Mauricio Herrera vs Johan Perez
Mauricio Herrera (20-4 KO’s 7) made his pro debut at the age of 27. Despite the late start to his career he has been able to compete with some of the best in his division. His fights against Ruslan Provodkinov and Mike Alvarado were both for fight of the year candidates. Herrera is a tough fighter and at the age of 34 he seems to be at the highest peak of his career thus far. He hopes to encounter more big names in his division, but first he has to get through Johan Perez (19-1 KO’s 13). Perez is the current WBA light welterweight title holder. This will be Perez’s golden opportunity to make a name for himself in a major PPV undercard.
The Breakdown of the Fight.
Size and Style
Johan Perez standing at 5’11 has the size advantage over Mauricio Herrera who stands at 5’7. This is a significant advantage for Perez given Herrera’s style of fighting. Herrera typically boxes from the outside and uses his jab often. He might find it a bit more difficult to land punches on Perez from the outside which may lead to more inside action.
When fighting on the inside Herrera is at a slight disadvantage because he tends to clinch and sneak in punches with his free hand. It will be difficult to manhandle a much bigger opponent like Perez.
Combinations
Mauricio Herrera’s main arsenal is his jab. He uses his jab when fighting on the outside and he shoots it to the body and the head. Herrera is not much of a combination puncher from the outside. He uses his jab to dictate the paste and frustrate his opponent. At times just out jabbing his opponent can win him rounds. When Herrera fights coming forward he tends to mix in more right hands.
When Herrera decides to fight on the inside his offensive output becomes more versatile. He tends to clinch with one hand and sneak in short shots. He also tends throws short combinations and move out of harm’s way. Herrera fights like a veteran which is astonishing given his late start in professional boxing.
When Johan Perez is on the outside he tends to throw two punch combinations. He has more versatility in his arsenal but at times doesn’t show it. One of the main things Perez has to worry about when fighting on the outside is how to stop Herrera’s jab. Perez might be forced to take the fight inside where he can get off combinations. The only problem is Herrera knows how to clinch on the inside to limit his opponent’s offense.
Defense
This is the department where Herrera has an advantage over Perez. Herrera’s main arsenal is his jab. Herrera does not over commit to his punches a lot, thus making it difficult to be countered on. Herrera either throws a jab and ducks under to avoid a counter, jabs and steps back, or jabs then clinches. He was able to frustrate Danny Garcia in his last bout by keeping this pattern. The only time Herrera seemed vulnerable was in the 11th round in the Garcia bout where he stayed on the ropes without moving. This allowed Garcia to land a couple of heavy shots but Herrera took them well.
Johan Perez is not known as being a good defensive fighter. He can be tagged cleanly and at times has defensive lapses. Despite the size advantage it would not be surprising if Herrera can still land his jab without being countered. The size advantage Perez has definitely helps him but it remains to be seen exactly how much that can be factored into the fight. A small fighter can still outbox a tall fighter. This was evident in the first four rounds of the Terrence Crawford vs Yuriorkis Gamboa bout; where Gamboa the much smaller fighter was able to outpoint Crawford decisively early in the fight.
Power and Chin
Both fighters don’t have knockout power but have respectable snap in their punches. Despite only having seven knockouts Herrera is not a light puncher, it is his style of fighting that disables to him to get more knockouts.
Herrera has shown he has a great chin thus far in his career. He has been able to withstand good shots from heavy punchers such as Ruslan Provodkinov, Danny Garcia, and Mike Alvarado.
Johan Perez doesn’t have a chin as good as Herrera but he still has a decent chin. If either fighter falls behind in the scorecards it will be very surprising for either fighter to have a come from behind knockout victory. Both fighters have to be careful to not fall behind early in the scorecards.
Conclusion
Mauricio Herrera should come in as the heavy favorite to win this bout. He needs to stick to the game plan of being a boxer and use his intelligence in the ring. Johan Perez will try to utilize his reach advantage to make it difficult for Herrera to outbox him. The fight will be decided on who can dictate the pace at the center of the ring.
Abner Mares vs Jonathan Oquendo
During Abner Mares’s (26-1-1 KO’s 14) youth he had intentions of becoming a gang member in California. At age 15 his father sent him to Mexico for three years to box at the Mexican Olympic training camp to get his life in order. There Mares was able to get his mind straight, hone his boxing skills, and find his future wife. Now Mares is a former 3 division world champion who will be facing off against Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Oquendo (24-3 KO’s 16). At age 30 Oquendo knows this might be one of his last opportunities to catapult his career. Mares coming back after his first lost knows if he wants to continue to be a marquee name in the sport he can’t afford to lose this fight.
The Breakdown of the Fight
Size Advantage
Abner Mares stands at 5’4 with a 66 inch reach. Jonathan Oquendo stands at an almost identical stature of 5’4 with a 67 inch reach. Neither fighter should have any physical size advantage over their opponent.
Style
Abner Mares is a boxer puncher and Jonathan Oquendo is more of a brawler. Mares has shown he can fight going backwards and coming forward. Expect Mares to show some versatility in the fight and give Oquendo some lateral movement as the fight progresses. Mares will try to capitalize on any mistakes Oquendo presents.
Jonathan Oquendo prefers to fight coming forward or at a standstill in punching range. He has not shown he can fight going backwards. It will be interesting to see what happens when Mares does come forward and tries to initiate the action himself. Oquendo will probably hold his ground and try to punch with Mares. Mares has shown he can be a boxer and a brawler so a couple exchanges during the fight seem inevitable.
Power and Chin
Abner Mares has shown good punching power at the 126lb pound division. Two fights ago he was able to get a TKO victory over Daniel Ponce De Leon in the 9th round. He actually knocked down Ponce De Leon in the 2nd round but he was able to recover. Mares also showed in that fight he can take a decent shot from a good puncher. Despite being stopped in the 1st round in his last bout against Jhonny Gonzalez he has shown to have a good chin but not necessarily a great one.
Jonathan Oquendo has good power of his own as his record indicates. An achilles heel Oquendo has is his chin. Two of his three losses have come by knockout. When Oquendo gets stunned his instinct is to fight back. This caused him to suffer a TKO lost to Juan Manuel Lopez in the 2nd round where he could have possibly made it through the round. He has not shown the ability to be able to regroup himself in an intelligent manner. If Mares does hurt him at a certain point of the fight, Oquendo might try to land a big shot of his own. Oquendo’s problem is he sometimes gets too brave for his own good.
Defense and Combinations
When Abner Mares fights off his back foot he looks for his opponent to make mistakes. He will try to counter Oquendo when he tries to lunge in with a right. Mares will also try to pick his shots when fighting at a distance. When fighting on the outside Mares does have better defense than Oquendo but can still be tagged. When the fight takes place on the inside expect Mares to throw a combination shots to the head and the body. If Mares does not want to exchange on the inside he knows how to clinch.
Jonathan Oquendo does not have bad defense when fighting on the outside but is just not as good as Mares. Despite this Oquendo can still catch Mares with a flush shot that can possibly stun him. When fighting on the inside Oquendo does not shy away from exchanges. Expect Oquendo to let his hands go on the inside.
Conclusion
Abner Mares is the better boxer. He has good power and is facing an opponent who is not known to have the best chin. That being said, Jonathan Oquendo also has good power of his own and Mares can be tagged. Oquendo seems to be out matched but still has a puncher’s chance to possibly turn the tide in the fight.
Juan Manuel Lopez vs Francisco Vargas
Juan Manuel Lopez (34-3 KO’s 31) vs. Francisco Vargas (19-0-1 KO’s 13) promises to deliver excitement. Both fighters have tremendous power and are not shy to get into exchanges. If Juanma or Vargas wins it will most likely come by way of knockout.
The Breakdown of the Fight.
Size Advantage
Juan Manuel Lopez standing at 5’5 with a 69 inch reach will have a slight size disadvantage against Francisco Vargas who stands at 5’8 with a 70 inch reach. Despite Vargas’s three inch height advantage, both fighters virtually have the same reach.
Vargas is expected to come in as the physically stronger fighter. This might enable him to impose his physical strength on Juanma while fighting on the inside.
Style and Power
Juan Manuel Lopez has knockout power in both hands. Despite being a big puncher he tends to fight off his back foot. He chooses to be the boxer who looks for countering opportunities and tries to create openings. If Juanma is repeatedly tagged with clean shots expect him to try and retaliate right away. This might cause some heavy exchanges to take place.
Francisco Vargas a heavy puncher himself, will take the role of being the stalker throughout the fight. If he can trap Juanma against the ropes, or close the gap he can encourage Juanma to get into dangerous exchanges on the inside.
Both fighters typically use the first round to feel out their opponent. As the fight carries on so should the action.
Chin
Juan Manuel Lopez’s chin has been his achilles heel his entire career. He has very heavy hands which encourages him to get into exchanges, but sometimes this becomes his downfall. All of Juanma’s losses have come by way of TKO.
Francisco Vargas’s chin remains a mystery. He has never been tested by a huge puncher such as Juanma. One also has to keep in mind even if Vargas has a good chin, Juanma can hurt just about anyone in a division with a flush shot.
Defense
Despite Juan Manuel Lopez being more of a boxer, Francisco Vargas is still the better defensive fighter. Juanma has shown he can be tagged in the center of the ring and during exchanges. He usually relies on his power to get himself out of danger.
Vargas being the stalker knows how to close the gap on his opponent very well. Even though he doesn’t show too much head movement he has a very effective high guard that can be difficult to penetrate at times. When he has his opponents against the ropes and is exchanging he has shown to not get careless. Now even though Vargas is a better defensive fighter, if two power punchers are exchanging all it takes is a couple of clean shots to drastically change the momentum of a fight.
Conclusion
Francisco Vargas should come in as the favorite to win the fight. Vargas is the better defensive fighter. It is expected for Vargas to be able to outpoint Juanma throughout the fight. Juanma if backed into a corner, will undoubtedly try to exchange with Vargas which can be dangerous for either fighter. Juanma’s chin has been suspect to not be able to withstand a multitude of power shots, but his own power has shown to bail him out of bad situations. Juanma will be the toughest opponent Vargas has fought thus far in his career. It will be interesting see if Vargas does indeed have the character to beat a tough veteran such as Juanma.
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