Ivan Redkach vs. Luis Cruz

Wednesday on Fox Sports 1.

Somehow the bookies have made Cruz a 12/1 underdog here. :blood

That kind of handicapping doesn't seem remotely justified, to me.

El Artesano has lost his three biggest steps up in class (to MiniBurgos, Josésito Félix, & Cherry Bomb) and has that one random ugly defeat to 7-13-3 Joaquin Chávez - but he also has beaten at least one fighter every bit as good as Redkach in Honorio.

The "Mexican Ukrainian" was dominated and stopped himself in his last meaningful bout and has run very hot and cold the entire time he was a prospect, with more than a few off-nights and overall seeming a bit one-dimensional.

I really don't understand why they've made Cruz such a high value bet. That's a steal. (though, gun to my head, I do favor Redkach to crack some PR glass - but that has more the feel of 60/40 than him being a 1/2 fave)

 

Yeah, and his entire run in 2010 and 2011 (from Bobo through Davis) was pretty solid and he was then considered a real prospect, until the competitive loss to Burgos. He is a FAR more skilled boxer than Redkach, who is a pretty straightforward high-volume body-banger. He's a lot more skilled than Redkach foe Tony Luis (who took Ivan life & death) except unlike Tony Luis he isn't feather-fisted and in fact is probably nearly Redkach's equal in power.

 

The loss was to Zlatičanin, though, in fairness - who is quietly putting together a very nice record with victories over Burns, Petrov, and Payazov and who is about to challenge Marsili for the interim WBC title.

 

Unbeaten middleweights Kyrone "Shut It Down" Davis and Junior "JR" Castillo Martínez put their zeroes on the line in a co-featured televised 8-ronder.

Davis is a Haymon/TMT prospect and Castillo Martínez represented the Dominican Republic at the London Olympics (eliminated in dominant fashion by Anthony Ogogo)