Headlining a Sunday night PBC on FS1 card, March 24th. Both men fought members of the p4p elite in Q1 of 2018, and both were dropped once in losing efforts (Peterson retiring after 7 rounds with Errol Spence, Jr. @ welter and Lipinets outpointed by Mikey García @ super lightweight). Lipinets has fought once since, defeating Erick Bone in a tuneup in August. Peterson will be coming off a fourteen month layoff and making only his third ring appearance in 3½ years. Lipinets is the younger man by five years. Peterson has a 2" height and 5" reach advantage.
For some reason this is scheduled for 12 even though a) neither currently has any hardware, b) there don't appear to be any vacant minor welterweight baubles on the line and c) this isn't an eliminator AFAIK. I really hate when 12-rounders are made arbitrarily, "just because". There has to be a title or an eliminator to justify going beyond ten, IMO.
You’d think Sergei, but Peterson has a habit of getting back to the top of his divison after seeming like he’s done.
I guess the question is, do we think Lipinets is a full level above Félix Díaz or David Avanesyan? I think maybe at most he's a half-level above those guys...which makes this a real shrugger.
I think this fight is more about Lamont than anything and I really don't know what to expect from him. Lamont is a trench war inside fighter at his best, but that style destroys your body and he's been brutalized a few times. He's now like 35 and most fighters with his style are retired by that age. I don't think he can maintain a sustained physical, pushing, offense for 12 rounds.
Which begs the question, why did his team either ask for or assent to a 12-round length, when by all rights with both coming in empty-handed and without rankings to justify an eliminator this ought to be a 10-rounder?
Lamont can win if Lipenets lacks the power to hurt him , but Lipenets is in his prime so he should be favored to win.
Perhaps the Peterson camp genuinely feel they have the advantage the longer it goes . He has made a career of going deep
Have to side with Lipinet's at this point. I think he's slightly underrated at this point where as Peterson likely isn't getting any better in any performance from here on out. Lipinet's has a nasty, ripping arsenal of body shots that should pay dividends against an older, experienced fighter with good stamina like Lamont.
Quite a well matched fight in all honesty. I think I'll take Peterson at the moment, think he shades a decision.
Good fight. I'm curious what Lamont can do with Sergey being that Mikey couldn't really dominate him like I thought.
