Mitchell got handled by Katsidis in a very easy way and Katsidis is clearly going to get beat every time he steps up to fight the top of the division. Mitchell is clearly nowhere near world class and is not likely to ever get there. His main problem in the Katsidis fight was an inability to fight inside. Look at the KO.. He was standing on the ropes trying to roll with the punches a la Mayweather and presenting a stationary target for Katsidis. Just doesn't have the defensive ability on the inside. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_Nyv2kMPe8[/ame]
Just a question,, who was regarded as the favourite for that fight? Times arnt looking good for Kevin, seeing as the way Katsidis has been beaten up recently. IMO i think his best bet now is to fight John Murray and hopefully (for him) get a win which will bang him back up there on the peak of another world-level fight.
I don't know how I got caught up in thinking Kev would win that fight tbh. I could tell from the first minute of the fight that the **** weak jab Kev was throwing wasn't going to hold Katsidis off, and that my 50 quid was about to go down the drain.
Who knows in boxing, if the rumours are true about Mitchell not being fully prepared for that fight for one reason or another then he may be able to make it. I think a win over Murray and another decent win over a Juan Diaz or someone similar and you never know.
A lot of young prospects (including Tony Bellew) try to incorporate a Floyd-esque roll. First off, it needs to be something you've done forever. You can't just adopt it. ATG Oscar De La Hoya is the proof of that. Also, it's a means to landing a sharp counter and turning off your opponent and getting back to centre ring. Just staying on the ropes is only going to get you hammered unless you are Floyd Mayweather/James Toney (they have also shown decent (Floyd) or ATG (Toney) chins) and to be honest, Amir Khan should be laying on the ropes as a LAST RESORT!!!! McCloskey could genuinely beat him, despite levels, if Khan tries to be all slick. Katsidis is a quality top five operator. He has progressed technically since the Casamayor fight, and has been competitive in all of his losses. I think people forget just how good a fighter Juan Diaz was (and Katsidis breaking his hand early) and losses to Casamayor (past his best but it took an ATG to finish him off) and JMM (ATG, brutal finisher, arguably the no.1 composite puncher in the sport) are no big deal. Katsidis has gone about things the hard way; by fighting genuine opposition and not jumping around weights grabbing titles, he has proven himself a far more formidable fighter than say, Jorge Linares or Edwin Valero did. I don't want to make excuses, but I didn't rate Guerrero much beforehand and he doesn't have massive power. A sharp, precise hitter (against a come forward fighter like Kats) for sure, but Katsidis was still coming right up to the final bell; was it the southpaw stance that made it mor difficult for him. He didn't come under the jab much, even when the left wasn't coming behind it. He resorted to sloppy bouts of pressure rather than getting off the solid single shots he is able to draw much better fighters onto. In terms of Mitchells level, Euro at best, could pick up a Bogus strap at some point but discerning fans would realise, just like Ricky Burns, that Mitchell isn't a 'World champion'. Guerrero isn't either. And Katsidis never has been. And that's the way I like it :good
Katsidis is a top 10 fighter who will lose to the best in the division while making in interesting. Mitchell is a top 20 fighter where he can beat the Brits and European but would have mixed results against top 20 contenders. He'd lose to a Katsidis but probably beat another 1 or 2 contenders.
Based on Mitchell’s performance against Prescott, I thought he had the discipline to outbox Katsidis early on. If he was lucky he might have caused a cut and gotten a soft stoppage in the second half when Michael was coming on. But the day of the fight I was having dinner with my lady when it just struck me – Katsidis had only lost to Casamayor and Juan Diaz. Both guys at the elite of the division and he was competitive against both. Could I see Mitchell hanging with either of those guys? No was the answer. Casamayor timed exquisite counters down the pipe as well as beautiful hooks until he got the opening he needed. Diaz used his feet to keep Katsidis turning and to stop the left hook from landing. Mitchell had never shown the power, poise or polish to do those things before. How would he do it against one of the top lightweights in the world? He didn’t.
The only reason people were picking Mitchell (myself included) was that we assumed that Katsidis was past his best, and therefore might be outmanouverable like Prescott was. Most importantly, Frank brought him over. I think even experienced boxing fans assumed 'he knew something'.
He should drop a weight division and fight Ricky Burns, he won't ever get such a good opportunity to fight for a world title.
Flea, it’s probably likely that Marquez has taken something out of Katsidis. That was a terrifying beating he took. He also lacks a proper right hand, he sort of clubs with it, but there’s not much leverage. There was no way something so sloppy would bother a jab-first southpaw like Guerrero. He just couldn’t get underneath it because a) he’s losing his mobility and b) he was out of position because he didn’t have a weapon he could use against the jab consistently. Against orthodox fighters, he’s fast enough to bring the left over and under the jab. He also can slip the jab and blindfold his opponents with his right while he gets the left into position. He had none of those issues with Mitchell though, and it wasn’t just the shoulder roll that gave him opportunities. Mitchell just didn’t have the footwork to keep Katsidis off-balance and he wasn’t big enough to keep the distance with his own jab.
mitchell is good outside fighter and a decent brawler but like you say doesn't seem to have an inside game, he needs to dedicate himself to the sport and come back fighting to his stregnths. he COULD win a title one day.
Agreed. Warren's ''exposure'' ratio is pretty low, probably on a par with Bob Arum's, or Sauerland's. Not like GBP who's prospects seem to suffer a KO loss every other week. When he has a young fighter who is mandatory to a good champion (in this case a BS champion but anyway....) he usually doesn't bother and uses the ''inexperienced'' tag. So when he pays big money to get it over here, you can't help but think..... I think that's a fairly good idea. The WBO will allow it, Warren gets to keep the title ''in house'' for a longer period. Plus, at least there's a bit of form with Mitchell, unlike Evensen and Laryea.
Mitchell was favourite at the bookies which I found staggering. I think Katsidis was 2/1 for the stoppage if I remember right, I made a good few quid on that fight!