I am posting a link to the latest fight of AJ Banal, the 19 year old phenom, against the Uruguayan Herrera. Kindly dissect the strengths and weaknesses of this kid. Do you think he is a championship mateial? Is he ready for the big leagues? If not, how many years more before he will be ready? And who among the reigning champions would he have to target first. Thanks a lot to the one who posted the video. http://www.boxingvideosonline.com/
kirilov. i can't see him winning against montiel and mijares at this point of his career. he should wait a year or two but knowing that his last victory was a title eliminator one, then i guess, we will see him a championship fight soon
I love Banal. Have for a while now. Great talent...even greater potential. He is definately one of the top young fighters in the game right now...but as for him fighting some of the top guys...lets not rush him too quickly. He is a great young fighter, but not at that level yet.
I have been following this prospect for 2 years now and hes the goods. Great pop,speed, improving technical wise every fight, and he doesnt leave his chin out in the open. He can win against kirilov but should stay quiet in this deep division for now. Hes being brought up really good though.
How about his strengths and weaknesses. Because as far as the last fight is concerned, I think he showed so much maturity than probably even Pac. When Pac stuns his opponents, he goes on a punching frenzy, sometimes unnecessary exposing himself to a counterpunch, as well as running out of gas. This kid however picks his punch with criminal intention of ending the fight with the least amount of effort once he smells blood.
he still needs to fine tune his defense. it is there but not that good yet. he should ask gerry to train him. i haven't seen him rocked yet so i hope he has a good chin and/or recovers well from being hit. i also haven't seen him in big trouble in a fight so the way he reacts against better oposition is vital for his success
Banal is a complete fighter. Power in both hands, arsenal of punches, he's got Jab, Hooks in both hands, uppercut, Straight left. It's hard for his opponent to defend coz AJ can punch with different combination any time. His defense is Very decent. He knows how to move his feet, got head movement, His arms always on guard & ready to counter punch. Mentally looks strong. Always poise. Very Patient. I haven't seen him in trouble yet even with that kind of stiff opposition he have. I pick him to beat anybody at 115-118. One more quality opponent for his next fight & He'll be ready for the title.
AJ Banal is definitely one of the fast rising flyweights to watch out for this 2008. The kid obviously has KO power and even at this early stage of his career, he already knows how to pace well and not get over-eagerly excited and aggressive in going for the kill. He has decent footspeed and above average work rate. The kid has good counter punching skills too and uses his jab to set up quick combos. I think he needs to mix it up with a few more solid opposition before fighting with the division's elites. this way, he gets added ring smarts and experience. I'd like to see him fight darchinyan though...
I say after 2 or 3 more fights and they should put him against top dogs before he loses his hunger. Pac's decline is coming soon, filipinos need a new superstar and Banal seems to fit the shoe.
put him in first with other nice prospects like herrera..navarro and darchinyan. Thats the path that he should take before going after a title
Great talent and at 19, he's already a mandatory. If he fights 2 or 3 more times in a short period, he can challenge Kirilov at the end of the year. Can anyone confirm that his team is looking for Kirilov or it's another champ they are after? Anyways, vote here for that fight since Banal is mandatory and Kirilov has to fight his mandatory sooner or later: http://www.eastsideboxing.com/forum/showthread.php?t=57171