Had to post this, my latest article from pound4pound.com Viking Worrier? By Andy "TKO" Houghton Evidence suggests that unbeaten Dane Kessler may just prove a handful for Calzaghe. Andy "TKO" Houghton previews a fascinating match-up from the Millennium Stadium There are a few things in life that can be classed as a genuine rarity. A solar eclipse. Hell freezing over. An even money matchup between two prime, undefeated, world champion fighters. Not, though, you might argue to Joe Calzaghe who takes part in his second such bout in as many years when he meets Denmark's Mikkel Kessler in the early hours of Sunday morning. Rewind 20 months or so. The Welshman had just put in a career best display, dismantling America's Jeff Lacy over as one-sided a 12 rounder as you will ever see in Manchester. The bout brought some long overdue worldwide recognition for a fighter who has long been one of the best around. Since that night, the fighter known as "The Pride of Wales" has largely treaded water, registering a pair of comfortable wins over lower top-10 opposition in Sakio Bika (UD12) and Peter Manfredo Jr. (TKO3). So outclassed was the latter that he was rescued on the ropes after taking at least 15 unanswered shots whilst Calzaghe was fighting with a broken hand. Kessler is likely to provide a slightly sterner test. Whilst he has only shot to prominence in the past 3 years, or since taking the vacant WBA belt with a convincing stoppage of Manuel Siaca, the 39-0(29) Dane has an unbeaten record stretching back almost as far as Calzaghe's. Victories over solid opposition such as Eric Lucas and Australia's Anthony Mundine further confirmed his position. Last year, Kessler unified the WBA and WBC belts with a stunning third round knockout of Markus Beyer of Germany. This bout, then, will determine the genuine world champ at 168 (leaving aside the fact that WBO champ Calzaghe was nonsensically stripped of his IBF belt for electing to pass up the unheralded Robert Stieglitz at the end of last year). The bout itself has a number of interesting subplots. Whist Calzaghe is still in tip top condition physically, with fitness which would shame many a 25-year-old, his hands are notoriously brittle. The defending champ suffered a hairline fracture to his left hand in defeating Manfredo, whilst the originally scheduled bout with Lacy was among a number to fall by the wayside due to various sparring ailments. Calzaghe, who walks around at 14 stone, has also confessed to having a terrible struggle to make the 168lb limit at which he has fought since his pro debut in 1993. To be fair, one suspects that it cannot be easy for the 6'1" Kessler either. The visitor, meanwhile, will apparently come to the ring with the flag of both Denmark and England (from where his mother hails) in an attempt to quieten the pro-Calzaghe crowd. Not that he may require too much assistance to do that. The Dane is noted for being a quick starter, operating in a classic stand-up style from behind a ramrod jab. Whilst his style is not particularly complex with a jab-right-circle core, it is undoubtedly effective. In his last bout, Kessler soundly hammered the unbeaten Librado Andrade by a shutout decision almost as one-sided as Calzaghe-Lacy. The Dane has never looked in trouble in any of his bouts and appears to have a reliable beard. In Calzaghe, he meets a champ who is a polar opposite in many ways. Though comparatively tall and lean, Calzaghe fights from a southpaw stance and whilst he can box, can also have a street fight, throwing from unorthodox angles behind a solid lead right of his own. Whilst the Welshman has much the more impressive record, having beaten six world champions and numerous contenders, he has also looked unimpressive in a number of bouts, albeit whilst winning all comfortably. Against Bika, in particular, whilst the unanimous decision was never in doubt, his mind appeared to be elsewhere. He will, you feel, have to be perfect in body and mind for this one. The bookies make it a virtually even money bout. Calzaghe is a best priced 3/4, whilst those who like the Dane can back him at around 6/4. One way or another, this looks likely to be a long fight. Both men's records suggest a certain durability. Calzaghe, whilst powerful, is an accumulation puncher and lands to most effect against opponents coming straight at him (Mitchell, Lacy, and Sheika in particular spring to mind). Kessler is a heavy handed hitter, but tends to dominate rather than destroy, leaving aside his impressive sparking of Beyer. The key to the bout could be Calzaghe's southpaw jab. Kessler, at 28 the younger man by 7 years, is hardly familiar with the port sided stance, Beyer being his only notable leftie victim. If he can keep in position and land the right before Kessler get his in, you suspect, those fast and furious combinations are likely to follow. Then again, Calzaghe himself has never been the hardest man to find with a right hand. I do not expect a short fight and it is likely that both men will have to go to the well and back several times. Nonetheless, the faster pace, if he can set it, may just favour Calzaghe. He knows what it takes to fight longer bouts at a fast pace and has had to dig deep on previous occasions, particularly his title-winning effort over Chris Eubank. Kessler, who likes to fight at a more measured pace, has had few such moments so far in his own career. At this late stage, though, it has to be wondered how long Calzaghe can keep coming up with the goods, whether the hard bouts in the 35-year-old's glittering 43-0(32) career may just be catching up with him. History tells us, though, that when Calzaghe has to come up with the goods, he usually does. With some reservations, I am going to back him to do so again and punch Kessler to a standstill in claiming a narrow but deserved 12-round victory. On the undercard, another Welsh-Italian world champion, WBO cruiserweight titlist Enzo Maccarinelli, takes on Mohammed Azzouai. The undefeated New Zealand-based Algerian was called up after Enzo's originally scheduled opponent, veteran Ezra Sellars, was refused as an unworthy challenger by the sanctioning body. Whilst his 22-0-2(8) log looks impressive on paper, a closer look reveals the challenger has never fought at anything approaching this level. I expect the champion to retain comfortably, but following on from his impressive win over Wayne Braithwaite in July, the Welshman needs to step it up and fast. Questions Or Comments? Email This content is protected
