WHo do you like? I think this is pretty evenly matched both very solid but not outstanding PFP types.
Check out Watt's fights with Ken Buchanan and the super fast, super hyped amateur star Howard Davis Jr. He pushes Ken quite close, and makes him look worse than you're likely to ever see him by simply timing his typically elusive movements with the right jab. Stops him in his tracks quite often with it. The same with Davis, except that Watt had his number so bad he started to give him a pretty thorough trouncing in the later rounds. A perfect bout to illustrate how timing can beat speed. As for this fight, you'd have to go with the much more proven commodity in Watt. Soto is a pretty solid fighter, but he has no standout attributes that I could see putting Watt off his game. More than likely it'd be another accurate jabbing showcase for Watt.
:yikes Everyone knows that Davis froze like a deer in headlights:yikes Dont try and past that over:nono Watts fanboys freaked him out.
Watt's really solid. In his first WBC title defense, Robert Vasquez retreated to the corners in a bid to draw Watt into a huge counter bomb. Watt moved in, did his work, and knew just when to step back before Vasquez could get set. The challenger was thus turned into a non competitive punching bag, and he eventually got thrown out by the referee. (It's recorded as a TKO 9, but was essentially a disqualification for not trying.) Arguello is an underrated performance by Watt. Yes, he lost, but he also boxed well in retreat and survived, something many other champions tried to do without getting anywhere near the final bell. He could brawl, and bring pressure for 15 rounds. His footage could be used as southpaw training material. Before any blood started flowing, Watt-O'Grady was all Watt, and he would have won a comfortable decision if both combatants had somehow finished the fight unmarked. Between Duran and Arguello, I believed Watt to be the world's best lightweight. (I think Arguello did too, or else he wouldn't have directed his lightweight bid in Watt's direction.)
If you say so. I saw nothing of Davis later on in his career to make me think this was anything less than an expose`, personally. One fighter more flash than substance, the other fighter all business. A re-telling of The Tortoise and the Hare in the boxing ring.
Even earlier in his career, there were bad signs. Stormin' Norm Goins decked him twice, and was even able to specify that the temple was Howard's precise weak spot. Then, Luis Davila floored him. For me though, the kicker was the match which got Davis, Jr. his shot at Watt. He made Vilomar Fernandez look like Joe Frazier. I was watching that one with my brothers, and when Vilomar's hook floored him, we couldn't believe what we were seeing. (Oh wow, he really does suck!atsch) Then, after Vilomar was carried around the ring by his handlers at the end, Howard somehow got awarded the unanimous decision. (Referee Hazzard since acknowledged "a disparity" in his scoring. At least Fernandez got an immediate shot at Kenty, but yet again, many believe Vilomar was robbed of the decision.) Ali and SRL had tremendous speed, but they were also phenomenally strong and tough. Howard was like a blade of grass in a hurricane. Granted, he may have been the fastest man in boxing, while Watt was slower than most lightweights, but Jim also had tremendous strength and stamina, and there was no way Howard was ever going to stand up to him, even in Glen Cove.
I've heard conflicting reports on Watt's chin... Some cite it as an iron one, some say it was only fair. I know he was stopped on cuts multiple times, did anyone ever cold **** the guy?
He had a protruding chin, but cuts were far more of an issue for him. I saw him decked twice, once for the briefest of flash knockdowns by Charlie Nash (which Nash paid dearly for), and by Arguello, with a perfectly timed hook. As with Nash, he was clearly not in any distress as a result of the Arguello knockdown. Significantly, Watt holds stoppage wins over all three opponents who stopped him. He subsequently avenged his TKO losses to Johnny Claydon and Victor Paul, while Willie Reilly was smart enough to retire before Watt could avenge a cut eye stoppage in a rubber match. Watt was never counted out. Watt was extremely well conditioned along with being physically strong, and this combination of factors made him resilient and resistant to punishment. Again, he went the distance with a 29 year old Arguello when he was nearly four years older than Alexis. In Arguello's first defense of Watt's lifted title, he ground down Ray Mancini in a prolonged war of attrition, a Mancini coming off a 12 round shutout of Ramirez. I would take the Watt of the Arguello fight over any version of Boom-Boom.
Soto, because anyone that picks Watt is under 'picking the older fighter' bias. It's as simple as that :good