Watching the Gamboa fight, I thought Jonathan boxed very cagey, and didn't give any leads to Gamboa to exploit. Basically, Barros fought not to lose, and a fighter with Gamboa's style will always look less exciting against such a reluctant foe. So how would JML look against Barros? JML is taller with longer reach, and although not as quick as Gamboa, might have an easier time reaching Barros. Or would he?
I personally haven't seen much of Gamboa or JML so I wouldn't know. But I'm puerto rican and am not fully sold on Lopez. :/
I don't think Gamboa went all out at all. I think he was using this fight to try some new defensive moves for his upcoming fight with Caballero. This was in every sense of the phrase, a staying busy fight. I think JML would have taken care of Barros easily, but I also think Gamboa could have had he not showboated as much and had he actually brought the heat and gone for the KO.
I think Juan Ma would be more aggressive and dominant. But there is one thing we need to take note of, Gamboa didn't really get out of second gear in my opinion. It seemed he was trying new things out and experimenting while he still has the chance, I think if he really wanted to he could have finished it within the 12 rounds. Instead he was arrogant and paid the price for it by getting caught once or twice.
I agree with you 100%. Gamboa seemed to be trying out new defensive tactics and moves while trying to just get the win by points. He did'nt even showed real interest when he knocked Barrios down to finish him as he let him recuperate and continue... What I did'nt like was Gamboa turning " southpaw " and lowerings his hands too much, he can lower his hands once in a while but not all the time. Gamboa does'nt need to be so defensive against Caballero, he can just walk up to him and KO him, the other possibility is that Gamboa just took the fight as a tune up to keep in shape and practice some new moves on his part! Either way, Yuri won and won easily against a pretty tough undefeated opponent who fought hard for the Title. His chin on the other hand is not so great but it ain't bad either as he took a solid punch from Barrios, got momentarily stunned but his legs were ok... One last thing, Gamboa was very " impressive " in dodging punches with his lateral moves and waist moves making Barrios miss 95% of his punches, something that he has never showed us in the past... This is for the fans out there who have critized Yuri in saying that he does'nt have any defense, he actually looked like a Roy Jones dodging punches from all angles... :bbb It's hard to say how JML would do against Barrios but keep in mind that Yuri looked like he was actually fighting at a mere 60% in terms of full capacity... :good
Personally, I thought it was one of those "It takes two to make a fight" type fights. Barros's gameplan was to use his jab as his main offense and take a shot only if he had any chance of not getting hit in return, which is a tall order against someone as quick as Gamboa. Barros was not going to commit to any other offense other than a pawing jab, and was backing up every time Gamboa initiated, instead of trying to counter. Smart move but not a performance that will bring him to the attention of Showtime or HBO execs. I felt the reason Gamboa dropped his hands also was to try and bait Barros to fight with him, but obviously Barros was not going to abandon his gameplan. Anyway, this is not about Gamboa but JML vs Barros. I think Barros would take more chances against the slower JML, and would frustrate him because Barros does have pretty decent distancing and footwork. JML might beat him but he would not look better than Gamboa IMO. He might even look worse.
Good question. Gamboa simply doesn't like when he has to push forward while the opponents waits to time him, Lopez might find more success based on his style, throwing a hell lot from distance. On the other hand, Barros might get more chances, and he's a natural 130er, so it's not like he'd let Lopez abuse him like the very good but small Gerry Penalosa. In the end, I can see Lopez looking better and still winning the same kind of wide decision, but I wouldn't rule out a lot more Barros success either if he can figure Lopez out and find the holes between the zillion punches. Mtagwa not going down discouraged JuanMa a bit and Barros showed an excellent chin, so the 2nd half of their fight would be very interesting. Of course I doubt this fight will ever happen.
