I've always said that there's two things Vargas was vulnerable to - handspeed and left hooks. Norris had both great handspeed and a potent left hook. I think that'd be the difference. I do think at some point Nando hurts Norris, but I just don't see him closing the show. I think Norris controls most of the fight, then at some point late he catches Vargas with a big left he doesn't see, and drops him. Vargas rises on wobbly legs, Norris jumps on him with a combination, ref stops it. Norris TKO 11.
Great matchup. Two quality boxers who could brawl and were prone to doing it a little too much when they should have been boxing clever. Also both a bit vulnerable largely for that reason. I think Norris was the quicker and slightly more skilled / gifted, with Vargas being a little tougher, though of course he could also be got at and hurt. He probably had better powers of recovery than Norris, at a push. Vargas had good timing and underrated footwork but Norris' sheer speed and movement is unlike anything else he ever faced, and it's going to be hard for him to offset. He probably can't decision Norris. He could certainly stop him, but I think @Xplosive has laid out a pretty plausible scenario above - eventually Vargas just gets a little too overeager and brave for his own good and pays the price. I guess the problem here is that it takes a leap of faith to go with Vargas, because he never quite hit the heights he seemed destined for and tended to just fall short in his defining fights (I don't believe he beat Winky, but I'll concede it was probably close enough to broker some debate). Norris had some disappointing losses as well, but he also had potential tricky and dangerous assignments were he really did rise to the occasion and shine (Castro, Brown rematch etc.) which is a reassuring factor here, for me. Norris by late stoppage after a cracker.
I had Wright winning 7-5 over Vargas. I think a draw would have been justified. It'd be hard to give it to Vargas 7-5, but possible if you give him every benefit. Wright got robbed worse in the Jermain Taylor fight. I had him beating Taylor 8-4.
Pretty much in line with you on how I saw Winky-Vargas. I had Wright by a couple of rounds or so. Wouldn't have grumbled with a draw, with the caveat that it'd probably have been a little kinder to Vargas than Winky. But a Vargas win outright? I think he got away with one there. Not in the robbery category, but definitely in the dubious one. Been a while since I watch Taylor against Wright, but I've always been swimming against the tide on it. Most see it the same as you, a clear win for Wright. I didn't at the time and didn't on further viewing. I'm not saying that Wright didn't win it, but I saw a very close fight which wasn't particularly easy to score and which was open to interpretation. From experience I suspect most would take your view of that one over mine, though.
It matters how Fernando goes about it. He cannot sit back in this one he has to go for it and make it into a war and stop Terry within 4 rounds. And he could do it.
Vargas could potentially stop Norris if he turns it into a slug fest. If Norris doesn’t get caught up in a war I’d favor him to stop Vargas late in the fight
Even in a slugfest, there's no guarantee Vargas wins. He never had the best chin himself, and he wasn't some lights out puncher like Jackson. What is a guarantee is that a stoppage is Vargas' only chance. He damn sure isn't outboxing Norris.
