Sal Sanchez vs. Vicente Saldivar

Saldivar is an underrated fighter and is often overlooked, but this is a matchup I just don't see him winning. Saldivar would press forward, but would be systematically picked apart by Sanchez, who was faster and a better technician. Sanchez also had the power to possibly stop Saldivar late.

A pretty wide UD or a late stoppage. Either way, Sanchez clearly beats his fellow Hall of Famer.

 

sanchez has the edge stylistically here, but i absolute can't see any picking apart being done.Saldivar was ultra precise and not an easy man to counter without getting battered to the body.He's not a sloppy fighter like Nelson nor of questionable durability and dedication like the featherweight Gomez.

Sanchez should be tough and skilled enough to scrape home a close decision, his height and reach advantages could be the key for him.

 

I agree that Sanchez would likely have won had they met, but it is by no means a sure thing. Saldivar was a great, great fighter in his own right and is one of those rare breed of fighters who got stronger and threw more punches as a fight progressed... his late rounds stamina was incredible and he was also a dedicated body puncher which makes one wonder if he may have slowed Sal down enough to the body to take over late in the fight and win the championship rounds.

Of course Sanchez had excellent stamina as well and was never one to suck wind by the later rounds, but with a human tank like Saldivar looking to cave in your ribs/stomach with every punch he throws to your midsection it is bound to take a toll on you no matter how well conditioned you are. And Sal was there to be hit and would be within Vicente`s punching range which means he won`t have to go chasing him around the ring like he did with the speedy Winstone or Famechon.

I do believe that the winner of this fight would ultimately be decided in the championship rounds, and that is where both men usually were at their best so it is a tough call to make as to who does walk away with his hand raised... but I`ll go against the grain here and pick Saldivar via split decision, with his workrate and sheer will to walk through whatever Sal throws at him to get his pound of flesh in being the deciding factor with the judges.

 

saldivar's straight left to the body is one of the best punches of all-time IMO.

Damn near impossible to defend against and so heavy handed with it.

 

Indeed, which is why I am not convinced that Sanchez wins this as he will be eating a lot of those lefts and rights to the breadbasket and I cannot help but think they will slow him down considerably as the fight progresses into the late rounds were Saldivar excelled. This is a great, great fight either way and I definately see a trilogy in the making here had they been around at the same time.

Mantequilla, I`ve been pondering a Saldivar vs Pedroza tussle for a few days now and was thinking of starting a thread on it, what says you to that fight and possible outcome? I`d favour Saldivar again, but I do think Pedroza is a harder fight for him than Sanchez due to his style... a tall rangy boxer with good legs and a big bag of dirty tricks is not an easy nights work and Vicente would have his hands full here.

 

:rasta

Saldivar and Pedroza are two fighters that, due to style, and, more importantly, due to their uncanny ability to accelerate in the later rounds, always give Sanchez fits. Chava always seemed to start out at a measured pace, and tended to give away the first few rounds in a lot of his championship fights before ratcheting up his attack down the stretch. Not certain if he could do that against either Saldivar or Pedroza and hope to earn a decision...and I just don't see KO's being scored against either fighter.

Although pedroza is one of my favorite all-time fighters, I think Saldivar might have a slight edge, and do enough to earn a razor-thin decision. Tough to say, though...that's really a toss-up fight.

 

I started a thread on this matchup a while back. I agree that Saldivar has an excellent chance, though not sure I'd outright favor him.

 

Saldivar vs Pedroza is another pick 'em.

It would be interesting to see how Saldivar dealt with Pedroza's roughhousing.