by David P. Greisman

It’s not surprising when a fighter who has been scoring knockout after knockout during his development begins to see more of his bouts go against the distance, particularly as the level of opposition gets better.

Keith Thurman was still scoring knockouts or technical knockouts in recent years against the likes of Carlos Quintana, Diego Chaves and Jesus Soto-Karass, but his last two bouts have each ended with unanimous decision victories. Thurman topped Leonard Bundu and Robert Guerrero in those bouts, moving to 25-0 with 21 KOs.

Now, as he’s set to face former titleholder Luis Collazo on the first “Premier Boxing Champions” card on ESPN on July 11, Thurman says he still wants the knockout though he will be able to get the victory another way if need be.

“I still hold one of the highest KO ratios in the welterweight division,” Thurman said on a June 30 conference call for the Collazo bout, which will take place in Tampa, Florida, near Thurman’s hometown. “At this level no fighter is coming to get knocked out. They know what they’re up against. They’re up against a dangerous fighter. The No. 1 rule in boxing is ‘Protect yourself at all times.’ And they’re aware of that. They’re trying to box smart. They’re trying to be crafty.”

Even against Bundu and Guerrero, Thurman said his power was evident.

“There was still a knockdown in both fights,” he said. “The Bundu fight happened in the first round. The Guerrero fight happened in the ninth round. So it’s apparent that I am a puncher who holds power from the beginning to the end. And we want the knockouts — for the fans, for the publicity, to live up to the name ‘One Time.’ But at the end of the day we still just want to be a champion, and we’ll do whatever it takes to stay champion.”

Thurman holds the World Boxing Association’s “regular” title at 147. The WBA has Floyd Mayweather Jr. as its “super” titleholder; Mayweather also holds the belts bestowed by the World Boxing Council and World Boxing Organization, while Kell Brook has the International Boxing Federation’s belt.

Collazo stopped Victor Ortiz in early 2014 and then lost to Amir Khan by decision later in the year. He returned this past April, quickly dispatching of Christopher Degollado to move to 36-6 with 19 KOs. He’s shown a sturdy chin — his only defeat within the distance came early in his career, a third-round stoppage loss to Edwin Cassiani back in 2002.

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