Abel Sanchez: Lemieux-Stevens a 50-50 Fight; It Could Be Boring

By Keith Idec

Abel Sanchez knows a lot about David Lemieux and Curtis Stevens.

Gennady Golovkin’s trainer studied both boxers closely while preparing the undefeated middleweight champion to stop each of them. That’s among the reasons Sanchez and others in his gym in Big Bear, California, have talked so much recently about the Lemieux-Stevens fight Saturday night.

The middleweight contenders are scheduled to meet in an HBO “Boxing After Dark” main event at Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York. Montreal’s Lemieux (36-3, 32 KOs) is listed as more than a 3-1 favorite over Brooklyn’s Stevens (29-5, 21 KOs) by several Internet sports books, but Sanchez thinks they’re evenly matched and wouldn’t be surprised if either fighter wins.

Most media and fans expect Lemieux and Stevens to produce plenty of action. Sanchez isn’t so sure about that, either.

“Other than Gennady, with everyone else in the gym it’s been a topic of conversation,” Sanchez said during a conference call Tuesday to promote Golovkin’s fight against Daniel Jacobs on March 18 at Madison Square Garden. “We think it’s a 50-50 fight. I think it’s a 50-50 fight. I think that David has got maybe a little more sudden power. But Curtis is a very good boxer, with one-punch knockout power, also.

“It’s either gonna be one of those great, great fights we’re gonna remember. Or it’s gonna be a boring fight because they’re gonna have so much respect for each other they don’t do nothing. But once one of the two guys lands a good shot, I think it’s a war. I think they’re gonna bomb and somebody’s gonna go out.”

The 28-year-old Lemieux has been stopped twice – by Kazakhstan’s Golovkin (36-0, 33 KOs) and Mexico’s Marco Antonio Rubio (59-8-1, 51 KOs). The 31-year-old Stevens’ two TKO defeats came against Golovkin and Venezuela’s Marcos Primera (20-34-3, 13 KOs).

The Lemieux-Stevens fight will headline HBO’s doubleheader, scheduled to start at 11 p.m. ET. In the opening bout, Cuban junior lightweight contender Yuriorkis Gamboa (25-1, 17 KOs) will encounter Nicaragua’s Rene Alvarado (24-7, 16 KOs) in a 10-rounder.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.