By Tom Donelson

The upcoming Diego Corrales-Joel Casamayor battle pits two fighters with conflicting styles and genuine dislike for one another. Casamayor is the boxer, slippery and elusive, but has enough power to give Corrales trouble. Corrales is a power puncher with a vulnerable chin, but excellent boxing skills.

And to add to the drama, both fighters may be on the downside of their careers.

Corrales’ last five fights came against Casamayor, Arcelino Freitas and Jose Luis Castillo. The two bouts with Castillo and Casamayor as well as the bout with Freitas were tough bouts that could've taken something out of Corrales. The question is what Corrales has left after going through just a battering.

As for Casamayor, the Cuban’s hand and foot speed is not what it used to be. And like Corrales, Casamayor has had his share of boxing wars that including bouts with Castillo and Corrales. When Casamayor fought Kid Diamond a year ago, he was lucky to come out with a draw. What Casamayor has left is a punch that that can still hurt Corrales if he lands it right.

In their two previous bouts, it was the boxer, Casamayor who showed the bigger punch as he knocked Corrales down three times overall. Corrales managed to knock Casamayor down once in the initial bout, but could never really put him in serious trouble. That is what makes this fight intriguing for both fighters, as they are more vulnerable than in their past contests and both of their chins will be tested.

Casamayor’s advantages are his boxing skills and in the past, his hand speed. The hand speed is not what it used to be, but Casamayor has become more of a puncher later in his career than he was early in his career. Early in his career, he depended upon speed and elusiveness. Later in his career, the Cuban has been force to add power to his repertoire for Casamayor gets hit with punches that he avoided early in his career.

Corrales has always been a good boxer, but he just love to fight and punch. When he fought Castillo, he chose to fight the Mexican’s fight and went toe-to-toe in one of the most memorable wars in boxing history. He managed to split two fights with Castillo, but these bouts were rugged affairs that appeared to take more out of Corrales than Castillo.

In his rematch with the Casamayor, Corrales used his left jab effectively to confuse him and often displayed better boxing skills. On the other hand, Casamayor nearly ended the fight with a when landed a bomb to score a knockdown in the tenth, but it was Corrales’ jab that proved the decisive factor in the fight.

So what will happen in the rematch? Good question. This fight is a bout between two warriors who don't mind mixing it up. Casamayor will try to box as he did early in both bouts but somewhere in the fight, Casamayor will have to move inside. This only makes him more vulnerable to Corrales’ power. The good news is that Casamayor has shown that he can take Corrale’s best shots better than Corrales can take his in return.

For Corrales to win, he must repeat what he did in their second bout. His jab kept Casamayor off balance and he cut off the ring effectively. He pursued his opponent effectively and when needed, he boxed his way out of trouble. He showed the ability to go from Plan A to Plan B. In their first fight, Corrales went toe-to-toe and failed to use his jab. That fight ended in defeat.

The key to this fight is whether Corrales uses his jab effectively. If he does, then Casamayor will have trouble winning. It is that simple. The problem is that Corrales just loves to fight and brawl, regardless of whether or not he is the better boxer in the bout. This crack in Corrales’ armor will only give Casamayor opportunities to nail him with straight lefts from his southpaw stance. On many occasions, Corrales has made many of his fight more difficult because of his brawling instinct. There is no question that he is a big puncher, but at the same time he has the more vulnerable chin.

I like Corrales to win, but it depends on which Diego Corrales shows up. The Corrales of the first Casamayor fight will produce a more exciting encounter, and probably a Casamayor victory. If Corrales repeats his performance of his second meeting with Casamayor, then he stands a strong chance to win.