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Gamboa has the skills to beat Rios. Rios is slow as hell, his footwork is whack and he's only looked great against other slow, "lets stand toe-to-toe" fighters. The one guy who had some movement was making Rios look TERRIBLE which was Miguel Acosta, but then Acosta just stopped moving after a few rounds and stood there taking shots. Acosta is no Gamboa, neither in speed, skills or footwork.
Gamboa will stick and move and his speed is going to be too much for the limited Rios.Comment
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Yeah, people are getting their hopes up expecting a war. WTF? Gambo ain't going to stand in there and trade with Rios. He'll be dancing all night around the ring, step into the pocket to deliver his flurries and then get out.
If Rios wins it'll be via a one single punch KO but don't expect him to land much aside from that.Comment
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This fight is really interesting cause it's not just a big prime guy vs a small past prime guy, or vice versa like these "David vs Goliath" matches usually are, there's usually one guy who's past it or old. This is two prime undefeatd young fighters, one gets hit a lot and is big and strong(Rios), the other one can get knockdown when he gets wreckless(whether it's his balance or whatever it is) and he's super fast and can move around and box very well, as well as go on the attack very successfully. This is just an all around good fight, good **** by Gamboa for taking this fight.Comment
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I like his breakdown.... I just don't think he's taking into account the size difference.... Acosta is at least 2-3 inches taller and has a reach advantage over Gamboa and Rios not to mention Gamboa has never felt 135 power unlike Acosta and is going n against the arguably the hardest puncher at the weight..... Gamboa won't be able to enjoy those advantages height reach familiarity with the weight etc.....
And Rios > Margarito that fought both Pac n CottoComment
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Reach wont be a factor since Rios will be walking towards Gamboa all night. It will be a lot easier for Gamboa to get his shots off then bounce out, versus if Rios was a guy who stayed at mid range and boxed.
Gamboa is used to sparring big giants as well, going back to Cuba to now. Most of his early career fights were at 130 or above so it's not that huge of a stretch.
Height is the only real issue but again speed & footwork can take that advantage away real quick.Comment
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I'm thinking along MJ's lines. Gamboa has neither a height nor a reach advantage over Rios. If he did, he could use his speed and skills to stick and move. Yuri uses his speed and athleticism to jump in and out of the action, much like Pacquiao. If Gamboa thinks he can take your power, he'll stay in the pocket and exchange. Since most guys can't handle his speed, they tend to get overly defensive, trying to avoid getting busted up or KOed.
Against Ponce De Leon, Yuri was able to maintain his distance, jump in at will and deliver pot-shots or short bursts of punches. He respected Daniel's power. But Ponce wasn't too keen on getting tagged, either. He knew Gamboa could hurt him. I can see Rios opening up, willingly taking as many shots as he needs to in order to land one. If this happens, and I think it will, Yuri will become fairly unwilling to engage. However, Gamboa is an aggressive fighter by nature. I can't see him staying out of danger all night, willingly or not. Yuriorkis will fight. When he does, he'll be vulnerable to the bigger man.Comment
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The bold is a particularly good point. From what I understand, Cuban national team members spar one another, regardless of weight-class. This means that Gamboa might've sparred, say, Odlanier Solis, a heavyweight. (I don't know how accurate this is; it's something I remember reading in a book on Cuban sports.) This could be a big reason why Yuri has challenged a much bigger man, two weight classes above him. He's not intimidated by size.Comment
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