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Some are calling tonight’s event the best card in Australian boxing history. It is rare to see two Australian champions defend their world titles on home soil. Join us for live coverage and blog of Daniel Geale vs Osumanu Adama and Billy Dib vs Eduardo Escobedo from 7:30pm (AEDT) tonight.
Both Daniel Geale and Billy Dib are eyeing big paydays and big fights in the US in the future, so a loss now would scupper those plans.
Losing tonight is not an option, both fighters will have left nothing to chance.
First to Geale. The Launceston boy is fighting in his home state for possibly the final time.
‘The Real Deal’ has a near perfect record – 26 wins from 27 fights, his only defeat coming controversially to Anthony Mundine a few years ago.
Geale has gone to another level after that setback, capturing the IBF middleweight title after beating Sebastian Sylvester by split decision in Germany last year.
His first successful defence came in August 2011 with a unaminous decision over Nigerian Eromosele Albert. His injured right hand restricted him in that fight, but he looks fit, calm and collected for this bout.
See an interview with his trainer Graham Shaw here
Geale, the ultimate professional, will have a big, home crowd backing him. He will also have no shortage of motivation, with his opponent Osumanu Adama’s camp ramping up the insults and barbs in the past week.
Ghanaian Adama will have his hero, boxing legend Azumah Nelson in his corner and Nelson believes Adama will need to knockout Geale to take the belt.
This fight has echoes of Nelson’s classic clashes with Australia’s Jeff Fenech. Adama won the right to challenge Geale by knocking out former world champion Roman Karmazin in the ninth round last October. Geale beat the same fighter with a TKO in 2010. Adama has a record of 20 wins and two losses, with 15 KOs.
He has height (2cm more) and reach on Geale, though both are 31 years old, and will be a tricky opponent. But Geale has more experience and more talent, and should have the edge tonight. All the pre-fight posturing has exposed Adama as someone who looks worried.
Geale prediction: Unaminous points decision for the Tassie fighter.
On to Dib. “The Kid” is also defending his title for the second time, after a quick-fire dismantling of Italian Alberto Servidei in 2011. Like Geale, Dib has just won lost – back in 2008 in Atlantic City to Steve Lueveano – and since then he has become a better fighter.
He has returned to Australia, rebuilt his career and won 13 fights in a row. Dib is a hungry boxer who wants to get back to and beyond the heights he reached in the US early in his career.
He has a good height and reach advantage on his 28-year old opponent – with Dib 172cm tall and with a 172cm reach to Eduardo Escobedo’s height of 170cm and reach of 168cm. The Aussie champion will be expected to use this as a strength, moving around the ring and using his footwork.
See an interview with Dib’s trainer Billy Hussein here
Bad blood with Escobedo aside, the Mexican is a good fighter. Tough and battle-hardened, he has been in good form of late – not losing a bout since 2008. His record is 32 wins and 3 losses from 35 fights, and in the past he has shown he is unafraid to mix it with opponents with better records or more experience under their belts. Escobedo is pumped up for tonight’s bout, judging by his media comments, and this really is a career-defining fight for both boxers. I think it will be really close fight and one hell-of-a battle. But Dib should edge it, probably in a points decision, as he grows in stature and class.
The rest of the card has some interesting match-ups, especially the fifth bout of the night featuring Kali Meehan. The naturalised Australian heavyweight takes on American Travis Walker for the IBF Pan Pacific Title. Both are experienced boxers and big units, Meehan with a 2cm height advantage and Walker with a 2cm reach advantage. Both have registered many knockouts in their long careers, though Walker is 9 years younger. This is too tough to call, with only prediction that we will see a knockout. Could be Meehan on the canvas, could be Walker. Either way, with one massive card of boxing ahead of us, it’s should to be an entertaining fight night.
THE FULL CARD FROM BOXREC
7. Middleweight – Daniel Geale v Osumanu Adama – 12 rounds
6. Featherweight – Billy Dib v Eduardo Escobedo – 12 rounds
5. Heavyweight – Kali Meehan v Travis Walker – 12 rounds
4. Catchweight – Steven Maxwell v Alex Ahtong – 6 rounds
3. Light heavyweight – Steve Lovett v Frank Ciampa – 6 rounds
2. Super Featherweight – Corey McConnell v Roberto Lerio – 6 rounds
1. Light heavyweight – Aaron Lai v Judd Cornwall – 4 rounds
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