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Billy ‘The Kid’ Dib may have just arrived at the last chance saloon.
If he fails in his opportunity at a world title on Friday night, who knows if he’ll get another.
That may make him a desperate man, but he shouldn’t be. Desperation is what has cost him in the past.
Dib has a huge heart and that sometimes is his problem. He uses it more than his head on occasion.
At the end of the day it isn’t the toughest fighter who reins supreme, it’s often the smartest.
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Previously in Dib’s chances at a world title he has been too desperate to impress.
Many wrote him off after his comprehensive points defeat at the hands of Steven Leuvano in 2008.
The loss saw him dropped by Golden Boy Promotions and forced back home to Australia and the drawing board. To his credit, he did the work, made the changes and took the long road back.
The IBF Featherweight World Title signalled his return to the big stage in July 2011.
He was snapped up by SMS Promotions, Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson calling the shots.
The US market is notoriously tough to break and Billy had been granted a second opportunity at it.
A big world title defence against Evgeny Gradovich, beamed around the globe on ESPN, and Dib wanted to make up for lost time.
He wanted to show he was an action-packed fighter made for the USA that would get TV sets and turnstiles spinning. He traded shots with Gradovich willingly, only to lose the title.
He showed us his heart and his underappreciated chin and won admirers, but at the end of the day he lost the fight and his title, because he went away from his strengths.
Dib’s best asset is his speed, silky boxing skills and his ringmanship. He used angles well and is hard to hit, yet in the Gradovich fights he was more focused on putting on a show by trading bombs.
Hearing Dib speak in the lead up to this fight it’s good to hear he’s learnt those lessons. He’s returned home, worked on his skills and waited for the next opportunity at redemption.
It’s a credit to his team for getting this fight as I think it’s a very winnable one.
That’s not to say it will be easy.
Takashi Miura has lost just once in six years, twice in his entire career.
He’s heavy handed and can finish a fight within the distance, which he’s managed in over 65 per cent of his fights.
Miura is also quite good technically, and he’s a southpaw, making him an awkward opponent for Dib.
The champion has just fought once outside Japan in his career, highlighting his comfort on home soil.
Dib’s shot at the title will be available all around Australia on free-to-air television. It’s an opportunity many fighters will be envious of.
It is the first world title fight on Channel Nine in 25 years and harks back to the days of a man close to Dib, Jeff Fenech.
It was Fenech who made himself a household name back in 1985 when we won the IBF World Bantamweight Title against Japanese fighter, Satoshi Shingaki, as an underdog.
Dib has the same opportunity against another Japanese champion on Friday. Dib also has the opportunity to do something Fenech never did, claim the WBC Super Featherweight Title.
Fenech was robbed of the green belt following a controversial draw against Azumah Nelson in 1991.
Dib has the opportunity to right the wrong and finally bring it back to Australia for his close friend.
Going to Japan and getting a decision will be difficult and Dib will have to be at his best. He will have to dominate the fight and win close to every round.
He’s the underdog, but some will say it’s been that way his entire career.
But often fighters at the last chance saloon bring their very best, and in the land of the rising sun, Billy Dib may rise again.
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