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By: Hans Themistode
The Welterweight division is fully stacked from top to bottom. It might be the best division in all of boxing. No one outside of Manny Pacquiao has fought tougher opposition than WBC champion Shawn Porter (30-2-1, 17 KOs). Fights against Devon Alexander, Kell Brook, Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia prove that notion correct.
Even with big fights against some of the best names that the division has to offer, it seems as though those experiences will pale in comparison to what he has in front of him on Saturday night.
In front of a packed house in the Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California, Porter will be taking on IBF champion Errol Spence Jr (25-0, 21 KOs).
Many have already written Porter off. Do that if you want but Porter has shown to be a world class fighter in the past and he will do so again this Saturday night. It’s going to be the most difficult fight of his career there is no question about that. Spence has a ton of advantages over Porter, but if he follows these keys to victory, he’ll walk away as a unified champion.
Box On The Outside
Porter has a pressure style. One that relies on him to push the pace and be extremely physical. That physicality won’t work against Spence who is much bigger and stronger. It also will be a predictable game plan.
Spence, along with the rest of the boxing world fully expects Porter to just rush right in. He should switch things up and try boxing on the outside. Say what you want about Porter’s ability to box but he is actually is a very good boxer when he decides to be. He needs to put his boxing acumen on full display come Saturday night.
Keep A High Work-rate
There has been times where Spence has thrown countless punches in a round. Porter is already at a disadvantage in my many categories but one thing that he can’t afford to let happen is allowing Spence to outwork him.
Porter should have a high work-rate in every single round. When Spence throws one punch, Porter should throw two. If Spence throws 40 punches in one round then Porter needs to throw 80. Being the busier fighter could go a long way towards swaying the judges.
Stay Off The Ropes
If Porter manages to trap Spence against the ropes then by all means, go to work. If it’s the other way around, he can’t waste anytime there, he should get out of there as soon as possible. Laying back on the ropes would be a bad decision for Porter. When Spence gets his opponents on the ropes it’s usually goodnight. Porter just can’t afford to be in that position. He’ll be a sitting duck all night long if that’s the case.
