The Featherweight Division is Looking Loaded [Archive]

Exhibitman

01-25-2010, 02:41 PM

I was already impressed with Chris John and Rocky Juarez but Yuriorkis Gamboa and Juan Manuel Lopez added to the mix on Saturday. Gamboa is the real deal-heavy hands and very fast. Lopez wasn't as flashy but was against a tough boxer and managed a wear-down KO. That's three undefeated guys and one (Juarez) who drew once and lost once to one of them (John) in a fight he almost won by KO in the final round. This is going to be a very fun division to watch.

D. Bergin

01-26-2010, 01:15 PM

I'm not sure if it's loaded but it's looking interesting.

However, I think the verdicts still out on most of these guys.

Chris John - can have a negative style sometimes. Juarez is there to be hit so their fights were a good style matchup because of that.

Rocky Juarez - Powerful puncher but unfortunately is just too conservative with his punch output for the division he fights in. He wants to make every thrown punch count but because of this he often does just enough to lose in many of his fights. Judges don't necessarily favor a Featherweight with the punch output of a Heavyweight.

JuanMa - Most accomplished of the bunch I think. Has weaknesses that can be exploited but has shown lots of heart to make up for it. Looks ordinary in some fights and absolutely devastating in others. If he can be more consistent he will be hard to beat for anybody.

Gamboa - Obviously the most physically talented of the bunch. He's seemed to iron out many of his flaws acclimating to the professional style of fighting, but Mtagwa had the style to help him showcase his countering talents. Gamboa has looked lost in there at times against guys more elusive then Mtagwa. I'm also very wary of any highly touted Cuban amateur who comes over at the fairly advanced age he has. Those old amateur habits are hard to break once you hit the pros. He also hasn't really been chin-checked yet. If he fights JuanMa, that will most likely happen.