Weaknesses for Each Man
Photo by Ed Mulholland
As tough as Ruslan Provodnikov is, it’s no secret he doesn’t have the sharpest boxing IQ. This is slightly surprising, given that he has one of the best trainer’s in boxing, Freddie Roach. But some are built to box, some to fight, some to do both. Provodnikov is a natural brawler, not a boxer. It works for him against other brawlers but not when someone makes him think.
Provodnikov deals the least favorably with movement, as we saw in the Chris Algieri fight. Cutting off the ring is a weakness for Provodnikov, and it may show if Lucas Matthysse decides he wants to move around in the ring and control the exchanges. Provodnikov’s success depends on making his opponent fight his fight—he doesn’t really know what to do otherwise.
Though it is outstanding he has never been down in his career, notice that all of Provodnikov’s losses have come from decisions. Provodnikov has to learn to give a decisive performance, and not just rely on knockouts to win. This would be a lot easier for him if he added more boxing technique to his arsenal.
In the push to be aggressive, Provodnikov often sacrifices the placement of his punches. Being aggressive is great—being accurate is even better. Missing shots means expending energy that doesn’t go toward beating your opponent. Matthysse has the same flaw, which is why some of his punches miss or end up hitting his opponents in illegal areas such as behind the head.
Hogan Photos
Matthysse can box better than Provodnikov, but he tends to box “defensively,” meaning that he’ll do it if he’s hurt or backed into a corner. Against a brawler like Provodnikov, boxing as a last resort usually happens too little, too late. Matthysse would need to think about boxing first and then setting up his exchanges to be successful against Provodnikov.
Unlike his opponent this Saturday, Matthysse has seen the canvas more than once in his career. Provodnikov knows he can be dropped, and will do everything in his power (literally) to see that come to fruition. The upside to Matthysse’s personality is that he is willing to take risks; the downside is those risks have consequences.
