Saturday, December 6, 2014, Gabriel Rosado (21-8, 13 KOs) and David Lemieux (32-2, 30 KOs) square off in a 12-round Middleweight clash live on HBO.
Lemieux packs a powerful punch and owns an imposing 88.24 knockout percentage. He’ll be looking to to impress American fans and perhaps secure a date with another hard-hitting foreigner–Gennady Golovkin.
Rosado is a throwback fighter who is not afraid to put it on the line as is evidenced by his resume. Rosado has faced numerous champions and top-notch contenders, but on December 6 he’ll be looking to get back into the win column after going 0-3 with one no contest in his last four bouts.
Rosado vs. Lemieux–which will take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY–headlines a three-fight card presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye of the Tiger Management.
The fight card also features Hugo Centeno (21-0, 11 KOs) against James De la Rosa (23-2, 13 KOs) in a 10-round Middleweight bout.
Opening up the televised action will be Hank Lundy (25-3-1, 12 KOs) vs. Thomas Dulorme (21-1, 14 KOs) in a pivotal Junior Welterweight bout.
The HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins at 10:00 pm, EST.
Read on for RBRBoxing’s staff predictions for each bout and let us know who you think will win!
[yop_poll id=”90″]
[table id=1 /]
Hank Lundy
vs.
Thomas Dulorme
Tony Calcara, Staff Writer
Maybe the most evenly matched fight on the card. Going with my gut here and picking Hammerin’ Hank. Lundy is stepping in to fight Thomas Dulorme as their original opponent, Frankie Gomez, could not commit due to trainer Freddie Roach not being available to train him.
Add to the recipe a “friendly“ meeting between Lundy and Dulorme in Vegas where the two exchanged promises and pleasantries.
Prediction: Lundy
Lou Catalano, Senior Writer
A tough fight to call. Hank Lundy is as crafty as they come, and though Thomas Dulorme is solid, I don’t think he’s quite on the level.
I like Lundy to weather the storm for a couple rounds before winning widely on points.
Prediction: Lundy
Brandon Glass, Contributing Writer
Hank Lundy, like the fighter who gave him his second defeat, (also on the losing end of last Saturday’s main event) Ray Beltran, is still waiting for the shot to compete on the world stage. I remember when he got up from the canvas to decision the hard-punching St. Louis native and heated rival, Dannie Williams.
Lundy likes to box from the outside and pick his shots. He has a tendency to punch wide, which may hurt him against the rangier Thomas Dulorme. There’s a definite advantage for Lundy’s hand speed in this fight and that will allow him to throw his combinations on the inside against Dulorme’s compact stance.
Dulorme is a prospect right on the cusp, but I’m not certain of how well he’ll fare competing with fighters at a higher level. To get this opportunity, he decisioned Karim Mayfield in one of his sloppier showings. I think that’s due to the shorter Mayfield’s aggressive and swarming style.
Dulorme fights tall and sets up hard shots off the jab to work his way inside and land hard hooks, but he’s basic in technique and lacks speed. He’s been working with Robert Garcia out in Oxnard, so I can only assume he will improve as a fighter. I doubt the fact that Lundy is a southpaw will give him too much difficulty as he decisioned a faded Demarcus Corley and he switched stances in the loss to Luis Carlos Abregu.
Prediction: Dulorme
Alex Burgos, Editor-in-Chief
This entire card is going to be exciting to watch because each bout poses a lot of different questions. In the opening bout of the evening, we get to see two guys who are trying to break through the middle-of-the pack in the Jr. Welterweight division.
Thomas Dulorme is a guy we once thought was a sure-fire hit. He’s rangy and has a nice jab, but he got walloped by Luis Carlos Abregu and since then the jury has been out on him. Lundy has had multiple chances to push past contender status, but he always seem to fall short.
I think this is a crossroads fight for both guys, with the loser being sent back to Friday Night Fights purgatory. I think that Lundy will play the intimidator like Karim Mayfield did against Dulorme, but Lundy will bring more skill and win a hard-fought decision.
Prediction: Lundy
James De la Rosa
vs.
Hugo Centeno
Tony Calcara, Staff Writer
Boy, this is a real toss up as both guys match up pretty evenly. I give the nod to the undefeated Hugo Centeno.
James De la Rosa is 3-2 in his last five fights. I see this one heating up quickly and Centeno having more in the gas tank than De la Rosa. He will outwork and outhustle De la Rosa and earn the victory.
Prediction:Centeno
Lou Catalano, Senior Writer
James De la Rosa scored a nice victory earlier in the year when he pounded on Alfredo Angulo’s corpse for several rounds before Angulo reanimated and almost knocked him out.
Hugo Centeno is an up-and-comer, but I’m not sold on him yet. I’m going with De la Rosa.
Prediction: De la Rosa
Alex Burgos, Editor-in-Chief
When sizing up this matchup, there are two fights that stand out in my mind. James De la Rosa’s victory over Alfredo Angulo was his signature performance, but it was against a shot fighter. Hugo Centeno’s no contest bout against Julian Williams was headed in the wrong direction for the “The Boss” before it was stopped due to an accidental clash of heads.
Centeno is undefeated, but I’m not sold on him quite yet. De la Rosa can be tricky, as he can switch stances comfortable and attack from different angles. I think that as long as De la Rosa is well conditioned and ready to go the distance, he’ll be too much for Centeno.
Prediction: De la Rosa
Gabriel Rosado
vs.
David Lemieux
Tony Calcara, Staff Writer
I like David Lemieux. He is a dangerous puncher and packs a wallop with both hands. I see him effectively getting inside and taking the fight to Gabriel Rosado.
Rosado is one tough cookie and has faced better competition than Lemieux. He loves to mix it up but won’t have the kind of power to force Lemieux into retreat.
He also has a tendency to get busted up and bleed badly. I see Lemieux forcing the action and controlling the pace, ultimately earning a win.
Prediction: Lemieux
Lou Catalano, Senior Writer
David Lemieux is a murderous puncher. Gabriel Rosado has an epic beard. Something has to give.
There are questions about each fighter, like whether or not Lemieux has learned anything from his loss to Marco Antonio Rubio, and whether or not Rosado’s face will hold up or slough away like Freddy Kruger’s when the leather starts landing.
This fight is huge for both guys, as a win might land them a shot at getting violently concussed by GGG. For Rosado, this is absolutely do-or-die. A desperate fighter is a dangerous one, but I like Lemieux to take the step up and win by knockout, and then brag about his impeccable hair.
Prediction: Lemieux
Brandon Glass, Contributing Writer
I am stoked for this one. I really like Gabe Rosado, but this matchup favors David Lemieux. The Armenian-Canadian version of Gennady Golovkin (Lemieux) looked great in his last fight against the tough journeyman Fernando Guerrero, however his first defeat was at the hands of a fighter the real Triple G ironically beat a few weeks ago, Marco Antonio Rubio.
Still, Lemieux comes in with a whopping 88 percent knockout percentage. Expect Lemieux to use patience, great footwork and generalship. He’s going to work behind a sharp jab to close in on Rosado and blast him with an organized flurry of hard punches, mostly that vicious left hook.
Rosado is a tough guy. He’s a better boxer than he would get the credit for and shows solid defensive skills. He’s just susceptible to his opponent’s traps. That’s why he ends up getting caught, despite good head movement and foot work. Unfortunately, Rosado’s more appreciated for the beatings he takes, more so than the ones he hands out. He’s most known as being the fighter that took a beating from Golovkin without touching the canvas once. So at least he has the beard for it.
Not to sell the Philly native short, he showed a lot of heart in that fight. However, he’s put togehter a string of losses with the major step up in competition, and though he’s displayed guts and resilience against better fighters, I still think he loses this one by decision.
Prediction: Lemieux
Alex Burgos, Editor-in-Chief
I’ve heard a lot of grumblings about this matchup, particularly regarding the fact that Gabriel Rosado is getting yet another chance on premium cable. But, you won’t hear any gripes from me. I love Rosado’s toughness, David Lemieux’s explosive power and the fact that this can’t be a boring fight.
Rosado is an exciting guy to watch and he’s not just a blood-and-guts warrior with no technique, he’s actually got a lot of skill. But for whatever reason–bad decisions, cuts, etc.–Rosado can’t seem to get into the win column (at least in a boxing match).
Lemieux stormed back onto the scene in his last bout against Fernando Guerrero, scoring an impressive third round stoppage, but he better be prepared for a more durable opponent this time around. I think that Rosado is tough and gritty–as he’s shown in the past–but Lemiuex will likely bust him up and whether its stopped due to excessive bleeding or actually goes the distance, I think the heavy-handed Canadian scores a victory that could land him a matchup with everyone’s favorite murderer, Gennady Golovkin.
Prediction: Lemieux
