J’Leon Love
vs.
Marco Antonio Periban
Photo by Esther Lin/Showtime
Brendan Montenegro, Sr. Corespondent
This fight in my eyes will be tough to judge, as we have J’Leon Love who has been taking baby steps up in competition vs. Marco Antonio Periban, a man whose last two fights have opened some eyes. Perbian lost a very close and tough decision to Sakio Bika for the vacant WBC Super Middleweight title and had a tough draw against Badou Jack for the NABF Super Middleweight title. This is the moment of truth for both young fighters and a win here will open many more doors and bigger fights for both each man. In the end, Love is in the TMT stable and Floyd Mayweather takes care of his fighters. He would not want any of his stable of fighters to lose on a night when they fight on an undercard he is headlining. With that being said, I have to go with Love in this fight as Mayweather, the king of ducking and handpicking guys, makes sure Love fights a guy that will make him look good in a tough fight. Love by split decision.
Prediction: Love
Lenin Acevedo, Photographer
This fight is a definite test for J’Leon Love. I think besides Gabriel Rosado, Marco Antonio Periban will be his toughest opponent as of yet. I would say that if this were two fights ago, Periban would’ve had a much better chance. After the Rosado fight, Love has sharpened up and if he has learned anything from Floyd Mayweather he should be able to capitalize on Periban’s aggression. Love by decision.
Prediction: Love
Juan Carlos Burgos, Contributing Writer
Marco Antonio Periban must be his high octane and volume punching self in order to beat J’Leon Love. Love, for his part, must handle the volume punching and not just cover up and wait to return fire. Periban may not let him do that. Love posses better skill, but Periban is no slouch and I am interested to see how Love will handle the pressure that Periban will bring. One thing Love may want to do is invest in the body. Periban–who has decent hand speed–needs to do what he does, which is throw punches from all directions, but also make sure he is not in chase mode. Since he is the longer fighter I think Periban can achieve this and I see him out punching and pounding out a victory.
Prediction: Periban
Alex Burgos, Editor-in-Chief
In the two highest-profile fights Marco Antonio Periban has been involved in–against Sakio Bika and Badou Jack–he has come out ready to fight. He’s not the most physically gifted guy, but he is tough and if J’Leon Love is not ready to fight, he could be in for a rude awakening. Floyd Mayweather says Love reminds him of himself when he was young–which is a completely asinine statement if you ask me–so let’s see if Love can show some of that talent. If Love is indeed on his way to the top of the division, he needs to impress and beat Periban soundly. I think Love will struggle in spots, but ultimately I think he is good enough to earn a decision victory.
Prediction: Love
