1. Know Your Distance
Although Keith Thurman has been known to be a crafty boxer, he has also showed signs of weakness when fighting in the pocket. This is definitely a craft he wants to perfect, considering he wants to be a superstar champion. You can’t afford to make any mistakes when fighting a vet like Luis Collazo. He has been in there with tough opponents such as Ricky Hatton, Andre Berto, Shane Mosley and Victor Ortiz–who he scored a second round KO against.
Most boxing fans would agree that Thurman was stumped by Robert Guerrero anytime they fought on the inside. This is where Guerrero was most effective and was able to tag Thurman up.
When he fought Jesus Soto-Karass, he was also able to crack Thurman’s guard with a straight right along the ropes that pushed ‘“One Time” back. For this fight with Collazo he is going to want to use his jab as a measuring tool and preserve that distance. Collazo is also a southpaw fighter, unlike Thurman who fights in an orthodox stance. This can be risky due to headbutts and cuts, another good reason Thurman, who has never been cut, should maintain that distance at all times.
Collazo possesses favorable technical skills, good chin, solid defense and has a lot of experience backing him up. Even with Collazo’s losses, he has not become gun shy. Collazo is known to answer fire with fire and we all know it just takes one good punch to change momentum.
