Cintron-Clottey

[NPwill]

Like both these fellows-- neither of whom seem to get their due respect, especially the oftentimes unfairly maligned Cintron on these internet boards. I'm a big Cintron fan given his backstory/upbringing, his fights are always entertaining and he has more heart and a better chin than people give him credit for --- but just has never lived down his first fight with Margarito in the public's mind in which he was thrown in too soon by his then-handlers against the division's top lion. Yet he had the wherewithal to come back and win a title, and then even called Tony out again-- hardly, "a quitter when things get tough" as he's often portrayed. But lets face it: Clottey is no Margarito in terms of pressure/power-- in the final analysis the root of Kerm's losses (who wasn't going to outbang Tony in the second fight, yet that's exactly what he tried to do ill-advisedly which seemed to be more about redemption than a strategy to win ; I will concede that Clottey fought a far smarter strategic fight vs. Tony). To my mind, the outcome depends on who has the better strategy and can execute it throughout the fight --- Clottey's early defense needs to be inpenetrable to the point where Cintron gets tired/frustrated and primed to be worn down in the later rounds where he can perhaps exploit any flaws/bad habits Kerm may still have in his skills. Cintron needs to be patient and not get frustrated/spent when Clottey refuses to expose his chin, take advantage of whatever Clottey leaves open and maybe let him taste his power on occasion, and keep something in the tank to go the distance where he's doing enough each round to win. The Ndou fight didn't show much and wasn't particularly memorable-- but it did show Cintron being patient and doing just that to get an easy (but not pretty) win against a guy who's never been KOed. A perfect prep for Clottey. I think Ronnie Shields has Kerm improving both in terms of boxing skills and strategically during a fight and taking the decision. That is-- if the fight actually comes off (haven't seen any official announcement yet-- only rumors its close).