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Jose Valenzuela vs Gary Antuanne Russell keys to victory: analyzing tactics of each fighter
Jose Valenzuela believes a win this weekend could unlock a big-money, life-changing fight against the likes of a Gervonta “Tank” Davis, Teofimo Lopez or Richardson Hitchins.
Gary Antuanne Russell has plenty of urgency to become a world champion after his attempt last year resulted in a close loss.
All being said, stakes will be riding high when Valenzuela (14-2, 9 KOs) puts his WBA lightweight world title on the line against Russell (17-1, 17 KOs) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, and live on pay-per-view, Saturday night.
Here, DAZN News lists the keys to victory for both fighters, including breaking down their tactics.
Jose Valenzuela’s keys to victory
Establish the jab
Valenzuela possesses a prodding jab that he used efficiently against a charging “Pitbull” in Isaac Cruz last August.
The stick was able to keep Cruz at Bay during some sequences, while stifling him and forcing the then-super lightweight champ to reset his offense.
“Rayo” is going to have to use that jab to do much of the same against a busy puncher like Gary Antuanne Russell.
Mix up the repertoire
Once his jab is asserted, Valenzuela should look to diversify his output to further frustrate Russell.
This can be done by making the jab the front-end combo which wraps in a crunching body shot — something that “Rayo” already does well.
Stringing together these types of combinations could slow Russell and his output down enough for the champion to flex enough in front of judges to sway their scoring.
Don’t get trapped up against the ropes
When Valenzuela found himself in trouble against Cruz, he was often stuck in cramped quarters on the ropes or trapped in corners.
He cannot afford to find himself in such precarious positions against a Russell who will let his hands go and feast at his expense.
Sticking and moving laterally in addition to resorting to the clinch and physically making Russell reset could be remedies for Valenzuela to escape these phone booth traps … or better yet, not get into them at all.
Gary Antuanne Russell’s keys to victory
Keep a tighter guard
Watch Russell’s only pro loss — the one he suffered in June via a split-decision defeat at the hands of Alberto Puello.
The loss had Russell showing a penchant for lowering his guard to about pectoral level and Puello was able to connect with enough pointed shots toward victory.
Doing this against a heavier-handed “Rayo” could spell trouble and will not reflect well on judges’ scorecards.
Russell must keep a higher, tighter guard and be conscious about it.
Change levels on the champ, keep busy
Russell does an excellent job at changing levels with feints and exploding upwards with punch output.
Doing this aids with Russell letting his hands go as the more active puncher and the one who is forcing the action.
The optics of this could bode well for Russell especially if the fight is close and true to its 50-50 prospects.
Fire away with combinations
(Rey Del Rio/Premier Boxing Champions)
Firing away with combinations is the way that Russell has been able to build 17 wins all by the way of stoppage.
His best bet to take the WBA super lightweight world championship off of “Rayo” is to blitz him with flurries that stand out to the judges or end the fight, altogether.
Russell has the boxing skills, power and speed to make this happen.
If he can time this output and fire away with combinations on a cornered Valenzuela, the boxing world could very well have a new WBA 140-pound world champion.
