Jesse Hart moves up in weight to face Sullivan Barrera.
A very interesting light heavyweight clash takes place on June 15 on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs Tom Schwarz.
Former world title challengers Jesse Hart and Sullivan Barrera will clash in a ten-round bout. The fight will serve as the co-main event to Fury vs Schwarz. This fight has a chance to be fight of the night. Now, let’s take a look at the fighters.
Jesse Hart
Hart (25-2, 21KOs) hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He’s a tall, rangy fighter with good power. He possesses solid skills that can give any fighter at 175 a problem.
However, he has flaws that have left him unsuccessful in title fights. He’s 0-2, with both close losses coming against former WBO super middleweight champion Gilberto Ramirez.
In those fights, we saw the good and bad of Hart. Let’s start with the good. Hart is a guy who’s blessed with height and good athleticism.
His long arms also give him an advantage when he sticks with the proper game plan. His ability to fight from the outside gives his opponents problems. Also, not only can he box, he possesses fast hands and good countering ability.
As the younger, taller and more athletic fighter, he’ll need to use all these things in his favor.
The bad, however, has left him coming up short twice in title fights, as mentioned above. His mental makeup isn’t what you’d imagine it would be for a guy who has a deep amateur background.
Also, his inability to adjust and fight on the inside when forced to makes him vulnerable to fighters who exceed in that department. If Hart wants to be successful, he needs to keep the fight strictly in the middle of the ring, where he can use his reach and boxing ability.
He needs to establish his jab from the start while keeping Barrera on the end of his punches.
Sullivan Barrera
At the age of 37, Barrera, (22-2, 14KOs) who hails from Cuba, is in the twilight of his career. While very talented, Barrera has come up short in his biggest career fights against former two-division champion Andre Ward and current WBA light heavyweight champion Dimitry Bivol.
Barrera, who will be at a slight height disadvantage and significant reach disadvantage, will need to work himself inside the long arms of Hart. There, he will increase his chances of victory, as Hart is extremely vulnerable in close.
If he can make this an ugly fight, forcing Hart to abandon his game plan and fight reckless, he can find success.
Prediction Time
With all things being said, I expect a competitive and entertaining fight between these two talented, but flawed fighters.
At night’s end, I expect Hart to come out with the victory via decision, making a successful light heavyweight debut.
By: Jerrell Fletcher
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