A critical moment for both Austin Trout and Terrell Gausha!
Where: Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, Biloxi, MS
When: Saturday, May 25 @ 8:00 PM ET
Network: FOX Sports 1
This is a critical fight for both fighters because it will determine the future of their careers. First we have former WBA junior middleweight champion Austin Trout (35-5, 17KOs), who has lost three of his previous four fights.
The New Mexico native struggled in losses to Jermell Charlo, Jarrett Hurd, and Jermall Charlo. Trout led on the scorecards at various points in those fights. However, due to either knockdowns or fatigue, he was unable to pull off a victory. If he doesn’t get a victory Saturday May 25th, he may be relegated to gatekeeper status.
Next up we have Terrell Gausha (21-110KOs) who’s struggled to make the transition to contender. Gausha has fought mostly second and third tier competition, with one title shot against Erislandy Lara.
Against the tricky southpaw Cuban, the Cleveland fighter was clearly out of his depth as he virtually lost every round. Trout will present an easier version of a lot of the problems Gausha faced against Lara.
Game Plans
The strategy for both fighters is fairly obvious because their attributes are straightforward. First for Trout, he simply needs to fight as he normally does, staying behind his jab while picking the best available power shots when the opportunity presents itself.
Trout isn’t great at anything, however, he’s above average at everything. The biggest concern regarding the former champion is that he’s an old 33 years old and has fought some stiff competition. He does a great job of staying in shape so this shouldn’t be an issue but, it’s something to watch for.
For Terrell Gausha, this is somewhat of a tall task because he’s going to have to do some things he’s not necessarily comfortable doing. At the start of his career, Gausha was projected to be a puncher. As a pro, however, holding a 45% KO rate demonstrates he’s not much of a finisher so far.
The causes for this seem to be that the Ohio native struggles with accuracy and fights at a slow pace.
This brings us to the key to beating the former champ. Gausha is going to need to out-hustle Trout and be busy at all times. Second, he needs to take the risks to land body shots.
Trout has shown that he can fade late in fights and effective bodywork can bring that out. Lastly, Gausha needs to be dynamic defensively. Throughout his career, the challenger has been susceptible to jabs and if his head movement, as well as his footwork aren’t up to par, this will be a long night.
My final prediction on this fight is a victory for the man hailing from New Mexico. He should be able to outbox and frustrate his opponent to a 116-112 decision, effectively breathing life back into a once very promising career!
By: Corey Cunningham
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