Notebook: Linares believes experience will trump youth in title shot vs. Haney

GGG two-fight plan; Charlo-Montiel presser; Quick hits

Jorge Linares has been through the battles during a 19-year career in which the one-time prodigy went on to win world titles in three divisions from featherweight to lightweight.

He’s had extreme highs of multiple world title victories but also horrendous lows of early knockout losses and severe cuts that have caused stoppage defeats.

He’s 35 now and in the twilight of his career, but he remains an experienced and dangerous fighter capable of fighting in various styles, who intends to make the most out of another chance to fight for a world title.

He will challenge flashy 22-year-old WBC titlist Devin Haney in the main event of a Matchroom Boxing card on Saturday (DAZN, 8 p.m. ET) at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and looms as by far Haney’s best opponent so far.

“A fight with me is a different level. I can show so many styles,” Linares said. “I’m naturally fast and strong, I don’t have a lot of KOs, but he knows I can punch. I think he will run all night, but I will be waiting for him. I will follow him. If he wants to fight inside, I am ready for him. He’s going to have big problems on Saturday night. He knows I can do everything, and he knows I have to timing to put him down.

“I know his style. I trained with him a long time ago in Vegas and we did some sparring. He was a baby then, but he’s a champion now and I hope he’s ready for a tough fight.”

Linares (47-5 29 KOs), a Venezuela native, who has split time living in Las Vegas and Tokyo, has won two fights in a row since a shocking first-round knockout loss to Pablo Cesar Cano in January 2019 in an ill-fated move up to junior welterweight that lasted for only that fight. Linares last held a lightweight world title in May 2018, when he lost it by 10th-round knockout to then-pound-for-pound king Vasiliy Lomachenko.

The fight will be Linares’ first world title bout since the loss to Lomachenko. Haney (25-0, 15 KOs), of Las Vegas, will be making his third defense.

“It’s a big fight and a new challenge for me,” Linares, who has not fought in 15 months because of the coronavirus pandemic, said. “I have a lot of respect for Devin. He’s a young guy, a world champion, but on Saturday the respect goes, and I am ready for an amazing fight, and I hope he’s ready too. He knows who he is fighting. I have a lot of experience and that’s the most important thing in this fight to win the fight. He doesn’t have that. He has talent; he has youth and hunger, and the belt.”

GGG two-fight plan

It’s been pretty quiet around middleweight world titlist Gennadiy Golovkin since he beat down mandatory challenger Kamil Szeremeta, dropping him four times and stopping him in the seventh-round in December.

But plans are in the works for him to have a unification fight with Ryota Murata on Dec. 31 in Murata’s native Japan with each of them likely to fight an interim bout on the same card first, a source with knowledge of the plans told me.

Team GGG, Teiken Promotions (Murata’s promoter) and DAZN, which has an exclusive contract with Golovkin and is popular in Japan, are working on it. I wrote about it for World Boxing News. Please read the story here: https://www.worldboxingnews.net/2021/05/25/gennadiy-golovkin-plans-2021-canelo/

Charlo, Montiel meet media

Jermall Charlo may not be defending his WBC middleweight title against a top contender or a well known name in Juan Macias Montiel but that does not mean Charlo is not motivated to turn in a strong performance.

Charlo’s fourth title defense will come at the Toyota Center in his hometown of Houston on June 19 (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET) — the Juneteenth holiday celebrating the emancipation of slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865.

“There’s no better day to fight than Juneteenth,” Charlo said during the recent kickoff news conference to announce the fight. “It’s a celebration for me and my people and I get to represent them and carry them on my back. To be able to do it for my city right here at the Toyota Center – it’s going to be an amazing night of boxing.”

Charlo (31-0, 22 KOs), 31, plans to make it an easy night against an opponent who has no notable wins but got the fight due to a dearth of quality available contenders.

“Montiel is fearless. He’s a fighter that I think deserves a chance. At this point, he understands where he’s at,” Charlo said. “This is a big fight. A lot of people may not know who Montiel is, just like I didn’t, but he’s a strong fighter. The people want to see me get tested, right? I want to see those big fights, too. In a matter of time, they’ll come. But Montiel should be a good fight.

“I’m going to whoop his ass. He doesn’t stand a chance. They’re all confident. I got the belt. The belt ain’t going nowhere. Toyota Center, get ready. It’s going to be fireworks June 19. He can be as confident as he wants, but when we get in there he’s going to have to figure it out. I’m ready to fight the best in the world. I’m the best in the world and I’m not going to let this guy over here stop me.”

Charlo is taking a step down in competition against Montiel after a tough decision win over top contender Sergiy Derevyanchenko in September, but he does not want to have a letdown.

“A fighter like Montiel is challenging to go in there and get the job done real clean and swiftly because if I look bad against a guy like this they’ll take away from what I did in the Derevyanchenko fight,” Charlo said. “But, yes, to date, Derevyanchenko was one of my hardest fights, but I made nice work of it and onto the next one.”

Montiel (22-4-2, 22 KOs), 27, of Mexico, knows this is his big chance and plans to make the most of it.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and we are taking it as such with a lot of dedication and discipline,” he said. “This is the fight I always dreamed of. I am all about challenging myself and fighting against the best of the best. I have been training hard and I believe in myself. I will be ready to come out and win. We’re fighting in Houston because I don’t think that I’m in a position to choose or dictate anything right now. I will fight anywhere in order to make my dream of becoming a champion come true. If we have to fight on the moon, then let’s fight on the moon.

“I believe that power is the great equalizer, a legit advantage in boxing, since it can change the fortunes of any fighter inside the ring. I consider my power an advantage in my favor.

“I think Charlo is a great fighter, super talented and the world champion for a reason. I have been preparing my whole life for this.

Quick hits

Wasserman Boxing — the former Team Sauerland — on Tuesday won an IBF purse bid for the middleweight world title eliminator between its fighter, Patrick Wojcicki, and Esquiva Falcao. Chris Meyer and Tom Dallas, bidding for Wasserman Boxing, offered $175,579 and Carl Moretti of Top Rank, Falcao’s promoter, bid $110,000. As the higher-ranked fighter Wojcicki is entitled to 60 percent of the winning bid ($105,347.40) and Falcao gets 40 percent ($70,231.6). Per IBF rules, the bout must take place within 90 days. The winner will become the mandatory challenger for Gennadiy Golovkin.

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Matchroom Boxing on Tuesday made official what Fight Freaks Unite reported two weeks ago, that Lewis Ritson (21-1, 12 KOs), 27, and Jeremias Ponce (27-0, 17 KOs), 24, of Argentina, will meet in an IBF junior welterweight final elimination fight on June 12 (DAZN in the U.S., Sky Sports in the U.K.). The fight will take place with a limited crowd at the Vertu Motors Arena, in Newcastle, England, Ritson’s hometown. The winner will become one of undisputed champion Josh Taylor’s mandatory challengers.

Show and tell

In 2010, Carl Froch traveled to Mikkel Kessler’s turf in Denmark and lost a competitive decision and his super middleweight world title in an outstanding fight in the Super Six World Boxing Classic tournament. Three years later they met again on Froch’s turf in London in a super middleweight title unification fight and they waged another tremendous battle filled with action, drama and a wild crowd at the O2 Arena. But this time it was the Froch who pounded his way to a well-earned unanimous decision to avenge the loss. The May 25, 2013 fight, which turned out to be the last one of Kessler’s fine career, was eight years ago on Tuesday. Here’s a site poster from the bout in my collection.

Linares photo: Tom Hogan/Golden Boy Promotions; Golovkin photo: Michael Owens/Matchroom Boxing; Charlo/Montiel photo: Esther Lin/Showtime