Devon Alexander-Juan Urango Preview

image: donking.com

Devon Alexander faces the sternest test of his young career when he answers the bell tonight against tough as whalebone Juan Urango at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut.

In addition, two Alphabet Soup titles will be unified—at least until one of them is stripped from the winner—and a future showdown with Timothy Bradley might be in the balance.

Alexander, 140 pounds of potential, is a classy boxer who works off of his jab and looks to run off flashy combinations that occasionally verge on slaps. Despite his apparent lack of power, Alexander, 23, is not necessarily the footloose type. Now and then he likes to move in behind his southpaw jab and throw rapid-fire punches in close. If he stays on the inside too long against Urango, however, he might get caught by a UFO. Then, some of the real prerequisites of prizefighting—for example, the ability to “take it” as Jack Dempsey once put it—will have to surface.

Urango, Cooper City, Florida via Monteria, Colombia, is as unrelenting as a haboob, and has the kind of power that can turn a skill deficit into an afterthought in a nanosecond. In his last fight, he rose from a thudding early knockdown to stop veteran power puncher Randall Bailey in 11 rounds. Even when things looked bleak, Urango came forward, churning hard punches, forcing Bailey to retreat. He has also faced much better competition than Alexander. Among the fighters Urango has swapped pleasantries in the ring with are Ricky Hatton, Andre Berto, Mike Arnoutis, Herman Ngoudjo, Sergey Sorokin, and Naoufel Ben Rabah.

On the other hand, aside from Witter, Alexander has faced a slew of journeymen and clubfighters, none of whom woke up with get-up-and-go on the day of the fight. Faded “Chop Chop” Corley, on a three bout losing streak at the time, was the only semi-respectable pug Alexander faced over the first five years of his career. This is not the kind of c.v. you want to bring into the ring with a grizzled pro like Juan Urango. But Alexander, St. Louis, has so much natural talent, it might not even matter. Hand speed, foot speed, and defense all belong to Alexander. Urango, 22-2-1 (17), has the edge in power and experience, but it seems unlikely that he will be able to cope with the technique of “Alexander the Great,” whose smooth moves were perfected over the course of a stellar amateur career whose record stands, almost absurdly, at 300 wins against 10 losses.

Nothing that happens in a boxing ring involving master junkball artist Junior Witter can be considered a gauge, but Alexander looked tentative with his jab against his fellow southpaw and did not rattle off his usual scorching combinations. If Alexander repeats this cautious performance against Urango, it could prove costly. When he is in the groove, Alexander, 19-0 (12), can throw uppercuts with either hand, bang right hooks to the body, and, with his nimble footwork, switch angles instantaneously.

In order for Urango, 29, to win this fight, he will have to try to break Alexander down physically with sustained body work and, perhaps, mentally, with relentless pressure. It remains to be seen whether Alexander will cooperate by exchanging in the trenches. If he decides to box at a distance and counterpunch, Urango may have trouble landing more than a handful of effective blows all night and from time to time will probably look like his feet are fettered in chains. Unfortunately, whenever Urango steps into the ring with a boxer, images of Ricky Hatton come to mind. Hatton, the mauling ruffian, turned Fancy Dan against Urango and cruised to a decision over 12 rounds. If Hatton, not exactly Nijinsky in the ring, can outmaneuver Urango, then Alexander, it stands to reason, ought to be able to turn cartwheels at will in the ring. After all, Urango, as tough a competitor as can be found in boxing today, was completely outclassed at welterweight by Andre Berto in his last appearance as an HBO fall guy.

At this point, the only questions about Alexander—due to his relative inexperience in the pro ranks—concern chin, heart, and durability. Urango, no doubt, will make sure to provide the answers. He does not want to become a professional gatekeeper in the most pitiless of vocations. No one does. In the end, the likeliest outcome is Alexander, if he can “take it,” by decision, with a few rough moments along the way.