Lacy versus Calzaghe

It has been awhile since I have posted so I apologize to my millions of fans who have been eagerly anticipating the next article chronicling my thoughts.

In all seriousness folks, Lacy against Calzaghe this weekend is what all of us fight fans have been clamoring for.

Lacy looks to be as good as they come. A former Olympian he punches with Tysonesque power. The right hand bomb he launched against Scott Pemberton was downright scary. Pemberton dropped as if he had been shot. What I like most about Lacy is his technique of repeatedly hitting his opponent with the same shot once he lands. During his bout against the capable Syd Vanderpool, Lacy chased after his opponent like a cheetah after a wildebeest. He would land a monstrous right cross, Vanderpool would retreat and than Lacy would chase after him repeatedly throwing the right hand. His superior will and firepower has enabled him to defeat all 21 of his professional opponents. Considering he has one of the best young trainers (Dan Birmingham) in the sport, Lacy is a fearsome wrecking machine who will be very tough to beat.

Calzaghe, on the other hand, is a fighter with the experience. 40 wins and no defeats. His wins have come against only a handful of the division's notables, I give him full credit for defeating Charles Brewer and Omar Sheika. I do think, however, that Chris Eubank was a bit long in the tooth before Calzaghe added his scalp to his resume. Calzaghe has a busy, swarming style and will have the hometown crowd in his favor (the bout is taking place in Manchester, England). The crowd will cheer even if he farts in Lacy's direction and this will help should the bout go to the scorecards.

Their primary common opponent aside from Omar Sheika is Robin Reid. Calzaghe took a split decision victory over Reid in '99. Lacy pummeled Reid to the canvas numerous times in '05. Clearly the '99 version of Reid had more in the tank than the one that faced Lacy but nontheless I think it shows that Lacy is a class above Calzaghe.

My pick is Lacy. I most often go for the smarter fighter in close contests like this. At first glance, Calzaghe appears to be the smarter fighter simply because of his vast edge in experience. But upon further inspection, I have to go with Lacy as not just being the smarter fighter but having a greater ability to execute a game plan. He'll use his superior strength to outmuscle Calzaghe on the inside and force him to the ropes. I think Calzaghe will absorb a shellacking as early as the third round and be too proud to quit. Lacy will slam the Welshman from pillar to post by the late rounds and force the referee to intervene.