In what amounts to the first high-profile boxing match of the new year, unbeaten Errol Spence Jr. will attempt to cement the pound-for-pound status he enjoyed after winning the title last May by making the first defense of his IBF welterweight title.
Spence (22-0 19 KOs) scored one of the more impressive victories in 2017 by stopping Kell Brook in Round 11 of their title bout in England after breaking his orbital bone. Although the former U.S. Olympian was able to back up the high praise he had earned as one of the sport's hottest prospects, he sat idle the remainder of the year in search of hungry opponents.
On Saturday, the 27-year-old Spence expects a stiff challenge when he faces former two-division titleholder Lamont Peterson (35-3-1, 17 KOs) at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET).
"I think it's going to start out as a boxing match, but as we go on, it's going to be a dog fight," Spence said. "We both have big hearts. I've never known Lamont to turn down any fight. Not a lot of people wanted to fight me. The big names shied away from me but Lamont stood up and said he'd fight me. This is going to be a hard fight.
"Lamont can push me to even greater levels. I feel like he is a better fighter than Kell Brook and has even more heart than Kell Brook and he can bring out the best in me."
Peterson, 33, was so eager to face Spence that he was forced to give up the WBA 147-pound title he won by an impressive unanimous decision against David Avanesyan last February in order to secure the bout.
Despite entering with a decided advantage in experience, the quick and deceptive Peterson will be giving up size and power to the southpaw Spence, who is a large welterweight. But the move up to 147 pounds was important for Peterson following years of making a difficult cut at junior welterweight.
Although he enters as the decided underdog against Spence, who many view as a future P4P king in waiting, Peterson has a history of fighting on even terms against some of the top names at junior welterweight over the years, including Amir Khan and Danny Garcia.
"I can't worry about people thinking that Errol is the next star in this sport," Peterson said. "I believe that, but I can't worry about it. The size may seem like an advantage for Errol, but it's up to me and my team to figure out the best way to negate it. I know who I am. I'm a competitive person. It is up to me and my team to come up with the right type of strategy and execute it."
The two fighters have a history together that goes back to Spence's amateur days, when he sparred with Peterson and acted as a sponge hoping to soak up advice and experience.
"I knew six years ago when Errol was in my camp that we'd get to this point," Peterson said. "I knew he would be a champion. For the most part, I've seen him improve and progress throughout the pro ranks and I believe he's going to keep getting better."
Both have remained cordial over the years and were forced to come to terms with having to face off as professionals.
"This is the business of the sport," Spence said. "I was a young guy when Lamont was giving me advice. Now we've gotten to this point. It really shows his longevity in the sport and how I've reached the ranks of being a top pro fighter.
"Sparring with Lamont Peterson was really great work; it was a learning experience. I was an amateur so I was going at a fast pace and Lamont was being patient, blocking and countering and picking his shots. He was fighting at a pro pace and I didn't really understand it until I got farther into my career."
Peterson's trainer, Barry Hunter, believes the two fighters share an in-ring resemblance despite the fact that Spence is a southpaw.
"When I looked at Errol Spence, I instantly fell in love with him because he reminded me of Lamont so much," Hunter remembered. "They both have that dog mentality. I've always known he was a special fighter. Lamont told me when he worked with Errol that he really liked the kid. He knew he would be a world champion. I had to remind myself that this is business. We have to fight our friends."
Full Showtime TV fight card
| Favorite | Underdog | Weightclass |
|---|---|---|
Errol Spence Jr. (c) -2500 | Lamont Peterson +1100 | Welterweight title |
Robert Easter -500 | Javier Fortuna +350 | Lightweight |
Prediction
While Peterson certainly has the experience and the cardio to potentially push Spence late into the fight, his lack of top-end power prevents him from being a threat to win it. The reason comes down to just how skilled from an all-around standpoint Spence really is.
Spence's victory over Brook and the backbone he showed by going into enemy territory and eating big shots in order to land his own dispelled any myths that he wasn't ready for primetime. Although Peterson relied on constant pressure and an awkward style to give both Khan and Garcia fits in his biggest fights to date, Spence is too comfortable as an in-fighter and doesn't suffer from being flat-footed.
While an avenue for Peterson's success could come in the form of targeting the body, which is a strategy he used to violently break down an overwhelmed Edgar Santana in 2014, he'll be open for big counter shots should he commit. And that brings us back to the disparity in power, which likely eliminates any shot Spence has of falling behind.
Look for Spence to break Peterson down over time with hard counter left hands and eventually stop him early in the second half of the fight.
Pick: Spence by 7th-round TKO.
