Keith Thurman vs. Mario Barrios: Fight Prediction, Odds, Undercard, Start Time, Preview, How to Watch

The best fights are the ones that bring together two fighters with an engaging mix of styles, both with questions to answer. That’s the kind of fight set for Saturday night (9pm ET, FOX PPV) Keith Thurman and Mario Barrios welter when they meet at a large weight.

Thurman (29-1, 22 KOs) established himself as one of the top names in the highly talented 147-pound division, winning the WBA championship before adding a WBC belt to his collection when he defeated Danny Garcia in a March 2017 reunion. bout. He beat Garcia after a landslide victory over Shawn Porter, establishing Thurman as a true elite welterweight.

That was almost five years ago.

Since Garcia’s fight, Thurman has only found himself in the ring twice. He underwent shoulder surgery in May 2017. Then a scheduled date for January 2018 never came together and a date for May 2018 fell when Thurman had a “deep bruise” on his hand. Thurman finally returned to the ring in January 2019, in a formidable fight against Josesito Lopez, Errol Spence Jr. He was in the future with Thurman about a match with the IBF champion.

Can’t get enough boxing and MMA? Get the latest news from the world of martial arts from the top two in the business. Subscribe to Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell for the best analysis and in-depth news, Thurman vs. Including a look at some of the greatest stories to follow in Barrios.

Although Spence’s fight didn’t come together, Thurman got the biggest fight of his career. Thurman’s battle against the legendary Manny Pacquiao led to the victory of the July 2019 Filipino legend in a split decision.

Considering his first loss and more enduring physical problems in his career, Thurman has not been in a professional fight since losing to Pacquiao and has to answer questions about his many long layoffs, the rusty ring and still being an elite. fighter in one of the deepest divisions of the sport.

Barrios (26-1, 17 KOs) is adding depth to the level, rising above the junior welterweight. Like Thurman, Barrios comes from the first loss of his professional career, in a war with Gervonta Davis in June 2021, which left Barrios late in the 11th round. The loss cost Barrios a 140-pound WBA title.

Barrios is seven years younger than Thurman and three inches taller, but has a thin frame and a lower natural welter weight than his opponent, despite his height and reach advantage.

So the question for Thurman where time and rust have come out of the welterweight elite is Barrios ’question as to whether he is a welterweight.

Barrios showed all his heart in fighting Davis. He made adjustments to Davis in the opening rounds, using his hand effectively against Davis, who is much shorter, and accumulating a few starting rounds. Davis finally solved the puzzle and his great power turned the fight around, knocking Barrios down again and again, even though Barrios never stopped getting up and back until the referee interrupted the game.

The bravery shown by Barrios in the Davis fight and the desire to strike with one of the sport’s top power punchers may have meant that losing Davis was more valuable than winning any fight that Barrios could have taken. at that moment. And it is likely that he landed as the B side of a payment card against the former champion.

The ticket below is filled with some names that fans will get to know as they make their way to the ring on Saturday night. Former super featherweight champion Leo Santa Cruz has returned to the main event when Keenan Carbajal takes the featherweight. Santa Cruz left his title in his last outing when Gervonta “Tank” Davis stopped him terribly in October 2020. Previously, he won five in a row. In addition, former champion Abel Ramos is back in the welterweight competition against Lucas Santamaria, and Luis Nery is back when he hit former bantamweight and super bantamweight against Carlos Castro.

Thurman vs Barrios card, odds

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

Forecast

There are several angles at stake in this fight, where it is difficult to verify a clear favorite. If this were the culmination of the Thurman five years ago, it would be easy to say that Barrios is eliminated in a fun fight that doesn’t reach the middle. But this is not the culmination of Thurman and when he came out with a long release last time, he showed every bit of rust against Josesito Lopez, a fighter selected for the same reasons Barrios is chosen here. Barrios is younger and has a great reach advantage, but he doesn’t have to be a “bigger man” no matter how measurable and comes from a fight where he was repeatedly beaten by a lightweight fighter and Thurman has great power. welterweight. That is, Thurman has great strength for a weight welter; the history of elbow injuries has not cut the ability to deliver a blow as hard as it did in his time. The only thing on the outside is that Barrios will lead the fight every second in the ring. He has good hand speed, throws a bunch of blows and throws combinations, all with a gas tank that supports the ability to continue in that until the end of the fight. It seems like a very bad recipe for a fighter who has only had two fights in almost 60 months. Barrios has had 10 fights since the start of 2017. Thhurman has three. All the ingredients are up for grabs, although Thurman can say that should win. Selection: Mario Barrios via UD