The WBC Light Flyweight title will be on the line when champion Adrian "The Confessor" Hernandez clashes with Dirceu Cabarca on Saturday, Jan. 12.
The champion is coming off perhaps the biggest win of his career. He regained the title by stopping Kompayak Porpramook in the sixth round in October 2012. The win avenged a 10th-round TKO loss Hernandez suffered to Porpramook in December 2011, and ran his record to 25-2 with 16 KOs.
Just three months after his latest triumph, Hernandez is back at it.
Cabarca doesn't bring a sparkling record into this bout. He's only 13-6 with five KOs in his career, and this will be the first time he's fought in a fight scheduled for more than eight rounds.
For what it's worth, he has won two fights in a row.
The fight takes place in Hernandez's hometown, so combined with the obvious experience advantage, Hernandez will also enjoy a significant home-field advantage.
It could be a very long—or short—night for Cabarca.
Here are the specifics for the bout, a closer look at both fighters and a prediction.
When: Saturday, Jan. 12 10:30 p.m. ET
Where: Deportivo Agustín Ramos Millan, Toluca, México
TV: TV Azteca
The Book on Cabarca
I've never seen Cabarca fight live and there is very limited footage of him available.
I did watch his most recent bout against Johnatan Bravo in October 2012. He won by way of sixth-round TKO, but I'd be lying if I said I was impressed.
Cabarca has little to no regard for defense. He has decent power, but his accuracy leaves a lot to be desired. He pushes his punches, as opposed to snapping or launching them with the desired leverage to be effective.
He doesn't have notable hand speed as a quality either.
The things he does bring are toughness and moxie. He doesn't back down and taking punches only seems to ignite more of a fire.
I'm not sure that will be enough against Hernandez, though.
The Book on Hernandez
The Confessor is a relentless body-puncher that fights with great energy and pace. He throws devastating hooks and uppercuts, and when he's right, he has a nice blend of offense and defense.
He isn't one for superior head movement, but at his best, he keeps his hands high when he isn't firing.
A key example of the best and worst of Hernandez is his two fights against Porpramook. Their first clash that took place in Porpramook's native Thailand was a competitive bout, but Hernandez seem to tire at points in the fight.
His defense lapsed, as well, and it led to a crushing 10th-round TKO loss. This is the entire first fight with Porpramook. The TKO occurs at the 32:00 minute mark.
In their rematch, he looked like a different fighter. He completely overwhelmed Porpramook with his energy, body-punching and pace. He stopped him in the sixth round.
This one took place in Hernandez's hometown of Toluca, México, as will his fight with Cabarca. This is Round 6 of the rematch, the stoppage happens early on around the 30-second mark of the video.
Did Hernandez learn a lesson from his first fight with Porpramook or he is just a different fighter in front of his hometown fans?
I think it's a little bit of both.
Prediction
Barring something completely crazy, I can't see a scenario where Cabarca defeats Hernandez. The gap in skill is apparent if you've seen both men fight.
This is boxing, the unexpected can happen, but it probably won't in this case.
Hernandez will dismiss Cabarca inside of three rounds.
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