Mairis Briedis vs Oleksandr Usyk Preview Jan. 27th
There’s a cruiserweight unification bout in Riga, Latvia this Saturday, January 27th where unbeaten WBC Champion Mairis Briedis of Latvia will be taking on undefeated WBO Titleholder Oleksandr Usyk of Ukraine. The bout is a part of the World Boxing Super Series and can be seen live on ITV Box Office in the UK, the Audience Network in the USA and Super Channel in Canada. Briedis won the vacant title last April by beating Marco Huck via unanimous decision and then defended it against Mike Perez by unanimous decision in the first round of the Super Series in September. Usyk stopped Huck in the 10th round in September in his first Super Series outing.
Briedis vs Usyk Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Mairis Briedis +525
- Oleksandr Usyk -700
My Pick
The 33-year-old Briedis is a heavy hitter with plenty of skills and Usyk will be better off to try and box him in the early going rather than slug it out. The WBC Champ has a perfect record of 23-0 along with 18 Kos and has stopped seven of his last nine opponents with Huck and Perez managing to go the distance. His biggest wins have been against Huck and Perez as well as contenders Olanrewaju Durodola by ninth-round stoppage in 2016 and a fifth-round stoppage of heavyweight Manuel Charr back in 2015.
Briedis turned pro in 2009 and has fought just 103 rounds since then. He stands 6-feet-1-inch tall and has an unlisted reach, but it’s believed to be about 80 inches. As his record shows, he’s got quite a bit of power with a current knockout ratio of 78 per cent and possesses good boxing skills. However, he’s been the distance in his last two bouts. Other than a few recognizable names though, Briedis may lack a little experience in fighting against top-ranked opponents up to now. He’s not the quickest cruiserweight out there and can be a bit of a dull and predictable boxer if he can’t stop his opponent.
Usyk is 31 years old and has a perfect record of 13-0 along with 11 Kos. He won the WBO Title by beating Krzysztof Glowacki by unanimous decision in September, 2016 in Poland. He then defended it against Thabiso Mchunu with a ninth-round stoppage three months later and against Michael Hunter in April of last year. Usyk is a 6-foot-3-inch southpaw who has a reach of 78 inches which gives him a two-inch height advantage, but presumably a two-inch reach disadvantage against Briedis. Usyk turned pro back in 2013 and has boxed 93 rounds since then.
Usyk has good power as his current knockout ratio stands at 85 per cent. The only men to last the distance with him were Hunter and Glowacki. Usyk also has victories over some relative unknowns over in Europe. Usyk had an excellent amateur career as he competed at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China and then won the gold medal in the heavyweight division at the 2012 Games in London. He also won bronze and gold at World Amateur Championship tournaments in 2009 and 2011 respectively.
Prediction…
Neither champion really looked impressive in his first outing in the Super Series, but they both got the job done and made it to the semifinals. Usyk has had success fighting on the road, so shouldn’t be concerned about fighting in Briedis’ backyard. Usyk seems to be a bit better when it comes to power, speed and mobility and I think he’ll take the WBC Title with him when he leaves the ring.
Usyk is a bit better than Briedis at this stage.
Play: Usyk -700 @ BetOnline.ag
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Mairis Briedis betting • Oleksandr Usyk betting