Jose Pedraza vs Mikkel LesPierre Preview July 2nd
There’s a good 10-round junior welterweight bout on tap this Thursday, July 2nd at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas as former world champion Jose Pedraza of Puerto Rico takes on Mikkel LesPierre of Trinidad and Tobago. Pedraza was beaten by Jose Zepeda via a 10-round unanimous decision in his last outing in September for the vacant WBC USNBC Junior Welterweight Title. LesPierre, who fights out of Brooklyn, New York, was victorious over Roody Pierre Paul by eight-round unanimous decision in December. Thursday’s bout can be seen live in America on ESPN and ESPN Deportes and on TSN in Canada.
Pedraza vs LesPierre Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Mikkel LesPierre +550
- Jose Pedraza -1205
My Pick
The 31-year-old Pedraza is a former IBF Super Featherweight Champion. He won the vacant belt in June of 2015 when he beat Andrey Klimov by unanimous decision. He defended the crown twice by beating Edner Cherry and Stephen Smith by split and unanimous decisions respectively then lost his crown in his third defence when Gervonta Davis stopped him in the seventh round in January of 2017. Since then he’s beaten Jose Luis Rodriguez, Antonio Moran and Raymundo Beltran by unanimous decisions.
He then ran into Vasyl Lomachenko in December, 2018, was dropped twice in the 11th round and lost a unanimous decision in a shot at the WBO and WBA World Lightweight Belts. Since then he stopped Antonio Lozada Torres in the ninth round and lost to Zepeda, both last year. Pedraza climbs through the ropes with a record of 26-3 with 13 Kos. He’s 5-feet-8-inches tall with a reach of 70.5 inches and prefers to fight from the outside if possible.
Pedraza turned pro in 2011 and isn’t much of a banger as his knockout ratio is 44.8 per cent, but his power shouldn’t be underestimated. He’s boxed 210 rounds and also owns a unanimous decision over Alberto Garza in 2014 and a seventh-round TKO over Sergio Reyes a year earlier. Pedraza had a fine, extensive amateur career and represented Puerto Rico at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing where he lost in the second round. Since turning pro he’s also won the WBC Youth World, USBA, and IBO World Super Featherweight Titles to go along with his WBO Latino Lightweight Crown.
LesPierre is a 35-year-old southpaw who carries a record of 21-1-1 with 10 Kos. He turned pro in 2012 at the age of 27 and has 115 rounds of experience under his belt. He went 36-13 as an amateur and took part in the 2012 Olympic trials. He’s 5-feet-8-inches tall with an unlisted reach so measures up in height against Pedraza. LesPierre doesn’t have much in the way of power either with a current knockout ratio of 41.7 per cent.
It’s hard to find any recognizable names on the list of LesPierre’s opponents other than Maurice Hooker, who he lost to via unanimous decision in March, 2019 in a shot at Hooker’s WBO Super Lightweight Title. In fact, just nine of his 24 foes have had winning records. LesPierre hung in their against Hooker by lost by a wide margin on the scorecards.
Since turning pro he’s managed to win the vacant WBC Fecarbox Junior Welterweight Title by stopping Mario Beltre in December of 2017 and the vacant WBC United States Junior Welterweight Crown with a 10-round unanimous decision over Noel Murphy just two months later. The lone draw on LesPierre’s record is a four-round tilt with Cornelius Whitlock in his second pro fight.
Prediction…
Pedraza should use his superior boxing skills to keep LesPierre on the outside and nail him whenever he gets within reach. Pedraza has the better boxing skills, plenty more experience and owns a pretty solid chin. He should also be used to the 140 lb limit by now. I’m expecting Pedraza’s skill and experience to result in a victory Thursday night.
I’ll go with the Pedraza’s experience
Play Pedraza -1205@ BetOnline.ag
Check out my recent boxing betting picks to see my current form.
Jose Pedraza betting • Mikkel LesPierre betting