Rob Brant vs Ryota Murata Preview July 12th
WBA Middleweight Champion Rob Brant of Saint Paul, Minnesota will be meeting former champ Ryota Murata of Japan in a rematch in Osaka this Friday, July 12th. Brant won their first meeting by a wide unanimous decision in Las Vegas last October and then defended the belt against Khasan Baysangurov by 11th-round TKO in February. This is Murata’s first time back in the ring since losing his crown to Brant. The fight can be seen live in the USA on ESPN+.
Brant vs Murata Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Ryota Murata +271
- Rob Brant -326
My Pick
Murata originally won the title from Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam in October of 2017 by stopping him after the seventh round. N’Jikam had taken the vacant title in a bout against Murata just five months earlier by a controversial split decision. Murata’s first defence was an eighth-round stoppage of European Champion Emanuele Felice Blandamura in April of last year before losing it to Brant.
The 28-year-old Brant is probably first caught the public’s eye in his bout against Juergen Braehmer in the super middleweight quarterfinals of the World Boxing Super Series in October, 2017. But even though Brant was over a decade younger than Braehmer he lost a wide unanimous decision to the former WBA Light Heavyweight Champion. That is Brant’s only career loss though as he enters the rematch against Murata with a mark of 25-1 with 17 Kos since turning pro back in 2012. Brant is just over six feet tall with a 70.5 inch reach, which gives him a two-inch reach disadvantage against Murata.
Brant has also shown pretty good power up to know with a current knockout ratio of 65 per cent in the 111 rounds he’s fought as a pro. But other than taking on Braehmer and Murata, Brant has fought a steady diet of Grade B boxers and will once again be stepping up in class on Friday when he takes on Murata. Brant fought as a light heavyweight for much of his amateur career and was quite successful. He started boxing at the age of 16 and won several Golden Gloves titles as a youngster and was also the U.S. National champion in 2009. He’s also won a couple of regional and minor titles as a pro.
The 33-year-old Murata is a skilled boxer who won a gold medal in the middleweight division at the 2012 Olympics in London, England. He turned pro the next year and has boxed 104 rounds since then and enters the ring with a record of 14-2 with 11 Kos. Murata stands six-feet tall with a 72.5-inch reach. Other than meeting N’Dam twice and Brant he hasn’t exactly fought the cream of the crop in the middleweight division either, but he’s had just 16 pro fights. He’s also beaten Akio Shibata, Carlos Nascimento, Jessie Nicklow, Gunnar Jackson and Bruno Sandoval.
Murata possesses fine boxing skills and appears to have an excellent chin. He also has better-than average power power with a current knockout ratio of 69 per cent. Murata possesses an aggressive style and likes to dig his heavy punches into his opponents’ body as much as he does the head. He has a crowd-pleasing way of boxing and will be determined to avenge his loss to Brant in front of his home fans. It’s hard to spot an obvious weakness in Murata but he may want to sharpen up his defensive skills if possible as he isn’t the hardest guy to hit.
Prediction…
Brant looked absolutely fabulous against Murata the first time around with his speed and crisp, stinging shots and combinations. He was mobile and always got off first while throwing over 1200 punches. Murata looked slow-footed and took a lot of heavy shots proving he has a granite chin. Murata will be better prepared for Brant this time around but I think he’s going to have to stop the champion to beat him. I’m going to go with Brant in the rematch since he dominated the first fight. There’s always a chance he gets caught though.
Brant throws too many punches and is too mobile and quick for Murata.
Play: Brant -326 @ BetOnline.ag
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Rob Brant betting • Ryota Murata betting