Who wins Adonis Stevenson-Dmitry Sukhotsky?

Dec

Photo by Amanda Kwok/Showtime

Adonis Stevenson has gone from being the world’s most celebrated light heavyweight to its most denigrated.

Russian Dmitry Sukhotsky (22-2, 16 knockouts) is the latest division rival to criticize Stevenson (24-1, 20 KOs), doing so during a Tuesday press conference in Quebec City, Canada, site of Friday’s clash for Stevenson’s RING and WBC championships.

“[Stevenson] looked nervous at the podium, like he wasn’t ready to fight but I am ready to fight,” said Sukhotsky, 33, who will be after his fifth consecutive victory against Stevenson. “I’m not going to say that he is underestimating me because I’ll show that in the ring. I came here to win. I came here to bring the world title back to Russia.”

In February, Stevenson signed with adviser Al Haymon in February and bolted to Showtime from network rival HBO in March, presumably to get a shot at Bernard Hopkins.

Ironically, Hopkins detoured from Showtime for last month’s HBO-televised fight with Sergey Kovalev, whose resounding unanimous decision added Hopkins’ IBF and WBA belts to the WBO title he already held.

Nicknamed “Superman,” Stevenson, 37, did look shaky during his last bout in May, a unanimous decision over Andrzej Fonfara.

Stevenson took a run of 13-1 with 13 knockouts into the bout with Fonfara and had stopped 10 consecutive opponents since being stopped by Darnell Boone in April 2010.

In his last fight in June, Sukhotsky unanimously decisioned Joey Vegas after having stopped his previous three opponents in one, three and five rounds, respectively.

The results of the RingTV.com poll taken from 17 insiders regarding Stevenson-Sukhotsky are as follows.

Marc Abrams, www.15rounds.com

Adonis Stevenson KO 10 Dmitry Sukhotsky: I will take Adonis Stevenson by 10th round stoppage. Dmitry Sukhotsky will hang in for a while but Stevenson is too athletic and fast.

Record: 5-1 [Last pick: Amir Khan SD 12 Devon Alexander]

Stephen Donatelli, guest/fan, Pittsburgh, PA.

Adonis Stevenson W 12 Dmitry Sukhotsky: After watching Sergey Kovalev dominate Bernard Hopkins, Adonis Stevenson has a major chip on his shoulder. Stevenson wants the supremacy that seems to have shifted toward Kovalev, at least in the eye of the public.

It wasn’t that long ago when “Superman” Stevenson starched Chad Dawson in 76 seconds, after which he toyed with the durable Tavoris Cloud en route to making him quit on his stool after the seventh round. Dmitry Sukhotsky has a decent record but a suspect resume.

However, in his two losses, “The Hunter” has yet to be stopped. In any case, Sukhotsky is in with simply a better caliber fighter and that will be apparent. Look for Stevenson to hurt Sukhotky on several occasions on the way to taking a one-sided decision victory.

Record: 2-1 [Last pick: Khan W 12 Alexander]

Jake Donovan, BoxingScene.com

Adonis Stevenson TKO 10 Dmitry Sukhotsky: If ever a fighter was in need of a statement win, it’s Adonis Stevenson. After a “Fighter of the Year”-level 2013 campaign, 2014 has been a year to forget for the reigning world light heavyweight king.

The year has been one that will be remembered more for the fights he left on the table than what he actually gave his viewing audience in the ring. The good news for Stevenson is that he can at least end the year with a bang.

Dmitry Sukhotsky is made to order. Sukhotsky is durable on the surface but he is also a guy who falls miserably short when stepping up in class.

Let’s at least hope Stevenson takes heed to the wisdom of his late trainer Emanuel Steward and goes all-in, trying to close the show. If so, then the stoppage result should come somewhere just short of the championship rounds.

Record: 28-8 [Last pick: Alexander SD 12 Khan]

Norm Frauenheim, THE RING magazine, www.15rounds.com

Adonis Stevenson TKO 7 Dmitry Sukhotsky: Adonis Stevenson needs a statement that puts him back in the 175-pound argument. Sergey Kovalev’s attention-grabbing victory over Bernard Hopkins has almost turned him into a footnote.

Dmitry Sukhotsky appears to be an opportunity for Stevenson to remind everybody that he’s still around and still a threat. Sukhotsky looks to be flat-footed and hittable. Trouble is, he’s an unknown from Siberia.

If Ruslan Provodnikov is an example, Stevenson should be careful. Provodnikov was also an unknown Siberian before he nearly beat Tim Bradley.

With that caveat in mind, look for Stevenson to be cautious early, then opportunistic with big left hands that should pound out a stoppage that will allow Stevenson to creep back into the headlines.

Record: 32-9 [Last pick: Khan SD 12 Alexnder]

Jeffrey Freeman, www.KODigest.TV

Adonis Stevenson TKO 4 Dmitry Sukhotsky: This is a mismatch beatdown for Adonis Stevenson. Superman in four rounds over Dmitry Sukhotsky.

Record: 24-13 [Last pick: Alexander SD 12 Khan]

David Greisman, BoxingScene.com

Adonis Stevenson KO Dmitry Sukhotsky: It’s been a letdown of a year for Adonis Stevenson but he knows he can’t have a letdown fight with Dmitry Sukhotsky, nor can he run into any of the trouble he had in May with Andrzej Fonfara.

Look for Stevenson to finish the year strong by stopping Sukhotsky and he’ll then try to save some face by calling out the winner of Sergey Kovalev vs. Jean Pascal.

Record: 1-0 [Last pick: Bernard Hopkins UD 12 Beibut Shumenov]

Gordon Marino, Wall Street Journal

Adonis Stevenson KO Dmitry Sukhotsky: I am picking Adonis Stevenson by a knockout over Dmitry Sukhotsky.

Record: 4-1 [Last pick: Alexander W 12 Khan]

Rich Marotta, KFI Radio, Los Angeles

Adonis Stevenson KO 3 Dmitry Sukhotsky: I don’t think much of this fight and from what I gather, its hardly getting even passing interest from boxing fans. Too bad because Adonis Stevenson appeared to be a fast-rising star until he began dodging tough competition.

That aside, Stevenson can really hit and I believe he’ll put a hurt on Dmitry Sukhotsky very quickly and attempt to score a fast KO to regain some of his lost luster.

Sukhotsky is very ordinary and although he’s never been stopped, he will be in this one. The fight could end as quickly as the first round but perhaps Sukhotsky can survive a couple of rounds before getting smoked.

Record: 26-12 [Last pick: Khan UD 12 Alexander]

Diego Morilla, XN Sports

Adonis Stevenson KO 4 Dmitry Sukhotsky: Even though Dmitry Sukhotsky has been proven to be a durable and hard-punching fighter, I’d be surprised if the result of this fight is anything but a devastating stoppage win for Adonis Stevenson.

Sukhotsky gassed out very early in his fight against Juergen Braehmer, who’s not even in the same league as Stevenson in terms of punching power and hasn’t been impressive in the rest of his very few high-profile fights.

It will only be a matter of time before “Superman” gets to Sukhotsky in demolishing fashion. This fight is a warm-up bout at best for the Haitian-Canadian KO artist.

Record: 17-10 [Last pick: Alexander W 12 Khan]

John J. Raspanti, MaxBoxing.com/Doghouseboxing.com/KO Monthly Magazine

Adonis Stevenson TKO 7 Dmitry Sukhotsky: What a difference a year makes. In 2013, WBC light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson was on a roll. He fought four times and scored four knockouts.

A showdown with WBO titleholder Sergey Kovalev looked like a given but that fight never happened. Stevenson’s bout this Friday against Dmitry Sukhotsky will be only his second fight in the last 12 months.

Sukhotsky is a tough guy from Russia but he’s a level below Stevenson in the talent department. I see Stevenson dominating and stopping Sukhotsky in round seven.

Record: 30-11 [Last pick: Khan W 12 Alexander]

Cliff Rold, BoxingScene.com

Adonis Stevenson KO Dmitry Sukhotsky: Unless I’m missing something, there is nothing about the challenger, Dmitry Sukhotsky, that stands out as all that dangerous. Adonis Stevenson’s speed and power are too much here.

Record: 26-13 [Last pick: Khan W 12 Alexander]

Abel Sanchez, trainer of WBA 160-pound titleholder Gennady Golovkin

Adonis Stevenson UD 12 Dmitry Sukhotsky: Adonis Stevenson should win this one easily. Dmitry Sukhotsky has not handled the step up in competition well. This will be an easy unanimous decision for Stevenson.

Record: 8-5 [Last pick: Manny Pacquiao UD 12 Chris Algieri]

John Scully, trainer

Adonis Stevenson KO Dmitry Sukhotsky: I’m going with Adonis Stevenson by a mid-rounds stoppage victory over Dmitry Sukhotsky, then bring on Sergey Kovalev.

Record: 20-10 [Last pick: Khan W 12 Alexander]

Tim Starks, The Queensberry Rules

Adonis Stevenson mid-rounds KO Dmitry Sukhotsky: Perusing his record and some of the video footage, there’s some good for Dmitry Sukhotsky represented by a 2011 win over a since-surging Nadjib Mohammedi as well as a win last year over Eduard Gutknecht.

But there is also some bad represented by a loss to Cornelius White as well as struggle in his last fight vs. Joey Vegas. Sukhotsky doesn’t look all that polished either.

Sukhotsky’s name also continues a trend of unintentionally revealing monikers for Showtime opponents – first there was Doudou Ngumbu; now there’s Suk-hot(-sky).

Overall, the only real threat here is Adonis Stevenson’s attitude. He’s taken an arrogant stance on who deserves to fight him and why and didn’t look as though he trained like Andrzej Fonfara might last 12 rounds with him.

Sukhotsky isn’t nearly as good as Fonfara, so it would likely take an extra dose of Stevenson hubris for the upset. Sukhotsky could last the distance but count on Stevenson’s power to prevent that.

Record: 1-1 [Last pick: Gabriel Rosado UD 12 David Lemieux]

Dominic Verdin, RingTV.com

Adonis Stevenson W 12 Dmitry Sukhotsky: RING champion Adonis Stevenson the seems to be in search of his identity and that could spell major trouble against Dmitry Sukhotsky. An upset wouldn’t surprise me; however, I see a disputed decision victory in favor of Stevenson.

Record: 27-9 [Last pick: Khan UD 12 Alexander]

Charles Villa, guest/fan, Portland, Ore.

Adonis Stevenson KO 6 Dmitry Sukhotsky: Unless Adonis Stevenson has emulated the same training camp as James “The Grim Reaper” Roper via “The Great White Hype,” there shouldn’t be any surprises this Saturday night.

While Dmitry Sukhotsky owns a win over eventual Sergey Kovalev-mandatory Nadjib Mohammedi, there isn’t much else there to hint at an upset. Stevenson may have made some questionable business moves in 2014.

But he is still the lineal champ with one-punch KO power in both hands. Sure he’s got his alleged flaws of a questionable chin and conditioning but the last man to bring attention to those flaws was KO’ed in the rematch.

Record: 20-10 [Last pick: Khan UD 12 Alexander]

Anson Wainwright, RingTV.com

Adonis Stevenson TKO 8 Dmitry Sukhotsky: Well, we get to see Adonis Stevenson in with a Russian, just not the Russian we wanted.

Dmitry Sukhotsky is a very capable guy; his most noteworthy win was a second stoppage over IBF No. 1 light heavyweight contender Nadjib Mohammedi a few years ago.

So Sukhotsky clearly has very good power, though I expect Stevenson’s speed to negate that early on before he starts landing big shots on the Russian, getting a stoppage in the latter half of the bout.

Record: 28-9 [Last pick: Khan W 12 Alexander]

By a shutout 17-0, the insiders favor RING/WBC champion Adonis Stevenson to vanquish Dmitry Sukhotsky, with all but three believing the fight will end by stoppage.

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