By Brian Mazique
As part of the historic debut of the Premier Boxing Champions series on NBC, WBA "regular" welterweight champion Keith "One Time" Thurman (24-0, 21 KO) will defend his title against Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero (32-2-1, 18 KO) on Saturday, March 7, from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
PBC is aggressively bringing boxing back to network television. Thurman-Guerrero and Adrien Broner vs. John Molina Jr. are the first headliners Saturday night.
The event begins at 8:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on NBC. There will be a live stream available at NBCSports.com.
It seems none of the top-notch fighters at 147 pounds want a piece of Thurman. He's called out everyone from Floyd Mayweather Jr. to Marcos Rene Maidana, but only Guerrero has accepted his challenge. A fighter like Mayweather can't accept every challenge he receives.
If he did, he'd be fighting every weekend.
That said, most 147-pounders with something to lose aren't in a hurry to face Thurman. Guerrero is a little different. He's a tough guy and someone who needs a win over a respected opponent to get himself back in line for another big payday.
A win over Thurman would definitely open some eyes, but that's much easier said than done. Thurman's speed, power and in-ring intelligence have been on display in several of his last few fights.
Only three of the 25 men he has faced (one no contest) have lasted the distance. Thurman is always looking for the knockout, but he's smart enough to win rounds in the process. When ESPN.com's Brian Campbell asked him if he thought Guerrero could take his power for 12 rounds, Thurman was skeptical.
"I do not," he said. "[Guerrero] has fought several welterweights, but in my opinion he hasn't fought one welterweight with exponential power. He didn't even fight a 140-pounder with extreme power. With that being said, I believe I am going to be a true test to his head and to his body for 12 rounds."
First off, there aren't many fighters who go around using words like "exponential." Secondly, there's some validity to everything he said.
The only natural 147-pounder Guerrero has faced is Andre Berto. Guerrero won that fight by mugging Berto on the ropes, absorbing hard uppercuts and taking advantage of the latter's oddly swollen eyes early in the fight. Thurman will be the first legitimate power puncher Guerrero has faced at welterweight.
Can The Ghost handle One Time's punches? That's the million-dollar question.
Much like the bout with Berto, if Guerrero is to have success against Thurman, he'll have to make the fight ugly. Guerrero would be target practice if he stays on the outside too much.
He'll almost certainly look to barrel into Thurman's chest and take away One Time's room to operate. That style has become Guerrero's calling card. Aside from his one-sided loss to Mayweather, Guerrero has been able to drag his opponents into slugfests that could take place in a phone booth.
If Guerrero has his way Saturday night, Thurman will find himself in the same type of scrap.
Guerrero has displayed a great chin throughout his career, and that's especially been the case lately. He took some serious shots from Berto, Selcuk Aydin and in his last bout against Yoshihiro Kamegai. The Ghost didn't just take the shots—he gave back even better than he received.
He'll be hoping to keep the trend going Saturday night.
Prediction
Thurman is bigger, stronger, faster and smarter than every fighter Guerrero has beaten. While I do believe Guerrero is a tough cookie, he's going to get beaten up and outclassed by a welterweight who is ready for superstardom in the sport.
Look for a sixth-round stoppage as Thurman asks the world, "Do I have your attention now?"
