Errol Spence Jr. battered Lamont Peterson.
This past Saturday night, IBF Welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. (23-0, 20 KOs), brutally stopped former junior welterweight champion Lamont Peterson (35-4-1, 17 KOs) at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn New York.
Check out some highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3tOLOKvicA
Leading into the fight, Spence was a heavy favorite. The young talent is red-hot off of his title win over British counterpuncher Kell Brook last year. That fight was lauded by fans as a tactical masterclass. Spence mitigated the risk of Kell’s power in the early rounds, and slowly poured on his conditioned power, earning a late stoppage due to a broken orbital. For anyone deeply interested in Spence’s tactics , several analysts have put together captivating studies.
Peterson was significantly bigger than Brook, and while he lacked the winning record, his gameness and slick right hand did make him an intriguing challenge for Spence.
Early on, Peterson employed a curious gameplan. Whereas previous opponents have tried to put power on Spence early, Peterson held back. It became clear that his strategy was to draw out Spence and finesse right hand counters when Spence overexposed. However, Peterson did not have the power to phase Spence, and the type of punishment Spence dishes out is not the type that can patiently be absorbed. Despite some solid right hands from Peterson, Spence continued a brutal assault to the head and body. In the fifth round he scored a knockdown with a left hook.
In the corner, Peterson’s trainer Barry Hunter told Peterson that he had too much heart for his own good, that he would stop the fight if matters didn’t improve. At the end of round seven, this became a necessity and Brook completed his first title defense.
Perhaps more than anything, this fight demonstrated Spence’s almost unsettling competitive mentality. The Texan is clean-cut, well-spoken, and even-minded. Yet when he gets in the ring there is a vicious streak that shows itself in a grin both when he gets hit and when he hits his opponent. Spence loves to fight and loves to demolish his opponents. The real question is who he will face next. The likely answer is fellow champion Keith Thurman, whom he called out post-fight. After that, a match up that could turn into a mega-fight is Errol Spence vs Terrance Crawford.
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