{"id":27314,"date":"2020-10-17T07:02:58","date_gmt":"2020-10-17T07:02:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mmaexchange.com\/?p=27314"},"modified":"2020-10-17T07:02:58","modified_gmt":"2020-10-17T07:02:58","slug":"saucedo-promises-to-impress-against-barboza-on-loma-lopez-card","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mmaexchange.com\/?p=27314","title":{"rendered":"Saucedo promises to impress against Barboza on Loma-Lopez card"},"content":{"rendered":"

Photo by Mikey Williams\/Top Rank via Getty Images<\/small><\/p>\n

The former title challenger has a chance at a big win on Saturday.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m thinking a good deal about expectations as we count down to Loma-Lopez fight night. Teofimo Lopez will want to clear the high bar set by his dad. Edgar Berlanga will have in mind his streak of 14 knockouts, all before the end of round one.<\/p>\n

And here\u2019s another one for you: Alex Saucedo (30-1, 19 KO), whose nickname is \u201cSeek and Destroy,\u201d meets Arnold Barboza Jr (24-0, 10 KOs) in a 10-round junior welterweight battle on ESPN.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s me,\u201d said Saucedo of his nickname. \u201cThey know me!\u201d<\/p>\n

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How to Watch Lomachenko vs Lopez<\/h2>\n

Date: <\/strong>Saturday, Oct. 17 | Start Time: <\/strong>10:00 pm ET (Main Card) \/ 7:30 pm ET (Prelims)
Location: <\/strong>MGM Top Rank Bubble, Las Vegas, NV
TV: <\/strong>ESPN (Main Card) <\/strong>| Stream: <\/strong>ESPN+<\/a> (Prelims)<\/p>\n

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And is that not a bit much to live up to, I asked the 26-year-old fighter? \u201cNo, not at all, this is boxing, this is a dangerous sport,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In other words, duh, c\u2019mon man, everyone should know that it\u2019s either him or me, and yes, the stakes are such that the word \u201cdestroy\u201d isn\u2019t used carelessly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m excited to go out and give everything, and go to work on Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n

In June 2018, Saucedo beat Lenny Zappavigna in Oklahoma in a great action fight, snagging a shot at the WBO 140-pound title. <\/p>\n

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He tried to take the belt off Maurice Hooker in his next outing, but in round seven was being hammered and the fight was halted. <\/p>\n

Saucedo tells us he\u2019s now in a better place, that getting a revamp of his team has left him well situated to deal with Barboza. The COVID span hasn\u2019t messed with him much, though his seven-year-old daughter not being able to go back to school full time does impact his home life. Speaking of which, fianc\u00e9e Tanya will be especially rooting for Alex to get that W, because a win could propel him back to a title fight, and with that an uptick in prize money. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen things come out well, we\u2019re looking forward to getting married. There\u2019s no date yet, but I wanna get some money in my pocket, and get a nice setup going,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Rust won\u2019t be an issue, being that he gloved up in June, and a 10-week camp has him feeling dialed-in. <\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t seen Saucedo, I\u2019m here to tell you, his style is fan-friendly. He sees volume as a key to his success, he likes to stay medium to medium-close range to get off, and he isn\u2019t overly worried about getting hit. He can be countered, that\u2019s part of what makes his fights fun to watch.<\/p>\n

Saucedo-Barboza is worth the time investment. It\u2019s possible Barboza enjoys a hand-speed edge, and his length will have to be solved for Saucedo to get the win. Does the Okie boxer have a plan to try and mess up Barboza\u2019s rhythm when he switches from righty to lefty, with perfect timing, or just rely on a volume edge? Will Saucedo be of a mindset to maybe use the feet more than usual, keep Barboza from being as effective with his mobility as per usual? <\/p>\n

Time will tell. And if Barboza does what he does best, it may well be that there won\u2019t be as many \u201cfan-friendly\u201d moments as we\u2019re used to in a Saucedo fight.<\/p>\n