GROWING up, Jersey City’s unbeaten Joe Jones, 5-0 (4), trained in the same gyms as Dominic Wade in the Washington, D.C area. Here, the 21-year-old light-heavyweight prospect dissects Wade’s WBA and IBF middleweight title tilt against Gennady Golovkin, which takes place in Inglewood, California this Saturday (April 23).
“I’m looking forward to the Gennady Golovkin-Dominic Wade fight. I’ve watched both fighters very closely and I feel this will be a little different from the previous Golovkin fights.
“Everyone knows what Golovkin brings to the table – strength, pressure, boxing skills and power.
“We’ve all seen it before when the bell rings – Golovkin pressuring his opponent as he digs shots to the body and brings it up to the head with hooks and straight rights. He’s a master at dissecting his opponent until they crumble.
“Wade, on the other hand, is a young, talented and strong fighter who can box or brawl. A lot of Golovkin’s past opponents have been aggressive fighters who have stood right in front of him. This is going to be one of the first times we’ll see Golovkin up against a boxer with fast hands and power, which is why this fight intrigues me.
“When the opening bell rings, I expect Golovkin to come in as he normally does, using pressure and looking to pick Wade apart with shots to the body and head. In contrast, I see Wade fighting very cautiously in the opening round, as he weathers the initial storm from Golovkin by using his long left jab to keep him at bay.
“As the rounds go by, I see Wade gaining confidence and having some success by using his speed and movement to befuddle Golovkin, just as Willie Monroe Jnr did at times during his encounter with Golovkin.
“With all that said, I feel Golovkin’s strength and power will eventually take its toll and break Wade down. Look for Golovkin to start tearing hard shots to the body, which he is second to none at doing. He can stop a very game Wade by the seventh or eighth round.”
