Three Reasons the Garcia-Matthysse Light Welterweight Unification Bout Deserves its own Card
Lost in all the drama surrounding Mayweather-Canelo bout is the main undercard.
1. This bout is for the unified title.
Danny Garcia, at 25, holds the WBC, WBA and Ring Magazine light welterweight titles, which he's held since July 2012. Lucas Matthysse, at his age, has won only one world title: that of interim WBC light welterweight champion, which he won in 2012 and retained in May with a TKO against Michael Dallas, Jr. For Matthysse, it will remove the "interim" tag and give him credibility as a champion. This bout will prove once and for all who's king of the roost.
2. They have a shared history with Zab Judah.
Matthysse lost a controversial split decision to Judah in 2010; Garcia won over the same fighter via an unanimous decision just a few months before the upcoming fight. The three fighters have a lot of bad blood among them, and a win by one over the other puts him in prime position to meet their old foe, should they choose to do so. Even if Judah is pushing 36, his last two wins have come by way of technical knockout; proving that he is still an elite fighter at this level.
3. Both fighters have clashing styles.
Garcia was brought up in an amateur boxing environment; he is a fast, yet tactical fighter and has the capability to make adjustments between rounds, similar to his childhood hero Carlos Ortiz. Matthysse, on the other hand, is a power puncher more than anything, with 32 out of his 34 wins coming by way of knockout, and has been compared to Manny Pacquiao.
This bout can go either way, but given Garcia's height advantage and Matthysse's tendency to leave himself open, Garcia should retain his title via a split decision.