Para acceder a un título del mundo, retador cubano deberá comerse un mangú
Todavía cuesta trabajo creer que Sullivan Barrera pueda pelear por un título del mundo. Aunque existe un contrato firmado para enfrentar a Dmitry Bivol en su primera pelea del 2018, el boxeo es tan sórdido a veces, tan lleno de dobleces, que uno no puede menos que permitirse la duda.
Antes de Bivol aparece en el horizonte Félix "Mangú'' Varela, un púgil dominicano que alguna vez ostentó una faja interina en las 175 libras y que exhibe como principal carta de presentación el haber sobrevivido 12 asaltos contra el propio campeón ruso. Acaso un mérito dudoso.
Pero Varela no es el clásico saco de papas que se tira encima del ring para que un contendor siga camino rumbo a un título. No resulta ese rival sin habilidades ni destinos que va a cobrar el cheque y tirarse rápido al primer impacto del golpe enemigo.
Así como Barrera mira con insistencia a Bivol, Varela hace lo mismo con Sergey Kovalev. Es como si ambos no se apreciaran en el momento y buscasen el instante futuro, como si esta cita del 24 de noviembre en el Madison Square Garden fuera algo de puro trámite.
Los dos buscan caminos más allá de la fecha, pero esos senderos se cruzan de manera peligrosa. Alguien se va a quedar con las ganas este sábado. Otro va a sonreír y mucho al acercarse a una faja del orbe.
Sin embargo, Barrera se muestra como favorito. Su hoja de servicios aparece soberbia, con una mancha que casi se confunde con una cicatriz de guerra en su única derrota contra el mejor de los mejores del peso y quizá el boxeo, el hoy retirado Andre Ward.
Después de esa caída, el cubano ha vencido en sus siguientes tres peleas a oponentes de consideración como Vyacheslav Shabranskyy -el rival de Kovalev el sábado-, Paul Parker y Joe Smith Jr. HBO, tan quisquillosa en sus transmisiones, lo sigue invitando a sus carteleras. Barrera gusta cuando pelea, es de los que insiste y ataca. Con él no vale esa excusa barata y gastada de que los de su tierra apenas dan espectáculo.
Varela pretende apelar a un supuesto boxeo superior. Sobre el papel Barrera le gana por cómoda ventaja y nada hace indicar que no se haya preparado para esta cita con intenciones de trampa. Hay mucho en juego para no salir a vencer y a derribar.
En su campamento aseguran que ahora más que nunca están más cerca de aspirar a una faja mundial. Bivol, por su parte, ha aceptado el reto de Barrera para una fecha cercana a los días finales de abril. Todo parece demasiado bueno para creerlo, a pesar del contrato firmado, de la palabra empeñada.
Ojalá que el boxeo esta vez le cumpla la promesa a Barrera y no surja ninguna artimaña de esas que demoran combates e interponen oponentes por encima de la fila natural dictada por el talento. Hay que cruzar los dedos para que el enfrentamiento con Bivol sea una realidad.
Pero primero está Varela y su "Mangú''. Primero habrá que pasar por encima de este púgil dominicano que no viene a Nueva York a pasar el rato, sino a vencer al hombre que, según él, le bloquea la ruta a Kovalev. Ya veremos quién sigue y quién se queda.
Category | Sullivan Barrera | Felix Valera |
Age | 35 | 29 |
Record | 20-1 (14 KOs) | 15-1 (13 KOs) |
Strength | Barrera has solid endurance and a granite chin. He has a strong jab that he uses well and has shown great patience in breaking his opponents down. | Valera is a crafty southpaw who has one-punch knockout power in both hands. He moves around well and does his best to utilize the whole ring to his advantage. |
Weakness | Sullivan is known to get somewhat wild, he needs to keep it together and stay sharp in order to avoid one of his opponent's thundering blows. | Felix gets careless at times. He likes to drop his guard and taunt his opposition. Barrera is a sharp fighter who can capitalize on this if Felix is not careful. |
Experience | He is an experienced fighter who has been in with some of the best fighters in the division: Andre Ward, Vyacheslav Shabranskyy, Karo Murat and Joe Smith Jr. Barrera He came back from a first-round knockdown in his last fight against Smith Jr. to secure a unanimous decision victory. His ability to overcome adversity has made him a stronger fighter. | Although, he has not faced the same level of opposition as Barrera, Valera is still a former world champion. He managed to accomplish a lot in his career despite only being 16 pro fights deep. He earned the WBA Interim Light Heavyweight World Championship against Stanislav Kashtanov in Russia before losing it to current titleholder Dmitry Bivol. |
Power | Sullivan has a powerful jab and a devastating right hand that has been very influential in a majority of his stoppage wins. | Valera delivers thunderous blows to his opponents. He relies heavily on his power, which has been a very successful strategy thus far. |
Speed | Sullivan has average speed and maintains a steady pace throughout the fight. He understands when to turn it up a notch if he feels he can finish his opponent. | Valera uses many different gears in hopes of throwing his opponents of off their game. |
Endurance | Barrera proved he could go 12 rounds when he came up short in a decision loss to former titleholder Andre Ward. He also earned a 10-round decision win over ranked contender Joe Smith Jr. in his most recent bout. | After starting his career with 11 knockout wins, all occurring in the first and second rounds, Valera proved that he is durable when he captured the WBA title in a 12-round decision win over Stanislav Kashtanov. |
Accuracy | Sullivan's is on point when he gets his jab going and puts his punches together behind the jab. | Felix does not utilize his jab as well as his opponent. |
Defense | If he commits to the jab, then Barrera can be very effective in taking his opponents out of their element, making it that much more difficult to get anything going offensively. | Although he relies heavily on his power, Valera is a very effective defensively. He is very agile in the ring and is a sharp counter puncher. |
Chin | Sullivan has a granite chin. He has been knocked down in prior bouts, but has risen to the occasion to finish strong. | Valera has a solid chin. He was the first opponent to overcome knockdowns and go the distance with knockout artist and current titleholder Dmitry Bivol. |
Style | Sullivan is a technical fighter that likes to stick his jab and set up his shots. He also has a brawling style that inevitably comes out when his opponents show that they are willing to engage. | Valera is a knockout artist and a crafty southpaw who relies heavily on his power. He also likes to taunt his opponents, hoping to catch them off-guard and deliver one of his many thunderous blows. |
Intangibles | Barrera has taken on some of the division's best fighters in recent years. He has been extremely vocal about his desire to fight the best in the world on his way to a title shot. There are very few light heavyweights riding the same momentum and, after taking out two of the biggest punchers in the division in Joe Smith Jr and Vyacheslav Shabranskyy, he will risk his ranking against another heavy-hitter in Felix Valera. A win over Valera can almost guarantee Sullivan his long-awaited shot at the world championship. | In just 16 professional bouts, Felix Valera has already made a name for himself in the light heavyweight division. He earned the WBA world title in his 13thpro bout and although he lost the title in his next fight, he lasted 12rounds against one of the biggest punchers in the sport, Dmitry Bivol. Since then, Valera has gotten back to his winning ways and is aiming to seize an opportunity by taking out one of the hottest fighters at 175 lb in Sullivan Barrera. A win over Barrera will catapult him into the top of the ratings. |
The Match-Up | 1. Will Barrera be looking past Valera to future fights? 2. Is Valera in over his head with an active Barrera? 3. Will Barrera be able to handle the power of Valera? 4. Will Valera be mentally prepared for his first fight on US soil on such a big stage? | |
Esta historia fue publicada originalmente el 23 de noviembre de 2017, 11:59 a. m. with the headline "Para acceder a un título del mundo, retador cubano deberá comerse un mangú."