Louie O'Doherty vs Michael Gomez Jnr

This is one of those fights where you can easily find reasons for either to win. O’Doherty is the younger, fresher boxer with the cleaner fundamentals, while Gomez Jnr has found a new lease of life since moving up in weight. He looks stronger, punches with more authority and comes into this believing he can drag the other man somewhere uncomfortable.

O’Doherty’s advantage is his balance. He keeps his feet underneath him, measures opponents with long straight punches and does not panic when the pattern changes. His weakness is that he is not a spiteful finisher, so Gomez will keep getting opportunities to walk through his work and make it physical. Gomez’s strength is his pressure and punch selection once he gets close. He can hurt a man with the right hand, and he works with real intent. The problem is that he fights on emotion, squares himself up and can be picked off while closing the distance.

I expect Gomez to make the early rounds difficult and land enough to keep O’Doherty honest. But once O’Doherty settles, his jab, footwork and engine should begin taking the sting out of those attacks. He must resist getting involved when Gomez starts roughing him up, because that is the older man’s route into the fight.

O’Doherty will control the later rounds with straighter punches and better movement. My prediction is Louie O’Doherty by clear unanimous decision.