HEAVYWEIGHTS PETER AND MCCLINE READY FOR SATURDAY SHOWDOWN
Posted on | October 5, 2007 | 5 Comments
PETER VS. MCCLINE SET FOR SATURDAY CLASH
By: Patrick McElligott
Boxing fans will be watching one of the most significant heavyweight fights in years on Saturday, when Showtime broadcasts the Samuel Peter vs JameelMcCline fight. Peter (28-1, with 22 KOs) defends his “title” against McCline (38-7-3, with 23 KOs) at the Madison Square Garden. This is a fight that could end anywhere between 1 and 12 rounds.
McCline had been preparing to fight Vitali Klitschko, and Peter was matched with Oleg Maskaev, when both Russian fighters pulled out, claiming back injuries. Questions about both of the claims have been raised. However, the original plan was for the winners of the two bouts to meet, and I believe that this would have meant a Peter vs McCline fight in March, 2008 at the Garden. Saturday’s fight merely advances what needs to happen in the division.
Both warriors have had time to make adjustments in their preparation to meet someone very different than they expected to be fighting. McCline was prepared to fight a tall man with a classic European stance, who fights in the middle of the ring. Klitschko, who has been inactive for years due to injuries, would not have been strong after four rounds. Jameel now faces an
shorter opponent who tends to be aggressive, and who has the endurance associated with athletes in their 20s. More, Peter has explosive one-punch knockout power.
“This man’s a beast,” McCline told reporters this week. “He’s a strong fighter, a big man who does not play games. He has trouble with big men who jab, and that’s exactly what I bring to the table.” McCline’s camp has clearly been studying the films of Peter’s fights, particularly with
Wladimir Klitschko and James Toney. He notes that even in his loss to Klitschko, Sam scored three knockdowns. Though Klitschko decked Jameel in the 10th round of their fight, he says, “I have a different chin than Wladimir. I’m a beast. It’s not easy to beat me.”
McCline may attempt to surprise Peter early in the fight. He is big enough to try to push Sam backwards, much as George Foreman did to Joe Frazier years ago. Jameel’s punching power is the greatest at his shoulder level, as evidenced even in close loses to Calvin Brock and Chris Byrd. Though Peter has a stronger chin than either of them, McCline’s power poses a threat to
any heavyweight.
If he can’t hurt Peter early, then McCline will attempt to dictate a slower paced fight. He will try to keep the action in the center of the ring, and to get Peter to make it a jabbing contest. McCline will try to tie-up his opponent inside, and get him frustrated to the point of making mistakes.
Jameel hopes that Peter’s inactivity, due to factors beyond his control, will result in his attempting to load up, and rely upon a single punch. Young champions who make mistakes late in a fight can become ex-champions, as Michael Moorer found out.
Samuel Peter was preparing to fight a man who was only an inch taller than him, who was slow, easy to hit, and who was afraid of him. The intimidation factor is a real part of what he brings to a fight. Some boxing “experts” felt it disappeared with his lose to Klitschko, but if that were the
measure, Sonny Liston wouldn’t have intimidated anyone after his loss to Marty Marshall.
“The switch of opponents doesn’t bother me,” he told reporters. “I’m a fighter and I will go in and do what I have to do. He’s a good fighter, but he doesn’t have a chance. I’ll just do my usual thing and get a knockout. If McCline is a beast, then welcome to my jungle. Now let’s do this in the ring come Saturday night.”
Peter needs to set the pace against the older man. He needs to cut off the ring, and move Jameel into the ropes. When Jameel tries to clinch, Sam needs to fire away inside, lifting short punches up under the rib cage. Sam’s maximum power is not limited to any single plane (which is part of the intimidation factor!), and his overhand right and even his sometimes-wide left hook can end any fight.
Sam’s trainer predicts a knockout between 5 and 7 rounds. He knows that at 37, it becomes difficult to carry 250+ pounds for three minutes a round, facing one of the division’s most intense punchers of recent times. If Sam comes in under a jab, and throws combinations starting at the belly and ending on the head, he will be very difficult to beat.
Enjoy the fight!