Normally on the eve of a big fight like Anthony Mundine-Danny Green I'd file a preview.
In it I'd pick the fight apart, highlighting areas I think it will be won and lost and then give a prediction.
This is very much the same, but probably harder to write. If you’ve followed this blog back since its inception, you know the names Mundine and Green feature significantly.
In fact, they permeate through it. Both have shaped my love for the fight game, which is ultimately why this blog exists.
I'm cornered for this fight, in that my prediction was made long ago. I always said they'd fight again. No one leaves good money on the table – especially not Mr Mundine and Green.
Read through my previous blog posts on the pair and you'll find my thoughts haven't really changed.
But all those articles that discussed a future rematch came with a ready made prediction.
I've said for several years, Mundine would win , just like the first fight, because I feel he is a better boxer.
I can't really back away from that statement now.
That prediction wasn't made because I'm a 'Mundine super fan' as some on social media suggest, but more due to the fact I think 'The Man' just matches well stylistically.
Danny Green is what’s considered a ‘come forward’ fighter. They like to press the action, but as a consequence are pretty easy to find.
Mundine is the opposite. He uses range well. Gets punches off and then gets out of the way. Works well on the outside and his jab, is unbelievable.
He can score at will and frustrate you for 12 rounds- as he did to Green in their first fight.
Mundine has great footwork and great hand speed. He’s slowed a bit in his later years, but he’s still got some silky skills. He has good defence and solid head movement also.
But Mundine is his own worst enemy. He's lazy at times and he often says he struggles to get up for fights. A big fight, world titles, yet lacks motivation.
You just never know sometimes what you're going to get. That's the biggest factor with this fight.
He can get lazy in the ring as well. Mundine is often caught up against the ropes, in corners or just standing straight in front of a guy.
Joshua Clottey knocked him down five times because Mundine stood in front and didn’t use angles. Charles Hatley did similar.
If he stands in front of Green he'll get knocked out.
Markus Beyer was destroyed by Danny Green if their first fight in Germany doing exactly that.
But in the return fight Beyer boxed and was far too good. Speed, movement and angles have exposed Green in the past.
Fighting against bigger cruiserweights forced him to box. His performance against Krystof Wlodarczyk (which ended in a savage KO) I consider the best of his career.
He out boxed a highly rated cruiserweight world champion and was winning comfortably. Until he made one mistake and paid for it!
But I wasn’t impressed by Green in his last fight against Kane Watts. He looked sluggish and should really have handled the 34-year-old more comfortably than he did.
The biggest factor people look at in this fight is the weight difference. I don’t see it as being that significant.
It’s something Mundine has encountered before as a super-middleweight. For example in his fight with Mikkel Kessler, the Danish star was able to rehydrate so he resembled more of a light-heavyweight. Having a similiar advantage to what Green will have.
He had a much bigger frame and far heavier punch than Mundine. It’s not ideal, but not necessarily insurmountable. Mundine prefers to be lighter anyway and his style is suited to it.
As long as he can absorb the heavier punch at the weight, it’s really all that matters. The main thing is he looks much healthier at this weight.
Mundine hasn’t really troubled anyone with his power in a while, but with a bit more weight behind him, you just never know. He used to throw a lovely check hook as a super middleweight and Green will have to watch its return. Mundine has caught many a guy coming forward with it.
Looking at recent fights in the fight game where guys have moved up in weight and the heavier guy has benefited. Andre Ward and Conor McGregor both struggled against bigger bodies and the pair do generally like to fight on the outside, like Mundine.
It remains to be seen whether Mundine-Green 2 follows that trend. But as I've always said, I think Mundine will win.
The 'experts' don't think so and the odds suggest punters don't either.
But I remember they all said the same before the first Mundine-Green fight as well.
I think it will be a very similar outcome, with Mundine bringing an identical game plan. Not much will change. Mundine will be looking to simply bank rounds and win over the distance – his jab dictating throughout.
It’s hard to really know what to expect in the fight game. Stories coming out of camps are always largely creative. You hear the clichés, ‘best camp ever’ and all that and we’ve heard similar stories in the lead up to this.
My prediction was made many years ago, but I’m standing by it.
The rivalry has dominated the sport in Australia over the last 15 years. As much has time has changed, both have stayed the same.
Polar opposites, two different styles, appealing to two different crowds.
Do they have a surprise up their sleeve? – Only time will tell.
Who knows, we may even see them throw down a third time.
But all those articles that discussed a future rematch came with a ready made prediction.
I've said for several years, Mundine would win , just like the first fight, because I feel he is a better boxer.
I can't really back away from that statement now.
That prediction wasn't made because I'm a 'Mundine super fan' as some on social media suggest, but more due to the fact I think 'The Man' just matches well stylistically.
Danny Green is what’s considered a ‘come forward’ fighter. They like to press the action, but as a consequence are pretty easy to find.
Mundine is the opposite. He uses range well. Gets punches off and then gets out of the way. Works well on the outside and his jab, is unbelievable.
He can score at will and frustrate you for 12 rounds- as he did to Green in their first fight.
Mundine has great footwork and great hand speed. He’s slowed a bit in his later years, but he’s still got some silky skills. He has good defence and solid head movement also.
But Mundine is his own worst enemy. He's lazy at times and he often says he struggles to get up for fights. A big fight, world titles, yet lacks motivation.
You just never know sometimes what you're going to get. That's the biggest factor with this fight.
He can get lazy in the ring as well. Mundine is often caught up against the ropes, in corners or just standing straight in front of a guy.
Joshua Clottey knocked him down five times because Mundine stood in front and didn’t use angles. Charles Hatley did similar.
If he stands in front of Green he'll get knocked out.
Markus Beyer was destroyed by Danny Green if their first fight in Germany doing exactly that.
But in the return fight Beyer boxed and was far too good. Speed, movement and angles have exposed Green in the past.
To be fair though, Green has added a dimension as well since the pair last fought.
Fighting against bigger cruiserweights forced him to box. His performance against Krystof Wlodarczyk (which ended in a savage KO) I consider the best of his career.
He out boxed a highly rated cruiserweight world champion and was winning comfortably. Until he made one mistake and paid for it!
But I wasn’t impressed by Green in his last fight against Kane Watts. He looked sluggish and should really have handled the 34-year-old more comfortably than he did.
The biggest factor people look at in this fight is the weight difference. I don’t see it as being that significant.
It’s something Mundine has encountered before as a super-middleweight. For example in his fight with Mikkel Kessler, the Danish star was able to rehydrate so he resembled more of a light-heavyweight. Having a similiar advantage to what Green will have.
He had a much bigger frame and far heavier punch than Mundine. It’s not ideal, but not necessarily insurmountable. Mundine prefers to be lighter anyway and his style is suited to it.
As long as he can absorb the heavier punch at the weight, it’s really all that matters. The main thing is he looks much healthier at this weight.
Mundine hasn’t really troubled anyone with his power in a while, but with a bit more weight behind him, you just never know. He used to throw a lovely check hook as a super middleweight and Green will have to watch its return. Mundine has caught many a guy coming forward with it.
Looking at recent fights in the fight game where guys have moved up in weight and the heavier guy has benefited. Andre Ward and Conor McGregor both struggled against bigger bodies and the pair do generally like to fight on the outside, like Mundine.
It remains to be seen whether Mundine-Green 2 follows that trend. But as I've always said, I think Mundine will win.
The 'experts' don't think so and the odds suggest punters don't either.
But I remember they all said the same before the first Mundine-Green fight as well.
I think it will be a very similar outcome, with Mundine bringing an identical game plan. Not much will change. Mundine will be looking to simply bank rounds and win over the distance – his jab dictating throughout.
It’s hard to really know what to expect in the fight game. Stories coming out of camps are always largely creative. You hear the clichés, ‘best camp ever’ and all that and we’ve heard similar stories in the lead up to this.
My prediction was made many years ago, but I’m standing by it.
The rivalry has dominated the sport in Australia over the last 15 years. As much has time has changed, both have stayed the same.
Polar opposites, two different styles, appealing to two different crowds.
Do they have a surprise up their sleeve? – Only time will tell.
Who knows, we may even see them throw down a third time.
PREDICTION: Mundine by decision
