Stevens vs. Brinkley
1/29/2010 - Stevens/Brinkley
MATCH-UP: Curtis Stevens vs. Jesse Brinkley
DIVISION: WBC USNBC super middleweight title � 12 Rounds
FIGHT DATE: Friday, January 29, 2010 @ 9pm EST on ESPN2
LOCATION: Grand Sierra Resort Reno, NV, USA
RECORD: Stevens: 21(15)-2(1)-0 Brinkley: 34(22)-5(2)-0
BETTING LINE: Stevens -250 Brinkley +200 Over 9.5 -170 Under 9.5 +140
RATING:
(Rating Explanation...)
Fight Summary | The way I see it | How I would bet on the fight
Fight Summary:
Jesse Brinkley takes on Curtis Stevens a 12 round super middleweight bout. The winner takes a big step towards contender status in the division.
Stevens is a squatty fighter that was once part of the New York duo of fighters known as the “chin checkers.” Both fighters started their careers with consecutive early KO wins hence the name ‘chin checkers.” The other fighter in the duo was Jaidon Codrington. Stevens won a national title as an amateur and seemed to exhibit lots of promise.
But he’s had some setbacks and is looking to turn things around here. Stevens is a very hard puncher but he has flaws. He doesn’t always come forward behind a jab and tends to square his body up while keeping his in a covering up position. And with that style, he can get picked apart a bit and it keeps his output down.
Brinkley is a veteran that isn’t ultra talented but he’s an earnest, game guy that works hard. He seems to have a fighter’s attitude, win or lose. He fought on the inaugural Contender series and proved to be a colorful, likeable character. He knocked out Anthony Bonsante in the tourney and gave very good efforts in losses to Alfonso Gomez and Sergio Mora. Brinkley is a decent puncher and has put together 8 straight wins. Recent wins of note are a KO of Otis Griffin and a lopsided win over fellow Contender Joey Gilbert. He outpointed underrated Mike Pacshall in his last bout.
Stevens probably has more natural ability and may be a better puncher but I think he’s missing that certain “something” to have great success. He was shockingly stopped by journeyman stepping stone Marcos Primera in 2006. Primera was coming off 5 straight losses before he shocked Stevens. Stevens avenged the loss with a decision win several months later.
His best opponent was Andre Dirrell who played keep away from Steven and easily pot shotted his way to a decision win. Stevens is coming off a KO win against an undefeated European fighter but he was virtually untested and didn’t seem as a good as his record suggested.
Another interesting fight Stevens had was against tough veteran Tim Reid. Reid had over 20 losses at the time but he can be a tough on certain nights. Stevens won by 8th round stoppage but I can’t get the image out of my mind when Reid dropped and nearly knocked Steven out in the 2nd round. Stevens was dropped hard and looked like a guy that didn’t take a shot well.
This fight may indeed come down to who is the better catcher and who lands the first bomb. I think they could hurt the other but I think Brinkley has the better beard and probably the better stamina in a long fight.
Stevens will be looking to land a KO blow but I think Brinkley may be able to box and stay busy enough to trouble Stevens. Stevens isn’t the hardest worker and if he doesn’t let his hands go, Brinkley will touch him with his shots. Brinkley is an underdog in his own backyard in a winnable fight. I’m going with Brinkley to score a win, if so, probably by decision, although stoppage wouldn’t surprise me.
How I would bet on the fight:
I’m putting 1.5% of the BoxingForecast fund on a Brinkley win. Betting line came from thegreek.com. I give Brinkley about a 50% chance of a won. And at about +200, he has value. If the line dips below +135, I’d probably pass on the wager.
