Adam Azim needs to show five things in crucial fight with Sergey Lipinets
Adam Azim needs to show five things in crucial fight with Sergey Lipinets
Share:
Adam Azim is supremely talented, but he is up against a fighter on Saturday night who knows what it takes to be world champion, and Sergey Lipinets is not done yet. Lipinets fought more than 250 times as an elite amateur and has lost only three times as a pro, his first defeat coming in defence of the IBF world title against Mikey Garcia seven years ago. Only Boots Ennis has stopped him and though 35, he comes to London off the back of a good win against Robbie Davies Jnr.
How Azim handles Lipinets will determine how the next 12 months might play out, a Lipinets test if you will. The super lightweight division is full of opportunity with the vacant IBO title on the line at Wembley and a slew of unification bouts available to the winner in 2025. I’m looking for speed, skill and explosiveness, being able to judge when to grip his toes into the canvas and hit top gear. He can’t allow Lipinets to take charge or bully him. At some stage he is going to have to punch with this guy to get him out of there.
Lipinets is top class, knows every trick in the book and is super tough. He came in on Wednesday bang on the weight. He does not consider himself out of the title picture. This is a live challenge and Azim has to be on it. He needs to use his long, spearing jab to hit the target, throw lots of combinations off the jab and break him up. To seriously consider himself worthy of the big belts he has to do a job on this guy.
This is what match-making is all about, meeting the right opponent at the right time. People want Azim to fight Dalton Smith. Why would we do that at this stage?. Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns didn’t fight until they had 20 fights apiece. I can see why Smith would want the fight. I like him, he’s a nice kid and a talent, but in our view Azim is closer to a major title. Smith blasted his way to the European title last week inside a round. That’s great. Now he wants a shot at a world title. Go get one. When each has a belt to lose that will be the time to get them in the same ring. Smith is 27. Adam is still only 22 with just 12 bouts behind him.
