ANTHONY HANSHAW vs ANDRE DIRRELL

ShoBox has another evenly matched main event on Friday with unbeaten 168-pounder Andre Dirrell meeting the more experienced Anthony Hanshaw in a 10-rounder between former top-level amateurs.

Dirrell, the Olympic bronze medallist from Flint, MI, has speed and skill, and he is a southpaw, but Hanshaw looks the stronger man and has fought the tougher opposition, which includes giving Roy Jones Jr. a lively tussle last July. Hanshaw weighed 175 pounds for that fight but Friday’s bout is made at a weight of 169 pounds.

Hanshaw, the house fighter on this Gary Shaw promotion, has been training in Houston under the direction of Ronnie Shields. He is a fighter who seemed to have considerable potential, a U.S. and national Golden Gloves champion who defeated Jermain Taylor and Kelly Pavlik in the amateurs (although Taylor beat him in the 2000 Olympic trials).

Somehow, though, Hanshaw’s career has never taken off in the manner expected. There was a period when he just seemed to lose interest in boxing, and he was inactive for two years. When properly focused, though, he is an excellent fighter.

Hanshaw showed his talent in the ShoBox 168-pound tournament, easily winning his first two bouts and then fighting a gruelling draw with southpaw Jean Paul Mendy in the final. (Most people thought he beat Mendy; Showtime’s Steve Farhood had Hanshaw ahead 116-112.)

In the fight with Jones, Hanshaw was busy and aggressive, often backing up his big-name opponent onto the ropes and letting his hands fly. Although two judges had Jones winning by wide margins I thought that the one-point difference of judge Gary Ritter was the most accurate reflection of Hanshaw’s determined and gritty effort that night.

The loss to Jones is Hanshaw's only defeat. He has the experience of being involved in long, hard fights, while Dirrell has usually had things all his own way.

Dirrell was booed in his most important fight when he used a hit-and-run style against Curtis Stevens but his tactics were sensible against a heavy-handed but unimaginative opponent.

Stevens was seeking to land one big shot, and while he was looking for a perfect opening, Dirrell was piling up points. Dirrell will surely have a much tougher time on Friday because I think that Hanshaw is going to be forcing the fight and looking to make things very uncomfortable for him from the opening bell.

When Dirrell, 25, is allowed to set the pace and make his stylish moves he is very hard to beat, but the 30-year-old Hanshaw is capable of bringing the sort of pressure that can take the southpaw out of his smooth stride.

Dirrell is athletic and gifted but he might be a bit lacking in the durability department — I saw him knocked down by a right-hander from

the limited Alfonso Rocha although he won every other round.

Apart from Curtis Stevens, the quality of Dirrell’s opposition has been of little regard. He did outclass Minnesota trier Kenny Kost — but then, so did Hector Camacho Jr. Dirrell’s last two victims had 53 losses between them. This is ridiculously weak opposition for an Olympic bronze medallist to be meeting.

On Friday, Dirrell is likely to find himself taken to places he has never been in his brief pro career. I think it is more than likely that he will find himself getting hit more than he has ever been hit before. How Dirrell copes will show whether or not he has what it takes to get to the top.

I must confess I have doubts about Dirrell, but, nevertheless, I think he has the boxing ability and the hand speed to overcome the severe test that awaits him. I think he might be just a bit too fast moving and fast punching for Hanshaw. I agree with matchmaker John Beninati that this is a 50-50 fight, but my slight lean is towards Dirrell.

RESULT: Dirrell TKO5