MARCO HUCK vs BRIAN MINTO

Marco Huck had an easy time in his last fight, blowing away Adam Richards in three rounds, but he faces a tougher task in his cruiserweight title defence against Brian Minto in Oldenburg on Saturday.

Minto is having his first fight at cruiser after boxing as a heavyweight. The 35-year-old from Butler, PA, felt that at under 6ft and weighing around 218 pounds he was simply too small for the big men. In his last fight, against Chris Arreola, Minto wasn’t able to budge his 45-pounds-heavier opponent and he couldn’t withstand Arreola’s bludgeoning attack.

In interviews, Minto has said that he feels strong and sharp at the lighter weight, with no loss of punching power. He has fought twice in Germany, losing on points to Luan Krasniqi in a competitive fight and stopping a long-inactive and sadly faded Axel Schulz.

I think that Minto can give a good account of himself on Saturday. He has boxing ability and he can hit. I doubt that he can win, though. Huck has come through some tough fights and he is boxing with considerable confidence. His bursts of heavy punches from both hands are likely to take a toll on Minto. I don’t think that Minto is fast enough or powerful enough to take command of the fight, and I’m not sure that he can stand up to Huck’s onslaughts for 12 rounds. I’m expecting a stoppage win for Huck in about nine or 10 rounds.