Dave Oakes previews Saturday's Commonwealth title clash between Denton Vassell and Bethuel Uushona.
Two unbeaten fighters do battle this Saturday night when Denton Vassell makes the first defence of his Commonwealth welterweight title against Bethuel Uushona at the Robin Park Centre, Wigan.
Vassell, 16 (9 KO’s), outpointed Lee Purdy to claim the title in April last year, his stamina and work rate proving vital in what was an enjoyable battle. He’s been inactive since then, fighting only once against Welson Alves de Oliveira last December, stopping his Brazilian foe in the third of a scheduled eight.
Uushona, 23-0 (8 KO’s), is a bit of a mystery to me but a quick glance at his record shows he has a victory over Ali Nuumbembe, who is well known on these shores, especially for his performances against David Barnes and Kevin Anderson. Beating a solid operator like Nuumbembe shows that the Namibian must be a decent fighter.
The fight looks likely to go the distance, neither have big knockout ratios and both look to have solid chins. Uushona has mixed at a higher level and has experienced fighting on foreign soil before, so he shouldn’t be overawed by being the away fighter.
Vassell has youth on his side and has shown impressive work rate and stamina previously, although, it must be noted that Uushona has gone the twelve round distance on numerous occasions.
It’s a hard fight to call considering I’ve not seen Uushona box, but if Uushona’s to dethrone the champion, he’ll have to put in a spirited display from first bell to the last. One thing I know for certain is that Vassell will work at a fast pace and will battle hard for twelve rounds.