Our resident boxing insider Rob Tebbutt provides his best bets as the unbeaten Diego Pacheco bids to edge himself ever closer to a world title opportunity when he takes on Steven Nelson in Las Vegas in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Diego Pacheco and Steven Nelson meet in Las Vegas this weekend in a clash of unbeaten super-middleweights.
Pacheco is considered by many to be one of the leading prospects in American boxing, training under the guidance of David Benavidez Sr. and compiling an unblemished 22-0 record.
Nelson, 13 years Pacheco’s senior at 36 years old, is still something of an unknown quantity.
Unbeaten in 20 contests, the Nebraskan has yet to have his ‘breakout’ moment. However, he is an experienced, crafty fighter with good counter-punching skills and will be hoping to drag Pacheco into the latter rounds.
I think this is a risky fight for Pacheco at this stage of his career, with the Californian looking less-than-convincing at times as he’s moved through the levels.
That said, whilst I can see the bout being fairly stand-offish at times, I do feel that Pacheco’s size and reach will prove enough to edge a fight that may struggle to catch fire.
(Odds will display when markets are available).