Abner Mares vs Andres Gutierrez Preview Oct. 14th
WBA World Featherweight Champion Abner Mares of Mexico will be defending his title against fellow countryman Andres Gutierrez at the StubHub Center In Carson, California this Saturday, October 14th. The 12-round bout can be seen live in North America on Fox and Fox Deportes while fans in the UK can catch the action on Sky Sports. Mares last fought in December when he beat Jesus Cuellar by a split decision. Gutierrez was scheduled to fight Carl Frampton in July, but the bout was postponed when he was injured in a fall in his hotel bathroom. Gutierrez last fought a year ago when be beat Wallington Orobio by a sixth-round TKO.
Mares vs Gutierrez Betting Odds
Here are the winner odds from online sportsbook 5dimes.eu
- Andres Gutierrez +500
- Abner Mares -900
My Pick
Mares is a three-division world champion who won his most recent title by beating Cuellar late last year. He had previously owned the belt, but lost it in August of 2015 to Leo Santa Cruz by majority decision. Mares is hoping a win against Gutierrez will launch him into a rematch against Santa Cruz, who’s also fighting on the same card on Saturday. Mares was out of action for 16 months between August of 2015 and December of last year due to failing his vision test. The 31-year-old Mares, who now fights out of Montebello, California, has a fine record of 30-2-1 with 15 Kos.
He stands just over 5-feet-4-inches tall with a 66-inch reach. Mares has 252 rounds under his belt since turning pro in 2005. He’s faced some tough opposition such as Vic Darchinyan, Santa Cruz, Jonathan Oquendo, Eric Morel, Anselmo Moreno, Jose Ramirez, Jhonny Gonzalez, Yonnhy Perez, Joseph Agbeko and Daniel Ponce De Leon. Other than losing to Santa Cruz, the only man to beat him was Gonzalez when he stopped Mares in the first round of their 2013 bout and his 12-round majority draw came against Perez in 2010.
Mares fought for his homeland of Mexico in the 2004 Olympics and won the IBF Bantamweight crown in December of 2010 when he beat Agbeko by a majority decision. He then beat Agbeko soon after in a rematch and captured the vacant WBC 122 lb belt by beating Eric Morel in 2012. He won his third world title as a featherweight when he stopped veteran Daniel Ponce De Leon of Mexico in the ninth round in 2013. However, Gonzalez took him out in his first title defence. Mares is an exciting boxer with good all-round boxing skills, but lacks a little when it comes to power with a knockout ratio of 45 percent.
However, Mares isn’t afraid to brawl with the best of them when he has to and is generally an exciting boxer to watch. He’s taking on a 24-year-old in Gutierrez and the challenger enters the ring with an impressive record of 35-1-1 with 25 Kos. He’s 5-feet-6-inches tall with a 67-inch reach so he has a two-inch height advantage and just a one-inch edge in reach. He’s fought 212 rounds since turning pro in 2009 and has pretty good power with a current knockout ratio of 68 per cent. Gutierrez’s lone loss was a 12-round majority decision to former super flyweight world champion Cristian Mijares in June of 2016.
That fight has basically been his only foray into the upper echelon of boxing and he fought quite well. Gutierrez has won some minor regional titles up to now and he’s not a bad boxer at all, especially for a 24-year-old. He likes to let his hands go, but at times can be a little bit reckless. If he can become a more accurate puncher then he should have a good future ahead of him. He’s shown a good chin up to now and that will definitely help out against Mares.
Prediction…
Understandably, Mares is the favourite here, but he sure can’t take Gutierrez too lightly as he’ll be in four a tough night if he does. However, Mares should be quite motivated as he needs to set up a rematch with Leo Santa Cruz and Santa Cruz is fighting on the same card Saturday night. This should be a competitive fight though, with Mares doing enough to retain his title.
Mares is the better boxer at this stage, but it should be competitive.
Play: Mares -900 @ 5dimes.eu
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Abner Mares betting • Andres Gutierrez betting