Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, WBO light welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov defends his belt against undefeated contender Chris Algieri. Provodnikov was one of the biggest breakout stars of 2013, and fans have been anxious to see him back in action this year.
Provodnikov is a powerful and ferocious brawler who added improved technique in his climb to the top last year. Algieri is a former undefeated world champion in kickboxing who has thrived so far since switching sports.
Something will have to give this Saturday night in Brooklyn.
Tale of the Tape
| Per Boxrec | Ruslan Provodnikov | Chris Algieri |
| Record: | 23-2, 16 KOs | 19-0, 8 KOs |
| Height: | 5'6" | 5'10" |
| Reach: | 66" | 72" |
| Weight: | 140 lbs | 140 lbs |
| Age: | 30 | 30 |
| Stance: | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Hometown: | Beryozovo, Russia | Hunington, N.Y. |
| Rounds: | 136 | 110 |
This fight is a total clash of body types, as Algieri is about as tall and long as they come at junior welterweight, while Provodnikov is extremely powerful and compact. This should force some stylistic battles that make for an interesting tactical bout.
Algieri is a Long Islander and will no doubt have plenty of friends and family in the crowd Saturday. But Provodnikov is an emerging, all-action star. He'll have plenty of fan support in Brooklyn.
Main Storylines :
Ruslan Provodnikov is a hard man from a hard place. "The Siberian Rocky" comes from a region that has been associated with rugged and extreme hardship for centuries. It adds to his mystique and clearly contributed to forging his iron will.
Entering 2013 Provodnikov was on the radar for serious fans but had yet to firmly establish himself. That changed quickly, as he battled Timothy Bradley in a Fight of the Year war in March, nearly stopping the WBO welterweight champion in both of the first two rounds and almost finishing him off in Round 12.
Provodnikov lost the fight, but the bounce to his reputation was extremely valuable anyway. In October he faced off with tough Mike Alvarado for the WBO light welterweight title. He brutalized Alvarado and stopped him in Round 10 to take the belt.
Chris Algieri was an undefeated world champion in kickboxing before switching to boxing. So far he's won 19 straight fights, mostly against trial horses and relatively obscure journeymen. His single win over a fellow rising contender came last year against 17-1 Emmanuel Taylor on Friday Night Fights
