Juan Carlos Sanchez vs. Roberto Sosa: Preview and Prediction for Title Fight

The IBF super flyweight title will be on the line this Saturday night in Las Vegas, as champion Juan Carlos Sanchez takes on undefeated No. 1 contender Roberto Sosa. 

Neither Sanchez nor Sosa have ever fought outside of their home countries before, and each man will be making their debut in the United States. There's simply no bigger stage in boxing than Las Vegas and it will be interesting to see how each man handles the added pressure.

At 22 years old, Sanchez is the more experienced of the two fighters when it comes to world-class opposition and is considered one of the better young fighters in the sport. Sosa is undefeated, but has never been tested at this level.

Read on for our preview and prediction for the title fight.

Tale of the Tape

Juan Carlos Sanchez is just 22 years old, but considered by many to be one of the best young stars in the lower weight divisions. He's a tricky southpaw who likes to box but doesn't have a ton of power. He won the IBF super flyweight title last year and has successfully defended it twice.

Roberto Sosa is undefeated in 24 professional bouts and has decent punching power, but lacks any truly recognizable names on his ledger. He's taking a huge step up in class for this fight and will need to prove he belongs to walk out with the title.

Record:	Sanchez 15-1-1, 8 KO	Sosa 24-0, 14 KO
Height:	5'8 1/2"	Unlisted
Reach:	Unlisted	Unlisted
Weight:	115	115
Stance:	Southpaw	Orthodox
Hometown:	Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico	Canals, Cordoba, Argentina
Rounds:	87	107

Key Storylines

Juan Carlos Sanchez, at just 22 years old, is considered by many to be the best super flyweight in the world. He holds victories over former world champions in Rodel Mayol, Juan Alberto Rosas and Rodrigo Guerrero.

After spending his entire career, up to this point, in Mexico he will be headlining a show in the United States for the first time. That's a lot of pressure for a young fighter, and how well he handles it could go a long way towards determining the outcome.

Roberto Sosa, like Sanchez, has never fought outside of his home nation, in this case Argentina. His resume is something short of impressive, in fact it's dismal, and nothing indicates he's ready for a challenge the scope of the IBF super flyweight champion. 

Despite his 24 wins and 14 knockouts, it would be a major upset if Sosa wins this fight. 

Strengths

Juan Carlos Sanchez is a tricky southpaw boxer who is very adept at hitting and not getting hit. A winner by knockout in his last fight, against former junior flyweight champion Rodel Mayol, he is not known for his power and much prefers to control the action with tactical boxing.

He has good speed, and is known for his sharp, precise jab and straight left hand. He will also possess the advantage in defense and footwork, which he uses to frustrate his opponents.

Roberto Sosa has good foot movement which he likes to use in order to control the distance of the fight. In his last bout, an IBF title eliminator against Zolani Tete, he was able to use his movement in order to box his opponent from the outside, but occasionally showed an ability to come forward and be successful.

In the fight he won a split decision, but will need to do much more if he hopes to walk out a world champion.

Weaknesses

Juan Carlos Sanchez has only lost once in his professional career, by second round technical knockout at the hands of Daniel Rosas. So he can be stopped if you have the power to get to him, but that is a lot easier said than done.

Sanchez also doesn't have much in the way of power, just 8 knockouts in 15 wins, and could potentially struggle with a power puncher who is able to solve his defensive guard.

Roberto Sosa is a boxer first, and doesn't always appear comfortable when forced to go on the offensive. That's a potentially big problem coming into this fight, as Sanchez is clearly the better boxer and Sosa will need to be aggressive in order to win.

He's not going to win this by trying to outbox his opponent, but by outfighting him.

Juan Carlos Sanchez Will Win If...

Juan Carlos Sanchez will win this fight if he's able to box effectively and control the distance of the fight. Keeping the fight at range and utilizing his sharp jab to set up his other punches is his forte and he'll need to do it on Saturday night if he wants to win the fight.

Sanchez will need to use his superior footwork and defense to frustrate Sosa and prevent him from landing any big shots while on the inside. This will frustrate his opponent and leave him prone to mistakes that will give Sanchez plenty of countering opportunities.

Roberto Sosa Will Win If...

Roberto Sosa needs a lot of things to go right for him to win this fight. Unfortunately, in many ways Juan Carlos Sanchez presents him with a stylistic nightmare. He's a fighter who does a lot of the same things that Sosa likes to do in the ring—just better.

Sosa is going to need to come out of his comfort zone in order to win this fight. He likes to sit back and box for the most part, and occasionally get aggressive. But to win here he's going to need to flip that script and be the aggressor from the outset. Sanchez is simply a better boxer, and Sosa will need to pressure him in order to win.

And the Winner Is...

It's hard to see how Juan Carlos Sanchez loses this fight. That is unless Roberto Sosa is something far greater than he's shown in his previous fights.

Sanchez is the more polished and accomplished boxer. He has the superior defense, footwork and movement, and this should allow him to frustrate his opponent. 

By using his sharp right jab, which he uses to set up his quick combinations, he should be able to control the distance from the outset and win a wide unanimous decision.

Sanchez 117-111