Carlos Molina vs. Cornelius Bundrage: Preview and Prediction for Title Fight
Saturday night in Cancun, IBF junior middleweight champion Carlos Molina defends his belt against former IBF champ Cornelius Bundrage. The 154-pound division is one of the most talent-laden divisions in the sport, and Molina and Bundrage have been two of the higher-rated names over the past few years.
This is Molina's first fight in over a year, and he needs a big performance to place himself back in the spotlight. For the 41-year-old Bundrage, this is likely his last shot at a belt.
There's a lot on the line for both men in this one.
Tale of the Tape
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| Per BoxRec | Carlos Molina | Cornelius Bundrage |
| Record: | 22-5-2, 6 KOs | 33-5, 19 KOs |
| Height: | 5'9" | 5'6" |
| Reach: | 70" | 72" |
| Weight: | 154 lbs | 154 lbs |
| Age: | 31 | 41 |
| Stance: | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Hometown: | Patzcuaro, Michoacan | Detroit, Michigan |
| Rounds: | 215 | 206 |
Cornelius Bundrage is shorter than Carlos Molina by three inches, but he's got a two-inch advantage in reach. He has a classic, long-armed boxer's build.
Bundrage is a decade older than Molina, but both of these guys are experienced veterans. Between them, they have fought over 400 professional rounds.
Main Storylines
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Carlos Molina was supposed to defend his title against Jermall Charlo last March on the Saul Alvarez-Alfredo Angulo undercard. Instead, he was arrested in Las Vegas on an outstanding warrant from Wisconsin. He ended up serving two months and being deported back to Mexico.
So this will be Molina's first fight in over a year since he won the belt by split decision from Ishe Smith in September 2013.
Molina is a tough-nosed veteran who has had very little handed to him in his professional career. Off the top of my head, I can't think of an active fighter who has received more raw deals than Molina. He was robbed in back-to-back fights against the the heavily hyped Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in 2005 and 2006, when he was still a rising prospect.
I thought Molina deserved the decision in his draw against Erislandy Lara in 2011. His disqualification in a fight he was winning against James Kirkland in 2012 was flat-out bizarre.
At 41, Cornelius Bundrage is old for a boxer. But he's a physical specimen who has shown no signs of slowing down. If anything, the past several years have been the best of his career.
In 2010, Bundrage captured the IBF light welterweight belt by stopping Cory Spinks in Round 5. In his first defense, he avenged his first career loss by beating Sechew Powell. He stopped Spinks for a second time in a 2012 rematch.
Bundrage dropped the belt to Smith by majority decision in 2013, who lost it to Molina in his first defense.
Strengths
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Carlos Molina is an outstanding ring general. He excels at controlling distance and tempo in a fight. He is a very elusive target.
Molina earned everything in boxing the hard way, which gives him tremendous resilience in a tough fight.
Cornelius Bundrage is a compact, powerful fighter. He mauls opponents, wearing them down round after round. His overhand right is a heavy, jarring punch.
Like Molina, Bundrage is a hard-nosed veteran who has had to struggle and persevere.
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Weaknesses
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Carlos Molina has just six knockouts in 29 fights. His lack of dangerous power means he has to grind out decisions and must walk a thin tightrope for 12 rounds against a bigger puncher like Cornelius Bundrage. Molina has to rely on guile because his physical attributes are below-average for a world-class prizefighter.
Cornelius Bundrage is a sloppy fighter. He has a tendency to lunge into position. His throws wide, looping punches that are relatively easy to avoid or counter. Bundrage is stronger than just about everybody he fights, but he can be outboxed.
Carlos Molina Will Win If...
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Carlos Molina is a fighter who relies on his ring generalship and timing. So a layoff of over a year could present a problem for him.
Molina has to control the distance and avoid letting Cornelius Bundrage crash into him and maul him.
Molina needs to be able to anticipate Bundrage's attacks and move in quickly to disrupt them, firing off straight-punch combinations and then circling out and away. When he can't move quickly enough to disrupt Bundrage, he needs to be ready to move out of range and reset for his counterattack.
James Kirkland is a more dangerous offensive fighter than Bundrage, and Molina was able to outbox Kirkland for most of 10 rounds before getting DQd. Then again, Molina got dropped hard in that 10th round and might have had trouble surviving the final two rounds.
So Molina needs to avoid Bundrage's big overhand right. He's got to fight a smart, technically precise fight after 13 months out of the ring.
That's not an impossible task for an experienced fighter like Molina. But it might not be easy.
Cornelius Bundrage Will Win If...
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To win back the IBF 154-pound title, Cornelius Bundrage is going to need to turn this fight into an ugly brawl. He's not going to outbox Carlos Molina. So he's got to rough him up.
But closing distance on a fighter who controls range the way Molina does is no easy matter. Bundrage can't just lunge forward behind his wide, swooping punches.
Bundrage has outstanding reach for a fighter his height. He's actually got the advantage here over the much taller Molina. So Bundrage should be able to get off first with his jab from the outside.
Bundrage is hardly known for his jab, but he's going to need to get it into play to win this fight. He's got to double it up and use it to set up his big overhand right.
When he does throw that right, he should follow through with his entire body and fall hard into Molina, then muscle him in the clinch and make the champion really carry his entire compact body. Bundrage should make this a grueling, physical fight for Molina and hope Molina's conditioning is suffering after his long layoff.
Bundrage needs to fight an aggressive yet patient fight.
Prediction
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Light middleweight is one of those weight classes where there is always more young talent coming up the ranks. So what's at stake in this fight between veterans Carlos Molina and Cornelius Bundrage is even more important than the IBF belt.
What's really at stake here is remaining relevant at the top of the division.
Bundrage had a nice career resurgence a few years ago, which led to him capturing the IBF title. But at 41, I think his best days are behind him now. I don't see him pushing the kind of pace he needs to push to beat Molina.
A layoff of more than a year is a challenge, but Molina has come back strong from longer breaks before. A fighter with his background in the sport is unlikely to take anything for granted, and I'm confident he's put in the time necessary in the gym, staying sharp.
I think he'll earn a decisive decision here. But since his legal problems will likely keep him out of the United States for the foreseeable future, he may still find himself on the outside looking in for the really big fights in the division.
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