Set Your DVRs: Lucas Matthysse vs. Ruslan Provodnikov Promises Can't-Miss Action

Set your DVRs, folks, because Lucas Matthysse vs. Ruslan Provodnikov promises the unrelenting kind of can’t-miss action that is almost certain to produce a Fight of the Year candidate.

Junior welterweights Matthysse and Provodnikov meet Saturday night at Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, New York. The bout will be telecast as the second part of a split-site doubleheader on HBO Boxing After Dark which begins at 9:45 p.m. ET with a match between fellow 140-pounders Terence Crawford and Thomas Dulorme live from Arlington, Texas.

But regardless of what happens during the tussle in Texas, all eyes will be on Matthysse-Provodnikov this weekend, as it will most assuredly turn out to be the better exhibition of pure violence than it or any other fight signed in 2015 to date.

Let’s not confuse something, though: Matthysse and Provodnikov are aggressive fighters, but they are not crude brawlers. There is skill to what they do, and each man has his own particular way of going about his business.

The combination should be a drama-filled explosion of high-octane prizefighting.

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

Matthysse, 32, is a vicious body-puncher with an excellent jab. He throws punches well to the head and body well from a distance and stalks his opponents behind swift and solid footwork.

Since being bested by Danny Garcia for the lineal junior welterweight title in 2013, Matthysse has won two straight fights, both by knockout. His April 2014 11th-round knockout of John Molina was the Fight of the Year, according to the Boxing Writers Association of America.

The resilient Matthysse was down twice early in the bout and cut over his left eye after a Round 3 headbutt yet rallied for a late stoppage win. 

His Round 2 destruction of the unheralded Roberto Ortiz later the same year was a stay-busy fight.

Matthysse will need to be at his best to defeat Provodnikov. The hard-hitting 31-year-old is a fan favorite because he throws destructive punches with great torque in combination and always moves forward to bring the action to his opponent.

Provodnikov has lost two of his last four bouts. He came oh-so-close to upsetting Tim Bradley in 2012 but couldn’t quite get the job done. That bout earned him and Bradley Fight of the Year honors by the BWAA.

Provodnikov then traveled to Denver, Colorado, to destroy Mike Alvarado in front of the latter’s home crowd by a 10th-round knockout. 

He appeared to be on the way to the same result against crafty boxer Chris Algieri last year before losing a hotly contested, 12-round split decision.

Provodnikov dropped Algieri twice in Round 1 but couldn’t seal the deal. Algieri used his quick feet to keep Provodnikov from being able to sit down on his punches for the rest of the fight and eked out a win on the scorecards of the hometown judges.

In November 2014, Provodnikov beat down Jose Luis Castillo in a stay-busy fight against a fighter with a big name but of an older age. Castillo, once one of the better fighters in the world, is 41 and not nearly the fighter he used to be.

He is nothing like Matthysse, a stalking puncher fighting at the top of his game. 

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

It’s hard to pick a winner in this one. If the two men stand in front of each other for the duration of the bout and trade punches the way foolhardy drunkards might do on a Saturday night, Provodnikov will probably be the one to come out on top.

But if Matthysse can endure Provodnikov’s onslaught enough in the early rounds to still have his legs about him in the second half of the fight, he will likely be able to outbox the slugging Provodnikov for the victory.

Regardless of the outcome, this much is as sure a bet as any in our rough-and-tumble sport: Matthysse vs. Provodnikov will be one heck of a prizefight, one with thrills, spills and everything else in between.

If you plan on missing a fight this weekend, make sure it isn't this one.