Alvarez vs. Khan Undercard: Preview and Prediction for Gomez vs. Herrera
Veteran Mauricio Herrera welcomes undefeated Frankie Gomez to the big time on Saturday night in Las Vegas, as the two face off on the undercard for Canelo Alvarez's pay-per-view clash with Amir Khan.
This is a battle between one of the sport's hottest prospects against one of boxing's most respected contenders.
A win for Gomez will prove that he's a legitimate world-title challenger. For Herrera, a victory will prove that even at 35, he's nobody's stepping stone.
In a lot of ways, this will be one of the evening's most interesting fights.
Tale of the Tape
1 of 7
| Per BoxRec | Frankie Gomez | Mauricio Herrera |
| Record: | 20-0, 13 KOs | 22-5, 7 KOs |
| Height: | 5'8" | 5'7.5" |
| Reach: | 70" | 71.5" |
| Weight: | 146 lbs | 146 lbs |
| Age: | 24 | 35 |
| Stance: | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Hometown: | East Los Angeles, California | Riverside, California |
| Rounds: | 86 | 203 |
Mauricio Herrera is 11 years older than Frankie Gomez. Although he has only fought seven more professional bouts than his younger opponent, he has been in more than twice as many rounds and has been in the ring with some of the best light welterweights of the past five years.
According to BoxingScene.com's Steve Kim, this fight will be fought at a catchweight of 146 pounds, one below the normal welterweight limit.
Main Storylines
2 of 7
Frankie Gomez was a United States amateur champion and won a silver medal at the 2009 AIBA World Championships. He's an undefeated prospect as a professional.
His best wins have been against Vernon Paris and Adrian Granados. Those were solid victories, but Mauricio Herrera still represents a significant move up in competition for him.
Herrera has been fighting at a high level for the past half decade. In 2011, he defeated Ruslan Provodnikov in a close fight, but he lost back-to-back bouts against Mike Alvarado and Karim Mayfield in 2012.
In March 2014, Herrera challenged world champion Danny Garcia and lost by majority decision. I thought he should have won that fight. I also think he was robbed against undefeated Jose Benavidez in December 2014.
Herrera fought just once last year, defeating tough Hank Lundy by a five-round technical decision.
Herrera lacks power but is about as crafty as they come. He's a smart, tough veteran and will represent a formidable challenge for a youth like Gomez.
Strengths
3 of 7
Frankie Gomez is an athletic, explosive offensive fighter. He closes distance quickly and bullies opponents on the inside. He is a punishing body-puncher.
Gomez's nickname is "Pitbull," a testament to his relentless, come-forward aggression.
Mauricio Herrera is a crafty fighter. He is a good ring general, who knows how to use his jab to disrupt his opponent's rhythm and his footwork to take away their angles of attack.
He does an excellent job of staying out of dangerous positions.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Weaknesses
4 of 7
Frankie Gomez tends to lunge with his attacks, paying little attention to where he is going to end up. He throws a lot of wide punches, leaving his opponent room to fire straight down the middle.
Gomez attacks in bursts, which could allow a clever opponent a chance to get a read on his rhythm and take control of the tempo of the fight by disrupting him before he can get started.
Mauricio Herrera lacks punching power at the world-class level. He's stopped just seven opponents in his career, and his lack of power forces him to work twice as hard to stay ahead of opponents who don't need to respect his punches.
Frankie Gomez Will Win If...
5 of 7
Winning this fight will move Frankie Gomez from prospect to true contender at either 140 or 147 pounds. To win, he'll need to fight a smarter, more calculated bout than he has before.
Gomez has been able to physically swarm and overwhelm past opponents. He's also the stronger, better athlete than Mauricio Herrera, but the veteran is a shrewd fighter.
Gomez should fight with his traditional, aggressive style, but he needs to step in with his attacks, rather than simply lunging. I'd like to see him come in behind straight punches, before throwing his wide shots on the inside.
Gomez needs to invest heavily in his body attack in the early rounds, in order to slow Herrera's movement.
Mauricio Herrera Will Win If...
6 of 7
The most important thing for Herrera in this fight is going to be establishing his jab. He needs to get off first with that punch, before Gomez can get set and launch his own attack.
Herrera has to jab inside, harass Gomez with flurries, then move away behind his jab at angles before quickly attacking again. It's going to take a lot of movement and clever use of angles to stay out of position for Gomez's attack.
If Herrera can control tempo and distance—as he did for much of his fight with Danny Garcia in 2014—he'll be able to force Gomez to fight on his terms. That will be extremely frustrating for the younger man, leaving Gomez struggling to adjust.
Prediction
7 of 7
This is Frankie Gomez's opportunity to pick up a high-profile win and emerge as a true contender. But my own sense of this matchup is that it's going to provide a classic example of age and experience trumping youth and athleticism.
Mauricio Herrera is going to be the better ring general in this fight and make things frustrating for Gomez. The younger man will still manage to keep up a busy pace, and he'll throw more punches than Herrera throughout the fight, but the veteran will land at a higher percentage.
As far as a prediction goes, however, I don't necessarily think that Herrera will get the nod. While I believe the majority of observers will have him winning the fight, I'm not so sure all three judges will agree.
Herrera has been on the rough end of two close decisions in recent years. He lost to world champion Danny Garcia in April 2014 by majority decision and Jose Benavidez by unanimous decision in December of the same year.
In my opinion, he should have won both of those fights. And I've got a hunch he'll receive a raw deal from the judges again on Saturday night.
The fight will likely be close enough to avoid being an outright robbery, but I think Gomez will get the nod while many fans will feel Herrera once more deserved to win.
Herrera will remain a respected contender. Gomez will look good enough against him to establish himself as a fighter to watch.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
