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Timothy Bradley Jr.
Boxing is like an unsynchronized dance ritual. Picture a dancer flowing to music. That’s how a boxer fights — all movements are part of a rhythm. All fighters groove to their own beat. Every move has consequences and can feel odd for opponents, even those with tons of experience. Like a dancer who moves, spins, and twirls to the beat of music, a boxer throws punches in sequences and evades shots governed by the internal presence of their rhythm.
On Saturday, the flyweight division will be at the center of attention, showcasing two of the best rhythm-fighters in the 112-pound weight class.
Two undefeated boxing champions, Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez from San Antonio, Texas and Sunny Edwards from London, will fight to unify world titles at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. These two fighters are exceptional with their footwork, and the fight is all about who can handle the other’s tricky style by making proper adjustments throughout. Edwards is so confident in his abilities that he agreed to travel to America to defend his IBF flyweight title against Rodriguez, the WBO titleholder.
This fight will test strategy, skill, and willpower. Rodriguez has the punching power to hurt Edwards, but Edwards has the athletic style and rhythm that can throw off Rodriguez’s best game. Let’s take a deeper look at the matchup.
An “old-school” matchup
In a boxing match, fighters engage and become entangled in a dance battle. Some fighters have a unique style and rhythm, like Emanuel Augustus, “The Drunken Master,” who gave Floyd Mayweather one of the most challenging fights of his undefeated career 23 years ago. Augustus understood the essence of a broken rhythm, and behind his drunken-like movements, he used dancing, shifting, twisting, and turning in and out of range without breaking stride. Mayweather beat Augustus, but it did not come easily.
Augustus’ moves were so tricky and unexpected that it made it hard for most opponents to time him and know what he would do next. If a boxer’s rhythm is unusual, it can confuse their opponent and make the fight significantly more troubling for them.
One of the greatest flyweights during his time, Panama Al Brown, born Alfonso Teofilo Brown, was famous in the 1920s. His style was fluid and well before his time. He was 5-foot-9 (tall for this weight class) with a 72½ -inch reach. He was so smooth and fast, moving around his opponents like a ballet dancer, that he would dismantle his competitors. He had a style that was hard to understand. His movements, agility, and wittiness confused opponents and went against boxing’s conventional wisdom.
Edwards contrasts the style of the legendary Panama Al Brown. He mesmerizes with his creativity, possessing nimble footwork and elusive instinctive maneuvers supported by his exceptional athleticism. He boxes as if he is dancing in a playful-like manner. He may lack the punching power of Panama, only owning four knockouts out of 20 pro fights. Still, his strategic ways around the ring are similar to Panama’s, which can be like a spider masterfully weaving a web to catch its prey.
Rodriguez, on the other hand, is also super slick with how he moves. He’s like a chess player, constantly turning and stepping right to get the best spots to attack his opponents. His footwork is like that of Vasiliy Lomachenko — he shuffles his back and front foot around his opponent, throwing super sharp punch combinations with power and accuracy. He’s always in motion, like a rhythm you can’t break, and he’s not scared to go punch-for-punch with anyone at any range.
Using level changes and feints helps set up his weapons, like precisely timed uppercuts and left counters thrown off, in and outside slips. He’s a master at changing his distance mid-flight, landing clean body shots in close, and then quickly firing off a straight right-left combo to catch opponents trying to get away.
How can Edwards win
Edwards is a master at creating diversions, and his movements are intuitive and fluid. He uses direct and indirect attacks, with various feints for his offensive setups, seamlessly transitioning between stances (lefty and righty), shifting positions quickly, angling his body upon being attacked, and shrinking his target areas by narrowing his stance. He is a ring general, a position specialist who creates as he goes.
Most fighters have a game plan, a pre-game strategy formulated around the strengths and weaknesses of their opponents. However, Edwards approaches every fight similarly: take whatever his opposition gives by staying patient but on high alert. When he is in the southpaw stance, expect intelligent aggression to be his forte, pushing the pace, reacting to incoming punches, and then countering effectively. When he switches to orthodox, Sunny uses a back-foot first counterpunching style, looking to set up his sneaky right cross off his jab and an occasional lead left hook to clear the side he wants to step to next.
In his most recent fight in April, Rodriguez took more punishment than usual and suffered a broken jaw against Christian Gonzalez. That’s because Gonzalez was quick on his feet, just like Edwards will be, forcing Rodriguez to chase and cut off the ring, taking more risks. Rodriguez was highly exposed at times because by pushing forward and forcing a faster pace against a pure fleet-footed boxer, he ran into traps set by Gonzalez. Edwards can do the same.
Hide and Seek is a classic favorite childhood game. However, this matchup will quickly transform into a lively game of “Chase the Rabbit.” Athletic ability becomes crucial, and Edwards excels in this area, making him a strong match for Rodriguez. Edwards’ unique rhythm requires careful control of the fight’s pace and space for his operation. If Rodriguez gives a skilled boxer like Edwards time to think, it provides Edwards more control and room to plan his moves and escape.
One must take the lead when two fighters have excellent footwork and boxing skills. If not, a highly skilled but less disciplined fighter like Edwards could cause problems for a more disciplined boxer like Rodriguez. While Rodriguez keeps his hands high, Sunny often holds his hands low to move freely around the ring.
How can Rodriguez win
Rodriguez’s general fighting stance is from the southpaw position (right foot upfront). Whenever adversity pressures him, forcing him onto his back foot, he’s excellent at standing his ground, fighting back, and countering effectively upon retreat. But when Rodriguez is up against someone just as athletic as he is, he will flip the script and become the pressure fighter, owning the ring. It’s like he flips a switch and goes from being all about finesse to intensity with the intent to hurt. Rodriguez provides general basics with his defense, relying heavily on a high-tight guard to deflect punches for his countering, skillfully taking control and building on his attacks.
Against Gonzalez, Rodriguez took advantage of Gonzalez’s skittish pursuit as he made mistakes due to the change in pace, disrupting his irregular rhythm and catching him out of position.
I anticipate a similar strategy being employed against the elusive Edwards. Staying firm and ready to strike is crucial for him to get the victory. Edwards’s inventive approach often exposes him, leaving him vulnerable to sudden, prolonged attacks. Edwards will look to exploit any openings offered by Rodriguez.
It is crucial for Rodriguez to use jabs, feints, or probes to maneuver into a position that forces Edwards to react and take advantage of the exposed target, going to Edwards’s body in order to slow him down. Edwards fluidly switches between a southpaw and orthodox stance as he advances or retreats, so anticipating his counters, staying low, and slipping under his punches will prompt Edwards to attempt an uppercut from an unfavorable position, thus leaving himself open for one of Rodriguez’s powerful sweeping backhands upstairs.
Who wins?
This fight will go back and forth with action, each champion inflicting damage. In spots, it will get ugly because Edwards will look to tie up Rodriguez when he has not garnered the space needed for him to be in his element. Edwards’ lack of punching power will forge Rodriguez forward even more, delivering more presents for Sunny like good old Saint Nick. I see a victory for Rodriguez in an ugly, hard fight.