Capt’n Huck Crunching The Competition
By Julian Kasdin (June 4, 2007) Doghouse Boxing
Last month Marco Huck, 19-0 (14), won the biggest fight of his young career when he defeated the tough, heavy-handed Russian Vadim Tokarev, 23-1-1 (16), in an IBF cruiserweight title eliminator. The 22 year-old Huck is one of the fastest-rising prospects in the cruiserweight division, and with this win is looking to make a run at the very top of the fistic mountain. Many Americans may not know Huck, but if he gets his shot versus newly-crowned IBF champion Steve Cunningham, he could very well become the future of this oft-overlooked division.

Huck is an impressive young fighter. He is tall, strong and fast, and packs a serious punch. It also helps that he has a sturdy chin and the ability to go the full twelve, something that separates the best from the rest. Against Tokarev, he had to employ all of these traits to defeat someone that many picked to beat him. Vadim was well known to Americans, given his win over Felix Cora, Jr., and given his fights with Cora and the tough Albanian Firat Arslan, it is no wonder that many picked Tokarev to win. That said, come fight night, it became apparent that he did not have the necessary tools to beat his young Croatian foe.

While the bout started relatively evenly, it was clear early on that Marco was the faster of the two fighters. Heading into the middle rounds, Huck was able to use his edge in speed and height to control the pace of the fight, thus allowing him to build a lead on his increasingly overmatched but game foe. Late in the fight, Tokarev would begin to gas, while Marco’s tank appeared quite full, allowing him to keep the pressure up. By all accounts, Huck swept the final rounds and, despite a point deduction, won a clear majority decision with scores of 117-110 twice and 114-114.

With the win, Huck becomes Cunningham’s mandatory, a fight that I believe the rangy American does not want to take. I am of the opinion that neither Cunningham nor Krzysztof Wlodarczyk are as talented as Huck, and given the close nature of their two fights, it would seem that either fighter stands a very good chance of losing to the young power puncher. Hopefully Cunningham nevertheless gives this very deserving challenger his shot, and allows Huck to prove himself at the championship level.

On the same card, IBF middleweight champion ‘King’ Arthur Abraham, 23-0 (18), made a successful return to the ring when he stopped overmatched Canadian foe Sebastien Demers, 20-1 (9), in the third round. One can only hope that if Jermain Taylor does not challenge Kelly Pavlik that these two bangers get it on in a fight that I consider to be the one for the true top spot in the middleweight division. Also featured on this card was hot heavyweight prospect Alexander ‘Sasha’ Povetkin, 12-0 (10), who blasted out severely overmatched Patrice L’Heureux, 20-4-1 (12), in the second round. His next fight is in Moscow on June 30, versus two-time title challenger Monte Barrett.


Questions or comments,
e-mail
Julian at: Alcaldemb@aol.com
© Copyright / All Rights reserved: Doghouse Boxing 1998-2007