British heavyweight prospect David Price will get the chance to avenge his only pro loss this Saturday, July 6 when he meets American veteran Tony Thompson in a rematch in Liverpool, England.Price was surprised by Thompson in their first meeting in Liverpool last February and was knocked out in the second round. The 29-year-old Price won a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics and was once thought of as a future heavyweight champion; however, that dream was derailed by losing to Thompson.
A win here in this rematch is crucial to his career. He enters the ring with a record of 15-1 along with 13 KOs and is hoping his power will pull him through in this bout. Unfortunately, it appears he has a bit of a weak chin and that may seriously hamper him in any attempt at winning a world crown.
Thompson, a southpaw, is now 41 years old and his win over Price war more or less unexpected by most fans, so he really has nothing to lose in the rematch. Even if he’s beaten, there’s the possibility of a rubber match some time down the road.
Thompson’s an underrated boxer and comes into the bout at 37-3 with 25 KOs. He’s lost just two bouts since 2000, and both of those were stoppages against heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko.
Price knows how important this fight is and he held training camp over in Canada with the help of former heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis. Price said Lewis has been teaching him new things in training and is confident he’ll be able to overcome Thompson this time.
However, Thompson has the edge in experience, defense and punch accuracy. Price has a slight edge in power and also has faster hands, is busier and a little more aggressive. He also has a decent height advantage over the 6-foot-5 Thompson.
We’re going to find out if the first result was a fluke or the same thing’s going to happen again and Price’s career will be severely damaged. He can use his size to keep Thompson at bay and utilize his jab. His knockout-percentage is impressive at 81 and could try to catch Thompson with uppercuts while he comes in.
Thompson has a decent chin though so it looks like Price might have to outbox him to win this fight. If he works hard all three minutes of each round. If Thompson goes into the fight looking for a knockout, he’ll be making a mistake. He also needs to stay busy and counterpunch accurately.
Look for Price to be determined to avenge his loss, and he should be able to do it by a decision.
