This Saturday night features a full card of the sweet science from The Forum in Inglewood, California, as “Superfly 2” is set to get underway. Srisaket Sor Rungvisai looks to defend his WBC junior bantamweight title against Juan Francisco Estrada. Donnie Nietes hopes to defend his IBF flyweight title against Juan Carlos Reveco, and Artem Dalakian and Brian Viloria will tangle for the vacant flyweight title in the WBA. All of these will be broadcast on HBO. Check out our boxing betting recommendations for each bout.
Top Boxing Betting Picks of the Week – February 20th
Rungvisai vs Estrada (WBC junior bantamweight title)
Rungvisai comes in with a 44-4-1 record with 40 of those wins coming via the knockout. He is riding a 17-bout winning streak, with his most recent decision coming in a knockout win over Roma Gonzalez back in September. He stands 5’3” and has a 63-inch reach, and this is now his second title defense. Rungvisaiis a lefty and brings a thunderous punch — which explains that history of knockouts. He likes to work the body to make his opponent drop his head, making head shots easier to pull off. He has gotten some penalties for head butts, but other than that he is a dangerous fighter who knows how to win.
Estrada is no slouch, coming in with a 36-2 record featuring 25 knockouts. He has a 10-bout winning streak of his own, with his last victory coming in September over Carlos Cuadras. This will be his fourth bout since the beginning of 2016. He enjoys a slight reach advantage (66 inches). Like Rungvisai, he likes to work the body but can also devolve into a street fighting approach to get wins. He has been knocked down twice in his career, but he has shown that he can take some punches and deliver some pain. Rungvisai has more punching power, and he has better finishing stats.
Boxing Betting Prediction: Rungvisai wins via knockout
Nietes vs Reveco (IBF flyweight title)
Nietes enters with a 40-1-4 record, with 22 of those wins coming by knockout. Most of his fights have taken place in the Philippines, but he has come to the United States to fight several times in recent years. He beat Juan Alejo in 2015 and Edgar Sosa in 2016, with both tilts coming at the StubHub Center, in Carson, California.
Reveco makes his American debut, with a 39-3 record, winning 19 of those bouts via the knockout. He comes in with a three-bout winning streak after losing two of three (both losses at the hands of Kazuto Ioka in 2015). Both of those losses were very competitive, though, so he has plenty of momentum to bring against Nietes. The two fighters bring just about equal punching power, with neither showing overwhelming knockout numbers. I have to go with the champ because of his pedigree in the division and the fact that the bout is so closely matched.
Boxing Betting Prediction: Nietes wins via decision
Dalakian vs Viloria (WBA flyweight title)
Viloria already holds four world title bets (two at flyweight and two at junior flyweight), so now he looks for his fifth for this vacant flyweight title. He has a record of 38-5 with 23 knockouts, and he enters the ring at the age of 37. He brings solid boxing skills to the ring, but in a recent interview with ESPN, he said that his preparation time had been a couple of months, so his conditioning could be a question.
Dalakian hails from Ukraine and has a 15-0 lifetime record with 11 wins coming by knockout. At the age of 30, he is coming into his prime in the sport — but is just now getting his first crack at a noteworthy opponent. If he can add a 16th win to his belt, expect to hear his name in U.S. boxing circles a lot more often.
Boxing Betting Prediction: Viloria wins via decision
