“El Maestro” M. Herrera Will School Hammering H. Lundy
In what should be a high action fight for Southern California fight fans, Mauricio “El Maestro” Herrera (20-5) takes on “Hammering” Hank Lundy (25-4-1) at the L.A. Coliseum on July 11th, 2015.
Forget the inferior product "Premier Boxing Champions" will televise on ESPN the same night; Keith Thurman vs Luis Collazo is a just another mismatch organized by Al Haymon to the detriment of boxing.
Instead, fight fans should support Herrera v Lundy which will have a huge impact on the 140 pound division if Herrera wins in convincing fashion. The Mexican-American star is a Southern California native, and looks to get back on track to championship contender status.
I expect Herrera’s hard luck to turn around this fight; coming off two controversial losses it was clear he beat the likes of Danny Garcia and Jose Banavidez, two 140 pound fighters that were supposed to easily get by the savvy-veteran.
Herrera shocked many proving he was not simply a journeyman as he got the best of Danny Garcia (in a fight that was held in Puerto Rico to promote Garcia’s “Puerto Rican” heritage). By the end of that fight, however, I venture to say Puerto Rican fans were more impressed with Herrera's superior boxing skills than Danny's poor performance (and poor Spanish too!).
Following the Garcia fight, Maurio Herrera faced Top Rank’s highly touted prospect, Jose Banavidez (23-0). In a fight most ringside observers gave to Herrera, Banavidez won a unanimous yet highly suspicious decision victory.
Herrera’s 2014 year was a perfect example of what is wrong in boxing. The bigger named fighter won thanks to the corruption of judges and promotors.
Fortunately, Golden Boy Promotions rewarded Mauricio Herrera with an extension keeping his hopes of a big fight alive. Being Mexican-American and from Rivside, Southern California, it's a surprise Herrera is not a household name in boxing. Granted he doesn't have KO power but he is a talented boxer. Golden Boy should put him on a Canelo Alvarez undercard to increase his name recognition the next chance they get.
Aside from Lucas Matthyssee, Timothy Bradley, Jamal Crawford, and maybe Adrien Broner, I’d give Herrera the benefit of the doubt against all other 140 pounders (yes, IN BOXING)! A couple of tier two fighters like Diego Chavez, Brandon Rios, or Jessie Vargas might prove me wrong but with a convincing win over Lundy, Herrera will force the boxing world to pay attention.
Standing in Mauricio's way is Lundy who has lost three of his last six fights, albeit to tough competition (Ray Beltran, Tomas Dulorme, and Victor Pastol). Look for Hammering Hank Lundy to give it his all against Mauricio Herrera. It is doubtful he scores the knock out but look for Mauricio to win big.
