It may not be the sexiest part of the Cotto-Mayweather undercard, but there’s plenty on the line for both Deandre Latimore and Carlos Quintana this Saturday night. Anything is possible with these two southpaws of contrasting styles go head-to-head. Will the age and experience of Quintana be enough to overtake the exuberance and youthful desperation of Latimore?
- When: May 5, 2012
- Where: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
- Undercard: Part of the Mayweather-Cotto undercard, which also includes Saul Alvarez vs. Shane Mosley, and Jessie Vargas vs. Steve Forbes
The Pugs and The Prize
| Deandre “The Bull” Latimore (22-2, 20 KOs)Height: 5’9” Nationality: U.S.A. Age: 26 Fighting out of: St. Louis, Missouri Stance: Southpaw | Carlos “El Indio” Quintana (28-3, 22 KOs)Height: 5’9” Nationality: Puerto Rico Age: 35 Fighting out of: Moca, Puerto Rico Stance: Southpaw |
There is no strap on the line, however Latimore is fighting for his professional life at this point. A fourth loss—and third in his last seven bouts—could spell the end. For the elder statesman Quintana, the only thing on the line is national and personal pride. With the collective eyes of Puerto Rico on the MGM Grand Arena Saturday night, Quintana may find that extra piece of motivation that keeps things interesting.
Latimore vs. Quintana Preview
Unfortunately, this fight isn’t happening with a 2012 version of Deandre Latimore and a 2002 version of Carlos Quintana.
At this stage of his career, Quintana is little more than fodder for younger fighters on undercards such as this. Candidly, he would’ve been better off hanging up the gloves following his win over Paul Williams in 2008. Since then, he’s had a handful of less-than-memorable wins over lower tier opponents with crushing losses to the aforementioned Williams and Andre Berto mixed in for good measure. Still, as critical an assessment as this may seem, it’s nice to see Quintana on the undercard of fellow countryman Miguel Cotto (to whom he lost soundly in 2006). It should be a wonderful celebration of the Puerto Rican culture … despite what may amount to a lackluster defeat.
In Latimore’s corner, this fight provides quite the trap. Although Deandre should win handily, anything less may be viewed as a step back. Two of Latimore’s three pro losses have come in his last six fights (Corey Spinks in 2009 and Sechew Powell in 2010). A loss to a guy that many see as little more than the name on his trunks would effectively end any talks of Latimore contending for any sort of gold.
The Analysis
Latimore is exceptionally quick and, at times, unwieldy with his balance. To his credit, he maintains his pace with a wide stance which feeds nicely into his sharpest punch, the jab. A textbook puncher, Latimore tends to throw wildly as action picks up, yet he still lands more often than not. In a pinch, Latimore is able to switch and throw effectively as a rightly. The biggest hole in his approach is that he tends to leave huge openings while on offense, which is typical of big punchers. He’s also susceptible to hard, overhand punches, given that the biggest holes tend to follow his hooks.
The battle-tested veteran Quintana is largely an upright fighter, relying on precision punches over gross power. He relies on a long, sweeping left hook within his methodical, deliberate approach. Quintana works combinations well, transitioning from upstairs to downstairs with each punch. A solid inside scrapper when the situation calls for it.
Latimore vs. Quintana Prediction
Latimore’s style lends itself to a convincing victory, here, although Quintana is no slouch. What may spell doom for Quintana is his upright style. Against fighters without a propensity to throw high, Quintana is much more effective. But, the hallmark of Latimore’s style is, guess what, high, hard punches. Where Quintana will be successful is in the counter portion of his game. If he can withstand the free throwing Latimore, and bait him into throwing an errant straight left, Quintana will be able to alter the pace of the fight and turn defense into offense.
Although he’s not known as a knockout specialist, Latimore could look to end the fight early. But, odds are that Quintana is going to want to save face and not allow himself to be knocked out in front of the heavily partisan crowd. Quintana will take his shots when they are presented, but look for him to play more defense than usual. Latimore will temper his frustration just enough to allow this fight to go the full ten rounds. He’ll also do just enough to get the unsatisfying victory.
Prediction: Deandre Latimore by split decision.
