Will Pascal be able to beat Diaconu again, or will Diaconu win his belt belt?
Rematches are always fun, especially when the two fighters involved love to mix it up and neither one minds getting hit. Pascal/Diaconu I was a very good fight and I’d expect nothing less from the rematch.
Pascal vs. Diaconu Rematch Preview & Hype:
Who wouldn’t want to see 12 more rounds from these two? In their first fight, most of the rounds were spent trading power shots highlighted by Pascal knocking Diaconu down with a huge left hook in the 5th round followed by Diaconu stunning Pascal with a looping right hand that forced Pascal to clinch and grab to survive the round. Pascal appeared to be a class above Diaconu in the early rounds and Pascal is much harder to hit while he’s fresh.
As the fight went into the 3rd round Pascal appeared to tire a bit from throwing so many punches. The previously undefeated Diaconu took advantage of Pascal’s lack of movement and landed some hard shots, getting him back into the fight. Pascal found his 2nd wind and won the majority of the middle rounds, getting back to his quick and flashy style that frustrated his opponent. Diaconu had his moments in the later rounds but in the end Pascal’s superior speed and mobility was the difference. While Diaconu was essentially an unmoving target throughout the fight, Pascal used head movement in the early and later portions of the fight to avoid many of Diaconu’s power shots.
Resume:
Unfortunately the biggest fight on Pascal’s resume is also his only loss. I’m sure everyone remembers Pascal’s brutal battle with 168 pound champion Carl Froch, a potential fight of the year winner where Pascal came up just short but showed true grit and even with the loss, put himself on the boxing map. A win over Rico Hoye of contender fame as well as handing Chris Henry his first loss are the brightest spots of Diaconu’s solid but underwhelming resume. All things aside, these two fighters share similar resumes in terms of best wins and overall competition with one small side note; Pascal beat Diaconu already. How can this category be decided any other way?
Advantage: PASCAL
Power:
Neither guy has great power but both throw big time shots which more than makes up for it. When you’re throwing as hard as they do, knockdowns and/or knockouts are going to happen at some point. Both guys can give out and take huge amounts of punishment as we’ve seen throughout their recent careers. Both men were hurt in their first fight and I can see both men getting hurt in the rematch as well so I think this one is too close to call. Perhaps we’ll know when the final bell rings.
Advantage: PUSH
Speed:
Speed… probably the key to the fight. It sure was in their first battle. Pascal owns that department. He has tremendous speed and agility for a light-heavyweight and Diaconu is average at best. Speed won Pascal a bunch of rounds in the first fight and it won him some rounds in the Froch fight as well. If Diaconu can’t find a better way to counter Pascal’s speed it could be a long night for him.
Advantage: PASCAL
Toughness:
Both guys have been through wars. From everything I’ve seen from the two, they’re both tough as nails and aren’t afraid to take a couple punches to deliver a big one of their own. This factor plays a major role in why people will tune in and enjoy this rematch. Just as Pascal never gave up in a losing effort to Carl Froch, Diaconu did the same against Pascal. Don’t expect either one of these guys to quit on their stools, ever.
Advantage: PUSH
Pascal vs. Diaconu II Prediction:
I find it hard to believe that at this point in these guys’ careers that either one can reinvent themselves. They are who they are. And what they are two guys who love to trade, love to throw and love to give the fans a good fight. I look for much of the same in the rematch as we saw in the prequel. I think the two fighters will probably split the first 6 rounds or so but as both guys get tired, Pascal will be able to revert to moving around the ring to catch his breath while Diaconu will become an even more stationary target.
I think Diaconu may get desperate towards the end of the fight knowing he has to KO Pascal. Because of this, he may leave himself open for a big shot and get KO’d himself. I think it’ll be an action packed fight no matter what.
PASCAL KO12
