Dave Allen must get in the trenches with heavyweight Arslanbek Makhmudov tonight and pummel him for him to be victorious in their 12-round headliner at the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England. It’s got to be trench warfare for Allen to have a chance of winning.
Hearn’s War Blueprint
Promoter Eddie Hearn wants Allen (24-7-2, 19 KOs) to go to war with Arslanbek and take his confidence away from him by landing to the body around the side of the head. He believes Makhmudov can be broken when he’s put under attack.
Lessons From Kabayel & Vianello
“What he will do is break. He’s broken before, and particularly against [Agit] Kabayel and also against Guido Vianello, who is fighting on this card,” said Eddie Hearn to iFL TV, analyzing the Dave Allen vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov fight tonight.
“You’ve got to break him. You can’t just hang in there, because if you don’t hit him in the body or pummel him around the side of the head, he’ll just keep going and gain confidence. You’ve got to ask him questions. You’ve got to go into the trenches with him and come out the other side, and go, ‘Guess what, mother f****? I’m still here.’ And then you’ll get him,” said Hearn.
Allen isn’t the same kind of body puncher that Agit Kabayel is, and he’s not nearly as consistent with his offense. He’ll have to change his style of fighting completely to have a shot at beating Makhmudov. This isn’t Johnny Fisher that he’s fighting, who he bowled over in five rounds earlier this year on May 17th.
Eddie wants Allen to bring the fire to Makhmudov in the same way Agit Kabayel, Guido Vianello, and Carlos Takam did. That approach worked for those fighters, but they were also much more talented than Dave Allen.
He doesn’t possess the same ability as Kabayel, Vianello, or even Takam. Even those guys didn’t have it easy against Makhmudov. They got hit a lot and had to depend on their chin to get them through it.
Why Trading Early Is Suicide
“This is a fight for me that Dave Allen wins in the second half of the fight,” said Hearn.
It’s ‘The White Rhino’ Allen’s only chance. He’s not going to be able to punch with the naturally bigger, stronger, and far more experienced Makhmudov early in the fight. It would be suicide for him to try. However, if Allen just hangs back, staying on the outside, covering up or moving away, he’s going to get hit with Makhmudov’s long looping shots.
The 6’5 1/2″ Arslanbek has a long reach and generates a lot of power from the outside. That’s why many of his opponents tend to try to crowd him to take away the leverage he gets on his shots.
However, Makhmudov has a devastating uppercut that he throws in close that can do a lot of damage. Allen will have to avoid getting hit with those punches if he wants to win. The short clubbing punches that Makhmudov throws in close are also an area that ‘The White Rhino’ Allen needs to be concerned about.
Michael Collins has been writing about boxing since 2016, covering championship fights, rising prospects, and the business side of the sport.
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