Boxing
Keys to Victory: Where will Yoenis Tellez-Brian Mendoza battle be won and lost?
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To keep his name alive at junior middleweight, Brian Mendoza believes his matchup against Yoenis Tellez is a must-win fight.
The veteran Mendoza clashes with Cuban rising star Tellez tonight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and live on pay-per-view. The bout will serve as the co-main event to the Sebastian Fundora vs. Keith Thurman headliner. Ironically, Mendoza is the only man to have stopped Fundora, the reigning WBC junior middleweight world champion.
Mendoza (23-4, 17 KOs) is coming off a fourth-round TKO of Jesus Antonio Rojas in July to rebound from back-to-back losses against Tim Tszyu and Serhii Bohachuk. Meanwhile, Tellez (11-1, 8 KOs) responded to his own loss — a unanimous decision defeat to Abass Baraou in August — by stopping Kendo Castaneda in December.Â
Will Mendoza put himself back at the forefront of the 154-pound division by handing Tellez a loss? Or will the 25-year-old Tellez generate a statement win at Mendoza's expense? DAZN News analyzes the Keys to Victory between both fighters.
Yoenis Tellez’ Keys to Victory
Establish the jab early
Yoenis Tellez owns a crisp, clean jab. If he could establish the stick early, Tellez could wind up dictating the terms of the fight against an aggressive Brian Mendoza by keeping him at bay over long stretches.
Greet a pressuring Mendoza with combinations
Knowing Mendoza is going to press forward aggressively, Tellez must catch him incoming with pieced-together combinations. Not only will these combos score Tellez points, but they’ll allow him to box off Mendoza’s pressure in standing his ground.
These combinations could be executed as a flurry or sat on for bigger impact.
Rely on footwork to force Mendoza to reset
Tellez moves skillfully and smoothly around the ring, though he found himself trapped by a pressing Abass Baraou much too often and it resulted in his first professional loss.
Learning from that experience, the Cuban fighter must stick and move against Mendoza, slipping out of harm’s way after scoring points on offense.
Doing this will allow him to stay ahead on rounds and force Mendoza to reset, frustrating ‘La Bala.’
Brian Mendoza’s Keys to Victory
Show educated pressure
Pressuring forward deliberately is an integral part of Brian Mendoza’s fighting game, but it’s that same tactic that leaves him vulnerable to being hit.
Therefore, Mendoza has to be himself, but show educated, cautious pressure along the way. If he bulldozes ahead recklessly, Mendoza could get carved up by the clean-punching, pointed accuracy of Tellez.
Sit on hooks
Go back and watch Mendoza’s Knockout of the Year candidate from his finish of Sebastian Fundora in 2023.
He absolutely sat on a pair of hooks to knock Fundora out on his feet toward the biggest win of his career.
Mendoza must do the same when he finds open lanes against Tellez to test the Cuban's chin.
Push off on Tellez, resort to clinch
Mendoza has to get rough with Tellez, pushing off on the Cuban and even resorting to the clinch when necessary to keep the active fighter in front of him.
Keeping Tellez in front of him, painted in corners or against the ropes will put Mendoza in the best position possible to lean into and lay his smothering style on the Cuban fighter.
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