WBO World middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KO’s) believes he will halt his mandatory challenger Billy Joe Saunders (21-0, 11 KO’s) inside the twelve round championship distance when the pair meets at Thomond Park Stadium in Limerick, Ireland on September 19th.
It will be a homecoming for Lee who honed his craft in the United States for the early part of his career under the watchful eye of the late Emmanuel Steward. He hasn’t fought in Ireland since 2010 and will do so now wearing his prized middleweight title.
Lee has had to haul himself back from early deficits in his past three fights to grab a positive result.
In an interview with Boxing News obtained via Sky Sports, Lee stated that his power is a dangerous finishing touch to a skill set that is superior to that of a fellow southpaw in Saunders.
“Everything he can do, I can do to a better standard and I also have the power. He might win one or two early rounds but by the fourth or fifth, I’ll find the punch to end the fight.”
Saunders is a former Olympian, who has been highly touted in the UK for quite some time having made every step up in competition with aplomb up to this point. He earned his mandatory position by taking Chris Eubank Jr’s undefeated record last November in a performance that Lee gives him great credit for.
“Saunders is very talented, highly skilled but fiercely competitive as well. I was impressed that against Chris Eubank Jr he went straight to work. He didn’t allow Eubank to settle, and that showed his experience.”
In the latter half of that fight, Eubank Jr came on very strong and had Saunders looking haggard at times. Perhaps that is part of the reason Lee plans to initiate a patient approach in this one, happy to give away the early portion of the fight until things open up, and he can find a home for that destructive right hook of his.
However, it comes the win is crucial for Lee as he wishes to push on and clear up some of the discrepancies on his record while he is still in and amongst the big names at 160 lbs.
“I’ve got to beat Saunders. He’s my mandatory challenger, but after that, it frees me up. I wouldn’t mind a rematch with Quillin – we have unfinished business – and it’s also important for me to avenge my 2012 loss to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.”
And a mouth-watering unification fight could loom somewhere down the line if all goes to plan, against an opponent few at the top level are daring to get in with.
“Gennady Golovkin is a possible fight next year.”
Before all that though, Lee will be greeted by upwards of 25,000 screaming partisan supporters who are all urging him on to crush the talented youngster in front of him. Then the super fights, the unification fights will follow shortly after.
