FLASHBACK to this week in 2016, basking in the glow of the Rio Olympic Games, I wasn’t alone hailing Joshua Buatsi as the most exciting talent to emerge from Team GB. A thinking fighter with heavy hands and spiteful intentions, his bronze in Brazil was littered with stoppages.
Unfortunately, five years on and soon to be 15 fights into his paid career and we are still waiting for Buatsi to record a meaningful victory. Truth be known, my interest has waned, especially as I’ve already been wooed by the latest British light heavyweight to medal at the Games.
Ben Whittaker’s silver in Tokyo was as engaging as any story to come from this summer’s delayed Olympics. His personality and performances shone, ensuring he is now the most attractive British team signing to any paying promoter.
Buatsi returns to the ring this weekend for the finale of three consecutive Fight Camp fight nights in the garden at Matchroom HQ in Essex. But, no matter how you sugar-coat it, Latvian brawler Ricards Bolotniks (18-5-1) isn’t the level of opponent anyone was hoping for at this stage.
There has been a lot of talk about the pandemic halting Buatsi’s progress, and notably he’s also changed trainer too, moving to the US to work with Virgil Hunter. But Lawrence Okolie, his Rio teammate with just one more pro fight on his card, is in the same position and yet their paid careers are poles apart in terms of progression.
‘The Sauce’ won British, Commonwealth and European championship belts, featuring in four proper domestic matchups along the way, before moving on to world level and capturing WBO cruiserweight gold in his latest outing.
By comparison, Buatsi has picked up just one recognisable title since turning pro – the British light-heavyweight belt. And despite half a dozen or so quality potential opponents ranked alongside him domestically at 175lb, he gave up the Lonsdale belt without making a solitary defence.
Fight week aura pic.twitter.com/5kjF6WkPxz
— Joshua Buatsi (@boxingbuatsi) August 9, 2021
He’s still undefeated, of course; has stopped 12 of his 14 opponents and I can only count one or two rounds that he may have lost since turning over. But isn’t that the point? Buatsi is supremely talented, but he’s being safeguarded from any real competition to his detriment.
Bolotniks, 31, is in good form. He’s riding a seven-fight win streak, which critically includes the scalps of Brits Steven Ward and Hosea Burton enroute to success in the recent MTK Golden Contract tournament. So, he is known to the UK boxing audience.
But the Latvian is a bullish front foot fighter who likes to let his hands go, which means Buatsi’s fast counters will have plenty of openings to exploit. When under fire, Bolotniks tries to punch his way out of danger too, fatal against a technician as accurate and heavy handed as the home fighter.
After a patient start from the Londoner, Bolotniks will get a little too brave and fancy the job a little too much and start opening up before unravelling in dramatic fashion as Buatsi goes through the gears.
TIP: Buatsi by TKO Rounds 4-6
