On Friday night, at EXPO Calangianus in Sardinia, our own Francesco De Rosa will face the toughest and most prestigious challenge of his career as he attempts to win the European super bantamweight title. Standing across the ring from him in the main event of the card promoted by Mario Loreni’s Promo Boxe Italia will be Romania’s Ionut Baluta. The fight will be broadcast live on Rai Sport, with coverage starting at 10:30 p.m. Below is our analysis, followed by our final prediction!
Francesco De Rosa and His Unusual “Mexican-Style” Approach
It is not often that we see a boxing style like Francesco De Rosa’s on Italian soil. Italian fighters usually tend to be measured, careful with their energy expenditure and willing to take breaks between the most intense exchanges. The Salerno-born boxer, on the other hand, has accustomed us to relentless and fearless pressure, built around the desire to land one more punch than his opponent in every exchange, even at the cost of taking a few too many shots himself.
It is an approach reminiscent of the Mexican school of boxing, from which De Rosa also seems to have picked up the habit of working consistently to the body, a detail that can make the difference by giving him the freshness advantage he needs to shift into a higher gear in the second half of his fights.
In his latest bout against Gerom Eloyan, we saw both the strengths and the risks of this tactical mindset. De Rosa was dropped twice in the sixth round and came close to defeat, but he also showed tremendous heart by recovering from the shock and sealing a spectacular victory four rounds later.
Ionut Baluta: A Tough Man Who Takes Away His Opponents’ Certainty
When you are used to intimidating your opponents, constantly forcing them onto the defensive, and suddenly find yourself sharing the ring with someone who absorbs your best punches without flinching and keeps standing right in front of you, there is a very real risk of panicking and losing the thread of the fight.
That is the secret behind the highly respectable professional career Baluta has built so far. The Romanian is not a technical virtuoso and he does not possess one-punch knockout power, but he can absorb huge shots and forces his opponents into extremely high-intensity fights, severely testing both their conditioning and their determination.
Far from being intimidated by the idea of fighting in hostile territory, the Romanian has contested ten of his last twelve bouts in the United Kingdom, proving highly competitive against some of the best British fighters in his weight class, pulling off upset wins and fully earning his money even in defeat.
What Will Happen? Boxe Punch’s Prediction!
On Friday, Francesco De Rosa will have to find a delicate balance between two potentially dangerous extremes.
On the one hand, charging forward recklessly and going all-out in search of a knockout could prove far too risky. Baluta has never lost inside the distance and has shown on several occasions that he can weather severe storms without giving up on counterpunching. For that reason, burning through too much energy in the first half of the fight could lead Francesco into unpredictable and uncomfortable territory in the later rounds.
On the other hand, adopting an excessively cautious and conservative approach would mean going against his own nature. A fighter cannot completely abandon his natural instincts without paying a price, and a restrained De Rosa would lose an essential part of the qualities that have earned him this major European opportunity. Baluta could also grow in confidence if he senses that he is facing a passive opponent who is showing him too much respect.
The Salerno puncher will therefore have to walk a tightrope without falling into either of the two opposing traps. He will need to find a middle ground: an attacking performance carried out without reckless excess, while still remaining faithful to his own strengths.
Personally, I believe our fighter has what it takes to approach the bout in the right way, starting with the necessary caution and gradually increasing the intensity as the fight unfolds, reaching his peak once he feels fully in control of the situation.
It will most likely be a tough and tricky fight. Baluta will neither be bullied nor overwhelmed, and he will test Francesco’s qualities to the limit, just as he has already done against the many internationally accomplished fighters he has faced in the past.
I do believe, however, that the Italian fighter, thanks to the greater effectiveness of his punches and the emotional boost provided both by the crowd and by the inner drive of a man who can see a lifelong dream within reach, will manage to win the majority of the rounds and secure a deserved victory on points.
I therefore predict a unanimous decision victory for Francesco De Rosa.