‘Mc Rae could kiss the canvas’
– says veteran trainer Lennox Daniels
By Calvin Roberts
When Michael De Mattos takes on Trinidad-based Joel McRae over six rounds in his second professional bout Saturday in the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC) card titled ‘Judgement Day’ at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH), his coach Lennox Daniels is predicting nothing but a victory.
“There is no way Mc Rae can come out victorious over Michael on Saturday. We have been working in the gym for sometime now since his last fight and he is in good condition for this encounter, so Mc Rae had better be prepared for a tough time,” the wily trainer told Stabroek Sport.
The 31-year-old De Mattos made his professional debut away from home in the island of Barbados where he lost on points to Jermaine Cox last year and will be looking to redeem himself in this bout against Mc Rae who also has one professional fight to his name.
The 49-year-old Daniels, who was the late Andrew Murray’s trainer when he fought Ike Quartey in 1995, in Nice, France for the World Boxing Association welterweight title, is predicting a points victory for his charge.
“Not taking anything away from him, but I have trained McRae at the amateur level and I know his style along with some of his weaknesses. I also know that he is the stronger fighter than De Mattos but what I am certain of is that my charge will come out victorious over him on ‘Judgement Day’,” said Daniels.
“Our preparation for this encounter has been going great. We went through some various stages of training, including strengthening work in the Andrew ‘Six Head” Lewis gym,” he added.
“We are currently working on speed and doing some light glove work as we are winding down our training schedule as time draws nearer to ‘Judge-ment Day’. Having said this, I am 100% certain that Michael will defeat Mc Rae. I am even predicting a points victory, but if Mc Rae opens up himself too much, he will certainly kiss the canvas.”
Even though De Mattos did not enter the square circle competitively since his last bout, he has been doing some work in the gym, even acting as a sparring partner for former WBA welterweight champion Andrew “Sixhead” Lewis leading up to his encounters with “Deadly” Denny Dalton who will be the main attraction on the ‘Judgement Day’ card with his fight against Howard Eastman.
“He has not been actively involved in the ring, so to speak, but he has been working out on the road and in the gym so we were not caught off guard when we received the call for this bout. We are ready, fit and in pink of condition and will definitely be walking out the CASH as the victor on Saturday,” Daniels stated confidently.