Abell plans adjustments, Butler stands on skill

By
Mark Connor

© Copyright 2009, Mark Connor

Raphael “the Silencer” Butler, 35-8-0, 28 KOs, and Joey “Minnesota Ice” Abell, 25-4-0, 24 KOs, have been training hard for their scheduled Minnesota Heavyweight Championship match this Friday, December 4. As they wind up training and ready for the 6 o’clock weigh-ins at the Target Center this Thursday night, it makes sense to evaluate their styles and histories, examine their statements about the fight, and come to a conclusion about the possible results.

Both fighters spoke briefly after a press conference at the Target Center on October 27, sharing their expectations for the fight. While Butler confidently insisted that since becoming a professional in 2005 he has improved far beyond Abell’s skill and couldn’t possibly suffer the traumatic defeat he experienced against him as an amateur, Abell argues his ability to knock Butler out. Both acknowledge each other’s accomplishments, though, and also remember what they learned about themselves and each other when they’ve had occasion to spar in the past. The match is significantly dramatic given their extensive knowledge of each other, Butler being from Rochester and Abell from Coon Rapids, and now that they’ve compiled respectively impressive winning records a collision course has led them to what is for both a crossroads fight.

“I guarantee I can knock him out and I know he can knock me out too,” Abell says, “but I mean I’m not gonna put myself in the position to be knocked out and I’m going to go out there every round and fight not just to win the fight but to knock him out because that’s what the fans want to see.”

Abell remembers that when they fought as amateurs he successfully pressured Butler with constant punches, and says that’s the reason the fight was stopped. Butler acknowledges that, insisting a combination of a lack of experience and less than stellar conditioning is what debilitated him at the time. To accurately judge what each is capable of doing to the other today, it is necessary to examine their professional performances, particularly their best and their worst. Abell says there are three or more ways to beat Butler, the first being the pressure he applied to them in their amateur fight nearly a decade ago.

“I’m gonna try that,” he said of the pressure strategy. “There’s probably three different ways of going about this fight. If one doesn’t work I’m gonna switch to another and if that one doesn’t work I’m gonna switch to another. There are many different things I can do.”

Butler believes his superior command of speed and footwork, along with his ability to slip and counter punches, will carry him through the fight and secure victory.

“I feel like I’m talented enough if I get in there and I do exactly what I’m supposed to do,” he explained, “there should be no way Joey Abell should be able to beat me.” Butler didn’t go into great detail about his strategy, but it can be deduced from his statement referring to his skills in relation to Abell’s.

“I know I’m faster than Joey, I know that I can move better than Joey, and I actually know that I’m actually more intelligent as far as boxing goes than Joey,” he said. “So that’s why I feel confident that if I do my work in the gym and if I do everything I need to do at home, the fight will be the easy part.”

The work in the gym he referred to will be the key, because everything else he said regarding physical talent is accurate. Butler does move better and is faster than Abell, but conditioning in this fight will be the final determining factor if it is at all close. Butler has had his tendencies to tire in the past, and he will have to eliminate that possibility to accomplish what he is obviously capable of.

“Anybody will tell you that the hardest part of the fight should be your training,” he said, “and if it’s not your training than you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing.”

Abell does punch hard and he is strong, and he will most likely be in great shape. His tendency is to hold his chin too high and expose himself dangerously when loading up with the right hook from his southpaw stance, however, and his footwork is slow and plodding. He will have to pressure Butler like he mentioned in October, and if the pressure doesn’t work he’ll have to be able to avoid punches and hit him from angles that Butler cannot see. So long as Butler is in condition and boxing intelligently, however, Abell’s chance of pulling it off will be minimal. But the one factor present throughout the fight will be the possibility of Abell landing a big punch.

As far as Butler’s fight is concerned, he’ll have to make sure to keep his eyes on his opponent to avoid the sneaking shot from nowhere. He’ll have to also counter well and often after he lands lead combinations, stepping to the side instead of just straight back and wallowing on the ropes. He’s had a tendency to do the latter in the closer fights he’s had, and he’s also tired in the past. If he’s not in the best of shape and allows himself to tire, he’ll have problems. But he’s been training hard and sparring regularly with strong southpaw Boris Shishporenok; and his middle has tightened up in the last month. His endurance should be there enough to pull off the victory, but for his own sake he needs to be in better shape than the past. If he’s in really top notch condition it shouldn’t be that hard of a fight. It’s hard to say which Butler will show up for the Friday night contest, but the best guess is that he’ll pull it off one way or another.