How much has Polish hero and former light-heavyweight and cruiserweight ruler Tomasz Adamek got left? We may find out on April 2nd when Adamek, 50-4(30) will face recent WBC heavyweight title challenger Eric Molina.
Molina, 24-3(18) impressed and surprised a number of people in equal measure with his brave challenge of Deontay Wilder back in June. Stunning the defending champion, who was making the first defence of his WBC belt, and also taking Wilder’s best shots again and again until finally being TKO’d in the 9th-round of a fun fight, Molina showed what he is made of. Now he wants to earn a second shot at a major title and aims to do so at Adamek’s expense.
Adamek remains a big attraction in his homeland and he last fought there in September of last year, when he stopped Przemyslaw Saleta, who retired on his stool after five-rounds. That win saw the 39-year-old end a losing spell that had seen him come up short in his previous two bouts, when he was out pointed by Vyacheslav Glazkov and then Artur Szpilka. Now, Adamek wants one last run at winning at least a version of the heavyweight title.
Adamek will be the smaller, lighter man against Molina, as is always the case when he fights as a heavyweight, and he could be carrying some rust having boxed just that one time (against Saleta) since November of 2014. Molina has boxed once since the loss to Wilder, picking up a keep-busy stoppage win, and one thing Molina can definitely do is hit hard. If Adamek is a faded force and is unable to avoid Molina’s big punches, the Polish warrior could wind up being stopped for the second time in his career – with only then-WBC heavyweight king Vitali Klitschko thus far having managed to halt the man known as “Goral.”
April’s fight could well prove as exciting as it is interesting. Adamek has far greater experience at top level than Molina – having been in with top name after top name, including: Steve Cunningham, Chris Arreola, Michael Grant, Eddie Chambers and of course Klitschko. Still, this may not be a fight where experience wins. Molina’s proven heavyweight power might prove to be the decisive factor.
Either way, expect another fun fight.
