Kelly liked to fight 154lbrs so let's give him another one......one that will fuck his shit right up.......:warning::warning:
I can promise you that prime Matthew Hilton was not a can and did have a very good chin. He, like Julian Jackson, suffered from tender eye's but that problem only manifested itself in his last few fights. Hilton had wins over Buster Drayton, Wilfred Benitez (1986), Vito Antuofermo (1985)
Pavlik would've beaten the shit outta Hilton. A wide punching, no defense having midget like Hilton is perfect for Kelly. Granted Hilton was an explosive puncher, and had enough power to seriously hurt Kelly...but I doubt he could finish him. By the 5th or 6th round Hilton would be completely gassed, and Pavlik would batter him until a late round stoppage.
Benitez & Antuofermo had BOTH feet in thier graves when Hilton beat them. Theres some good 154 pounders that I might pick Hilton over, but he'd be outta his element against a huge, heavy handed middle like Pavlik. A better matchup is Hilton vs a pre-prison Tony Ayala. Now THATS an even matchup.
Hilton would be live during the first 4 rounds. If he didnt stop Kelly by round 5, he'd gas and get his ass kicked. It'd def be a war though!
You've never seen his fight with Doug Dewitt? Granted Dewitt was a tough SOB, and absorbed some shots early, but Hilton's stamina wasnt very good. Even in his best performance against Drayton he gassed. Pavlik aint no Carlos Monzon, but he's just a weeeee bit better than Doug Dewitt, and Buster Drayton. He hits alot harder than them as well. So I maintain.... Hilton is a live underdog early, but the longer it goes, the less Hilton's chances are. And TLC, if you think Pavlik sucks, but who did Hilton ever beat? Pav at least has wins over PRIME versions of Miranda, and Taylor. Hilton beat TOTALLY shot versions of Benitez, and Antefermo, and a 2nd rate at best fighter in Drayton. Also, at least Kelly can say that he got his ass whupped by Bernard Hopkins. Hilton got his ass handed to him by Bam Bam Hines. I cant believe I'm actually defending Pavlik! I dont even like him anymore, but he's being underrated in this matchup.
Hilton was 21 years of age and was fighting a crafty veteran in Drayton...in a 15 round title fight. He made some mistakes and threw a lot of leather trying to get Drayton out of it early when he had him hurt. I am not sure this is proof of a guy with suspect stamina........did he get tired? Sure he did. But they all get tired. The last few fights of his career were an aberration.....he had suffered injuries, especially to his eyes, and was now drinking heavily.
Hilton wasnt a bad fighter at all. Like I said, at his best theres a number of good 154 pounders he coulda gave a good run to. I just cant favor him in this matchup. Pavlik is nothing special, we can all agree on this. But he definitely doesnt "suck" as TLC said. Kelly's slow, but heavy jab would bust up midget Hilton. Also, while Pavlik's defense is pretty mediocre, Hilton was such a wide puncher that I think Kelly could block alot of his shots. But I think Hilton eats just about everything Pav throws at him. Hilton did have a good chin, but then again... he never fought anyone as heavy handed as Pavlik.
Kelly is the worst middleweight champion in recent memory. Taylor being close, however Taylor was actually pretty good, and shouldve put Pavlik away before his fine china got exposed and subsequently became damaged goods.
Pav is a good fighter. The backlash is just strong cause he was overrated pre-Hopkins. I will say though that he's around at the right time. In the 90's, I wouldnt give him any chance vs Jones, Toney, McCallum, G-man, Eubank, Nunn, ect
