Raeese Aleem vs Derlyn Hernandez Gerarldo Predictions: Aleem in for an easy night

Ra’eese Aleem takes on Derlyn Hernandez this Friday, November 8 in a featherweight 10-rounder. The bout takes place at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia on the undercard of Keyshawn Davis vs Gustavo Lemos. Sky Sports + will televise the card live.

Here are my Aleem vs Hernandez predictions ahead of this match-up.

Aleem is a curious case. The 34-year-old has come close to glory before, but a bizarre set of circumstances denied him a chance to make a splash on the world stage.

Aleem won the interim WBA super bantamweight championship with a spectacular rout over Vic Pasillas in January 2021. ‘The Beast’ knocked his man down four times on the way to an 11th-round TKO victory. But, despite the fact he never lost it in the ring, Aleem would not keep the belt for long.

The WBA announced it was stripping all interim holders of their titles, instead alleging they would look to install the dethroned fighters as mandatory challengers for the full championships. But instead of being installed as the number-one challenger, Aleem was told to fight Azat Hovhannisyan in an eliminator. Talks broke down and Aleem’s brush with world honours evaporated.

The Michigan-born fighter has only sporadically boxed since. Aleem beat former title challenger Eduardo Baez by majority decision in September 2021 and Mike Plania 10 months later. A split decision loss to Sam Goodman was his only fight of 2023. His Australian conqueror moves on to a fight with undisputed super bantamweight king Naoya Inoue on Christmas Eve.

Aleem now moves up to featherweight after his career has stalled. Hernandez is the welcoming party, a 12-2-1 Dominican coming off a second-round stoppage loss to Christopher Diaz. You could argue this is a soft landing for Aleem, especially considering the fact Hernandez’s other loss came in a single round against hit-and-miss countryman Misael Vasquez.

Diaz has obviously competed at the very top level, having boxed Shakur Stevenson, Emanuel Navarrete and Masayuki Ito. The fact he steamrolled Hernandez is to be expected. And the 31-year-old did avenge the Vasquez loss, stopping his rival in seven rounds of their rematch.

But Hernandez still feels made to order for Aleem. The featherweight debutant is 34 and this feels like one last big push after the WBA mess of three years ago. Aleem never received what was rightfully his, by the WBA’s own rules. So the Las Vegas resident will campaign at featherweight as he looks to end his career with a world championship. 

The 126lb division is stacked, with big names everywhere you look. Brandon Figueroa, Nick Ball, Rafael Espinoza and Angelo Leo are your world champions. Ex-titleholders like Stephen Fulton, Luis Nery and Raymond Ford add depth. Then there is the next generation, prospects like Bruce Carrington and Jonathan Lopez who shall surely reign one day. 

It is a hot division and Aleem can be a part of this golden era. But only if he beats Hernandez and beats him well. Considering the fact the Dominican’s two defeats came by early knockouts, Aleem has no excuse not to impress here.

Raeese Aleem vs Derlyn Hernandez Fight Odds

Aleem is 1/20 to win this one while Hernandez is priced at 8/1. A draw is available at 20/1.

Raeese Aleem vs Derlyn Hernandez Full Card

Keyshawn Davis vs. Gustavo Lemos

Troy Isley vs. Tyler Howard

Abdullah Mason vs. Yohan Vasquez

Kelvin Davis vs. Yeis Solano

Austin DeAnda vs. DeAundre Pettus

Keon Davis vs. Jalen Moore

Robert Meriwether III vs. Eric Howard

Ra’eese Aleem vs. Derlyn Hernandez-Gerardo

Raeese Aleem vs Derlyn Hernandez Predictions

I think Aleem wins this one comfortably. The odds back me here, so we have to peel the layers back in order to find some value.

Aleem might not be a knockout artist but he can punch. 12 knockouts in 20 wins is not a bad return, particularly considering he has fought at a pretty high level. Hernandez has been stopped in one and two rounds. 

I think Aleem can get his opponent out of there in roughly the same amount of time. That’s why I’m going for Aleem at 1/20.

You can find all our latest boxing betting tips and analysis at our Betfred Insights Boxing page and our latest boxing odds here.