Sims Jr vs Valtierra Predictions: Sims is a safe bet by decision

Kenneth Sims Jr. takes on Jair Valtierra this Saturday, August 10. The bout takes place at the Michelob Ultra Arena and the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. The super lightweight scrap is part of the undercard for Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs Serhii Bohachuk. DAZN will screen the card live.

Here are my Sims Jr. vs Valtierra predictions ahead of Saturday’s fight.

Valtierra comes into this one as a replacement, with Sims originally set to face Jesus ‘Ricky’ Perez. There isn’t a great deal of detail out there surrounding the collapse of that fight, but Sims gets a very different challenge here. Perez was fresh from a huge upset win over Joseph ‘JoJo’ Diaz. Valtierra’s own record is a touch more modest.

Valtierra is 17-3 with the wins on his ledger coming at a fairly low level. He has faced some notable names, coming up short against Lindolfo Delgado and Raymond Muratalla. This paints a picture of a fighter who poses little threat to Sims.

Currently ranked as the number-one contender by the WBA, Sims probably won’t mind a slightly easier assignment. Fights with either interim holder Ismael Barroso or newly-crowned world champion Jose Valenzuela sparkle on his horizon. ‘Bossman’ won’t want to risk those.

Sims is living testament to some old-school boxing thinking. His 20-2-1 record doesn’t pop in pure numbers terms. But the way he elegantly filed away early-career losses to Rolando Chinea and Samuel Teah sure does. Sims is unbeaten since 2018, riding a seven-fight winning streak all the way into title contention.

A points win over star amateur Elvis Rodriguez in 2021 put Sims on many radars. Unfortunately, it might have been too effective. Sims believes he has been consciously avoided by top fighters since that shock victory. A win over two-time world title challenger Botirzhon Akhmedov last time out filled an important gap on his resume, and lifted ‘Bossman’ to the top of the rankings.

Sims is not known for big punching, but he is improving in this area. Before beating Akhmedov, his last two fights were TKO victories. Meanwhile, Valtierra has been stopped in the past. ‘Kaiser’ was finished by Alberto Ruiz Albarra in five rounds back in 2021. The fact he was just 19 at the time and has since gone the distance with world-ranked names perhaps negates this result somewhat.

The deposed Perez, who originally looked set to face Sims, punched his ticket with that shock win over ‘JoJo’ Diaz. Now Valtierra looks to pull off a similar upset by beating Sims and making himself a factor at super lightweight. The favourite will have to be on his guard here.

Sims Jr. vs Valtierra Fight Odds

Sims is a 1/20 favourite to prevail here while Valtierra lags behind at 8/1. A draw, not out of the question considering Sims has been in some close fights, is available at 20/1.

Sims Jr. vs Valtierra Full Card

Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs. Serhii Bohachuk; For Bohachuk's interim WBC world super welterweight title Charles Conwell vs. Khiary Gray; Super welterweight 

Kenneth Sims Jr. vs. Jair Valtierra; Super lightweight 

Gabriela Fundora vs. Daniela Ansenjo; For Fundora's IBF women's world flyweight title 

Joel Iriarte vs. TBA; Welterweight 

Maricela Cornejo vs. Cecelia Braekhus; WBA women’s interim super welterweight

Eric Priest vs. Luka Lozo; Middleweight 

Johnny Canas vs. TBA; Lightweight 

Jordan Fuentes vs. James Mulder; Super bantamweight 

Figo Gonzalez vs. Jose Gonzalez; Bantamweight Jennah Creason vs. Kelsey Wickstrum; Women's welterweight

Sims Jr. vs Valtierra Prediction

I’m going for the Sims decision here. Valtierra has shown he can take good fighters the full way. Meanwhile, Sims is not a renowned knockout artist. I think he will rely on his technique to skate to a fairly wide decision here.

My prediction is Sims on points at 1/2. ‘Bossman’ will keep those future WBA title shots very much in his sights I feel.

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