Sergiy Derevyanchenko has vowed to learn from his narrow professional defeats when he fights Jermall Charlo on Saturday in Uncsaville, Conn.
The 34-year-old Ukrainian has come up short in his two biggest fights, dropping a split decision to Daniel Jacobs in October 2018 and then losing on all three scorecards against Gennadiy Golovkin 12 months later at Madison Square Garden.
On both occasions, there were onlookers who felt “The Technician” got a raw deal from the judges. However, when he fights the unbeaten Charlo (30-0, 22 KOs) at the Mohegan Sun Arena, Derevyanchenko plans to leave less room for doubt in the eyes of the ringside scorers.
“Jermall Charlo is a tough fight and wonderful fight,” Derevyanchenko said in an Instagram Live session with Premier Boxing Champions.
“Yeah, I’m ready for this fight. I want to put more pressure and be more aggressive, and every round is easy. This is a good opportunity to take a [secondary] belt. I’m so proud to be in this show.”
Charlo, 30, will be as tough a mountain for Derevyanchenko (13-2, 10 KOs) to climb as Jacobs and Triple-G were, but he is confident that the third time will be a charm.
“It was a close fight [both times],” Derevyanchenko said of his defeats to Golovkin and Jacobs. “I see the mistakes I made against Golovkin and Jacobs. Jacobs has a good punch, and Golovkin has a good punch. And I think I need more pressure and more push. I have sparring partners that are similar to Charlo.
“Every fighter has power and a good punch. I’m ready. Let’s see on the 26th, let’s do a good fight, and we’ll see who is better. … Every fight I want to [put on a] show when people watch my fights.”
Derevyanchenko has fought into the 12th and final round in four of the five 12-rounders in his professional career while Charlo has gone the distance in two of his last three, so a long battle could be on the cards.
“My career is very long, and I have a good experience,” Derevyanchenko said. “I think it helps me in this fight.”
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