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Erik Aiken vs Monty Meza Clay on ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights will pit the hometown Pittsburgh, PA, boy Clay, against a tough veteran puncher Aiken, in a 10-round Jr. lightweight bout. The 26-year-old Clay, 26-1, 17 KO’s, is riding a 6 fight winning streak against mediocre opposition, after suffering his first loss as a pro to strong contender Edner Cherry via 11th round KO in May of 2006. In that fight Clay was game throughout as a heavy 4-1 betting underdog, but Cherry was simply too strong for the much smaller 5’2” Clay. BodogLife.com has Monty Meza Clay as a -125 boxing betting favorite.  Clay is a well-built, volume puncher with fast hands that applies loads of pressure. Meza-Clay is not as big a puncher as his record would indicate but he can bang. Clay is a strong fighter with good stamina but he is very hittable, and since the Cherry fight his people have matched him against some light punchers. Clay has plenty of heart and is game but his low level of recent competition makes me suspicious about his talents. Aiken ,27, is 2-3-1, in his last 6 bouts against a high level of competition. The 5’7” Aiken, 16-6-1, 12 KO’s, will have a 5 inch height advantage over Clay, but he will be stepping up in weight to 130 Lbs. having fought most of his career at 126 Lbs. BodogLife.com has the Over\Under at 8.5 rounds with the OVER at -165 boxing betting odds.
Aiken is a boxer\puncher that has some skills: dynamite right hand power, toughness and above-average handspeed. Aiken however is what I would call a sometimes fighter, that is, he is very inconsistent with his focus and technique. Erik has a good jab when he decides to use it but too often he doesn’t throw it enough, and gets hit more than he should beacuse of it. Aiken also has a tendency to load up shots looking for a KO leaving himself vulnerable to getting outworked. With both guys being tough fighters with holes in their defense ESPN should have the right recipe for a fun TV fight. Is Aiken’s confidence shot after losing 2 of his last 3 fights by KO? There already is an after party scheduled for Meza-Clay after the fight, will he be distracted fighting in front of his people? EinsteinPicks's Brad Marchetti has connections in the boxing world. Ride the EinsteinPicks boxing money train that pays out in cold hard cash. Marchetti has a huge GUARANTEED winning play on the ESPN2 brawl between Monty Meza Clay vs Erik Aiken .
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