Gwendolyn O'Neil will either give a performance equal to that which earned her a world title or better when she meets Trinidadian Crystal Lessy at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall on Saturday.
This prediction was handed down by O'Neil's trainer Lennox Daniels who, over the last few weeks, engineered her manhandling of male sparring partners.
"Gwendolyn is looking real good. She is throwing her hands more and I think that she has learnt a lot from the world title fight which makes her a better boxer now," Daniels told Stabroek Sport yesterday.
"She now throws more punches off the left jab which is a good sign. I can see her giving a performance on the same level as when she won the world title or even better," Daniels stated.
O'Neil faces Lessy in a six- round non-title fight in the main bout of a card promoted by Smart Touch and Freeman Promotions. The world champion has been under the eye of Daniels at the GDF Gym and Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
Caribbean Boxing Federation junior lightweight champion `Hurricane' Hugo Lewis and junior middleweight Shawn Garnett lead the list of O'Neil's sparring partners. Featherweights Cecil Smith and Linden Arthur are the others.
"I don't think that the fight will go the distance. I know that Gwendolyn is looking to put on the best show that she can possibly deliver. It will be an explosive night," Daniels continued.
Daniels explained that O'Neil, who defeated American Kathy Rivers on May 29 to become the first Guyanese female world champion and the first to win the title on home soil, has cut down on her jogging leading up to Saturday's event.
"We have eased a lot on her jogging since she just came out of a fight. We have done much more work in the gym." The trainer added that O'Neil is well within the light-heavyweight limit and weighed in "a cool" 173 pounds a few days ago.
O'Neil will have one more sparring session before calling it a day. "We will do about two rounds on Wednesday (tomorrow). I don't think she needs more than that."
According to Daniels, O'Neil will take a rest after Saturday's encounter. "She has said that she can fight every month if it comes to that but she is due for a rest after this fight."
In the two main supporting fights, Lewis will take on Barbadian Selwyn Marshal in a ten-rounder and Garnett tackles Benjamin Modeste of St Lucia in another ten-rounder.