Daniel Jacobs' journey back to fighting for a middleweight world title has reached another chapter.
Fighting in front of his hometown fans at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Jacobs defeated previously unbeaten Polish boxer Maciej Sulecki by unanimous decision (117-110, 116-111, 115-112). The fight headlined an HBO boxing telecast and was a title eliminator for the WBA middleweight world title currently owned by Gennady Golovkin.
Jacobs's right hand proved to be effective throughout the fight, but Sulecki was able to withstand the bulk of Jacobs' punches. Sulecki eventually broke down and was knocked down in the final round thanks to a straight round at the start of the final round.
According to CompuBox, Jacobs landed 205 of 631 total punches (32 punches) while Sulecki only landed 143 of 657 punches (22 percent). Although Jacobs is the mandatory challenger to Golovkin's title, it remains to be seen if a rematch against Golovkin is next for the former WBA champion. Golovkin is currently scheduled to fight Vanes Martirosyan on May 5, but Golovkin is hoping to get a rematch against Canelo Alvarez in September when Alvarez's six-month drug suspension is up.
In the co-main event slot of the telecast, heavyweight contender Jarrell Miller scored a unanimous decision victory over former title challenger Johann Duhaupas. The fight was a WBA heavyweight title eliminator, meaning Miller could be in line to face off against unified WBA, IBF and WBO champion Anthony Joshua next if talks of a fight between Joshua and WBC champion Deontay Wilder fall through.
