Erislandy Lara vs Vanes Martirosyian Odds: Saturday night on Showtime W.B.A. 154 Lb. champion Erislandy Lara will put his title on the line against top-5 contender Vanes Martirosyan at 10 PM ET from Las Vegas. Lara, 22-2-2, 13 KO’s, will be making the 4th defense of his title against Martirosyan who fought Lara to a technical draw after a headbutt in late 2012. Can the heavy fight odds underdog Martirosyan pull off a signature win against his rival? ESPN2 News handicappers give away their expert sports picks. Sign up at BOVADA.LV and Get $250 Free to Bet on Boxing

Erislandy Lara – Boxer: The 5’9″ Lara is an extremely long-armed (75″ reach) southpaw with a stick and move style. Lara makes good use of his long jab by effectively controlling distance before launching punishing left uppercuts or crosses. Lara is heavy-handed with good leverage hand-speed and sniper accuracy. Lara, 33, had 300+ amateur fights in Cuba and is a true ring general that controls distance, pace and rhythm. Lara is a very difficult target to catch cleanly with his constant movement and clear ring vision. On the downside, Lara can get outworked and is excessively patient when trying to counterpunch. Lara has been on the deck a few times which also raises questions about his chin. Lara’s best fights are over Austin Trout UD12, Alfredo Angulo KO10 and a close loss to Paul Williams MD12.  Erislandy Lara vs Vanes Martirosyan Odds have Lara as a -850 favorite ($850 Bet pays out $950) at BOVADA SPORTSBOOK

Vanes Martirosyan – Boxer: The 6’0″ is an athletic and sturdy boxer/puncher with fast hands and size at 170 Lbs. “The Nightmare” has good power in both hands and throws punches with bad intentions. Martirosyan has sound boxing fundamentals and has a clean technique with 100+ amateur fights. Despite his physical gifts the tall right-hander’s most impressive abilities are heart, stamina and will to win. The tough guy applies pressure, throws lots of leather and has a granite chin. On the downside Martirosyan has a tendency to load up on punches and get caught with counters out of position. Martirosyan has a tight defense but lacks much head movement and doesn’t counterpunch enough. Despite his talent Martirosyan does not own a signature win. Martirosyan’s best fight was his draw with Lara and he came up short against Demetrius Andrade and Jermell Charlo. Erislandy Lara vs Vanes Martirosyan Odds have Martirosyan as a +500 underdog($100 Bet pays out $600) at BOVADA SPORTSBOOK

ESPN2 News Boxing Predictions: Lara by decision -200

Lara vs Martirosyan Complete Odds

Lara by decision: -200

Lara by KO: +230

Martirosyan by decision +1000

Martirosyan by KO: +1000

Draw: +1800

Head-To-Head Fight Picks

Lara/Martirosyan

Height/Reach: 6/8

Strength/Size: 6/7

Power: 7.5/8

Hand Speed/Accuracy: 8/8

Stamina: 8/8

Defense: 9/7

Chin: 8/9

Agility: 10/8

Jab: 9/7

Bodypunching/In-Fight: 6/8

Boxing Ability: 9/7

Intelligence: Lara +1

Confidence/Focus/Will To Win: –

Cuts/Injury/Age/Inactivity: Martirosyan +1

Judges Scoring: Lara +1

Trainer: –

ESPN2 News Boxing Odds: Lara -200