Jean Pascal’s Timeless Elasticity

Column: “Inside the Matchmaker’s Eye”
By Vincent Morin

Jean Pascal is a bit like a cat with nine lives. How many times have we thought he had stepped into the ring one fight too many? And yet, every time he was written off, expected to fall short, Pascal defied the odds and pulled off the unexpected. Somewhere in his duffel bag, he seems to carry a timeless elastic band.

In his last outing, on September 21st against Terry Osias, Pascal once again pulled a rabbit out of his hat, sealing the win with a spectacular 10th-round knockout.

Yet few believed he’d ever return to the ring after a lopsided defeat to Michael Eifert in March 2023.

In May 2022, following a two-and-a-half-year hiatus, he stunned Chinese Olympian Fanlong Meng.

Back in 2019, he defeated both Marcus Browne and Badou Jack—two Olympians and former world champions. But even then, many believed he was done after his loss to Dmitry Bivol.

His swan song was expected to take place as far back as December 2017, in suburban Miami, when he surprised Egyptian prospect Ahmed Elbiali. Clearly, Pascal has been thriving in the underdog role for quite some time.

Cieslak: A True Cruiserweight

Pascal’s opponent this Saturday at Place Bell will be Polish contender Michal Cieslak, who is riding a six-fight win streak since dropping a decision to British WBO world champion Lawrence Okolie.

Standing six-foot-three and campaigning his entire career at cruiserweight (200 lbs), Cieslak will be the biggest man Pascal has ever faced.

He will hold the advantage in virtually every physical category—height, weight, reach, and age.

Pascal, who began his career at super middleweight (168 lbs) before rising to light heavyweight (175 lbs) where he won The Ring, WBC, IBO, and WBA titles, will technically be entering his third fight at cruiserweight, counting previous bouts against Steve Bossé and Terry Osias.

The Laval native will be fighting on home turf and brings a wealth of big-fight experience. But will that elastic band hold up one last time?

Two Fight Cards in Two Days

With Eye of the Tiger and New Era Promotions both staging events during St-Jean-Baptiste week, boxing fans in Quebec are in for a treat: two fight nights in two days.

Though taking place in different cities—Laval and Quebec City—it will be interesting to see whether the province’s passionate boxing community can rally around two major cards in such a short span.