By Jake Donovan

The last time Tomasz Adamek faced a fellow Polish heavyweight in his homeland, the locals responded in droves. That moment came when the former light heavyweight and cruiserweight king moved up in weight to face former heavyweight contender Andrew Golota.

From a crowd perspective, history will repeat itself as a nearly sold-out crowd is expected when Adamek squares off versus Artur Szpilka on Saturday evening in Krakow, Poland.

Both fighters are coming off of losses, and neither looks much like a top heavyweight these days. But as long as they remain entertaining, none of that might matter – at least not to the crowd of more than 18,000 in attendance.

Adamek (49-3, 29KOs) looked every bit his 37 years of age in dropping a landslide decision to Vyacheslav Glazkov this past March. The loss disrupted a five-fight win streak, but worse could have potentially forever ended Adamek’s days as a viable heavyweight contender.

His pursuit of heavyweight glory comes after respected runs at light heavyweight and cruiserweight, the latter where he reigned as the World lineal champion. A shot at a title in a third weight class ended in misery, as Adamek was made to look uncompetitive and well out of his element in a 10th round knockout loss to Vitali Klitschko in Sept. ’11, his last trip to Poland.

Szpilka (16-1, 12KOs) suffered the lone defeat of his career in his last fight, as Bryant Jennings stopped him in the 10th and final round of their battle of unbeaten heavyweights in January.

The opportunity to appear on HBO came about after a brilliant 2013 campaign that included a pair of off-the-canvas knockout wins over Mike Mollo. At just 25 years of age, there is still plenty of time for the free-swinging southpaw to turn around his career.

The question is, does he boast the skill set to put his youth advantage to good use? Or can Adamek reach deep and find at least one more victory to extend his career?

Read on to see how the staff at krikya360.com believes Saturday’s heavyweight action goes down in Krakow.

krikya360.com STAFF PREDICTIONS: TOMASZ ADAMEK vs. ARTUR SZPILKA

Ryan Burton (Adamek UD): “Adamek has one last great performance in him and it will be this fight against the fun but limited Szpilka.”

Jake Donovan (Adamek SD): “Adamek is viewed as the smarter ring technician, but Szpilka showed wisdom – and his negotiating power – in demanding a 10-round fight instead of 12. It could prove to be the difference in the fight, as Szpilka’s stamina and questionable chin are his greatest flaws. Adamek’s worst flaw is that he’s well on the wrong side of his prime. This fight will be far more competitive than most believe, with Adamek barely edging it in the end.”

Steve Kim (Adamek TKO9): “Adamek is old and in a must-win situation. He still has a stout chin and can punch a bit. I think he stops Szpilka in what is an entertaining back and forth affair.”

Cliff Rold (Adamek Dec.): “Adamek is past it but I think he's still a little too polished for the ever fun Szpilka.”

Alexey Sukachev (Adamek UD): “Szpilka is young and willing but he hasn't that endurance and patience, that is terribly needed for a proper result against a fighter like Adamek. He will be strong early on but a former champ will surge and take the second half.”

Reynaldo Sanchez (Adamek KO6): “The more experienced Adamek is too much for Szpilka, and stops him in six rounds or less.”

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of krikya360.com, as well as a member of Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and the Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox