Yuri Gamboa
GAMBOA NEVER SIGNED CONTRACT
Los Angeles, CA– It was being billed as one of the best boxing matches of 2012, but after the last couple of days, today here in the City of Angels, one has to wonder whether the Yuri Gamboa-Brandon Rios fight will ever come off! after the Cuban exile Gamboa “no showed” the second press conference in as many days. Gamboa at 21-0, 16 KOs, has emerged as one of the biggest stars in boxing. His muscular physique, combined with his lightning fast hands and dynamite laden combinations, Gamboa is one of, if not the most promising fighter in the lighter weight classes. Gamboa was scheduled to meet Rios, the current WBA lightweight (135 lb.) champion on April 14 in Las Vegas, NV, with HBO televising.
CAN RIOS EVEN MAKE THE WEIGHT?
Rios, 29-0, 22 KOs, who has had problems making the 135 lb. lightweight limit, was overweight for a WBA title match with John Murray (31-2, 18 KOs) last December, was supposedly stripped of the title, and yet the WBA title was to be at stake for the Gamboa fight. On the subject of Gamboa, he has been ultra impressive as a featherweight (126 lbs.) It was in 2010 that Gamboa schooled Orlando Salido (37-11, 25 KOs), who pulled off a major upset last year when he stopped Juan (Juan Ma) Manuel Lopez (31-1, 28 KOs) in a WBO 126 lb. title tilt.
I THINK THE WEIGHT JUMP IS TOO MUCH FOR GAMBOA
Brandon Rios
Having been around boxing for a while and boxed myself, I always cringe when guys put on weight and move up. Gamboa, the WBA 126 lb. champion was making a bold move to fight Rios at 135. The problem facing Gamboa in my mind was that Rios, who scales 135 officially, weighs close to 150 lbs. come fight time. Rios on the other hand looked so drawn against Murray at 136, that making 135 could be crippling for the fighter born in Texas and now fighting under trainer Robert Garcia in Oxnard, CA. But according to those within the Rios camp, he can, and will make 135 lbs. sans any great difficulty the next time out.
GAMBOA REMINDS SOME OF A MINI-MIKE TYSON
With a Hercules like build, Gamboa, along with WBO 130 lb. king Adrien Broner (23-0, 19 KOs) are considered boxing’s hottest stars between 126 and 135 lbs. Although he has been dropped a couple of times, Gamboa has gotten up and taken care of business on each occasion. Some say Yuri i one of the ten best fighters in the world. Today, he is either contemplating nixing the Rios fight at 135 or looking for more money to fight Brandon. Either ay, I still think if Gamboa can make 126 still, he should clash with the winner of the upcoming Salido-Lopez rematch, a fight most experts think Lopez will win.
Pedro Fernandez