Abner Mares: record, next fight and profile →
In addition to fighting for the World Boxing Association (WBA) featherweight title, Mexicans Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares will practically have a WBC eliminator on Saturday night at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Leo Santa Cruz’s rematch with Abner Mares isn’t the only one on the featherweight champion’s mind. Santa Cruz obviously isn’t overlooking Mares, his opponent June 9 in Los Angeles. But if Santa Cruz can overcome Mares again in their second 126-pound title fight at Staples Center, he hopes that win leads toward a second shot at Gary Russell Jr.
Let’s look forward instead of backward this weekend. I’ve wanted to introduce a COMING UP section to the WEEKEND REVIEW column for some time and this is the perfect week to do it, as there were no major fights the past few days but several on deck. The plan is to focus on the most interesting, most-talked-about matchups of the coming weekend. So here goes.
The first matchup between Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares was an instant classic, with the fellow three-division champions combining to throw more than 2,000 total punches in one of the best fights of 2015.
Abner Mares (31-2-1, 15 KOs) is less than a week away from his high stakes rematch with WBA featherweight champion Leo Santa Cruz (34-1-1, 19 KOs). Santa Cruz won a twelve round majority decision over Mares in August of 2015 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Of all the things Leo Santa Cruz has said in advance of their rematch, Abner Mares made a mental note of one comment in particular. Mares was surprised to learn Santa Cruz stated that he would beat Mares “a lot easier” in their rematch than he did in their first fight.
By Keith Idec - For Abner Mares, his rematch with Leo Santa Cruz is much about the trainer he added since losing their first fight. For Leo Santa Cruz, the Mares rematch is more about the trainer he almost lost since winning it. While Mares is thankful for how his professional partnership with Robert Garcia has helpe...
The first Leo Santa Cruz vs. Abner Mares clash, a candidate for "Fight of the Year" in 2015, was a hard fought crosstown Los Angeles battle for supremacy in the featherweight division won by Santa Cruz via a 12-round majority decision at STAPLES Center on August 29.
Abner Mares Dodgers Pitch Photos Gallery - Four-time world champion Abner Mares participated in two great events over Memorial Day Weekend, first hosting a Community Day at the L.A. County Sheriff's Century Boxing Gym on Thursday, and then throwing out the first pitch at the Los Angeles Dodgers' game on Sunday afternoon.
Leo Santa Cruz expects Abner Mares to fight smarter in their upcoming rematch than he did during their first fight. Santa Cruz also is confident that he’s a much more complete boxer than he was the first time he and Mares met. Santa Cruz loves fighting in the most fan-friendly way, yet proved during his rematch against Carl Frampton that he can box in a disciplined manner to make it easier to win.