By Jake Donovan
Sammy Vasquez Jr. might have been the sport’s best-kept secret heading into 2014. Now fans can’t get enough of the welterweight prospect; neither can his well-known promoter.
“My goal is to get these kids more consistently fighting,” says Mike Tyson, the face of Iron Mike Productions, who signed Vasquez Jr. earlier this year. “Keep staying active, working.”
Vasquez Jr. has put in plenty of work in 2014, preparing for his sixth fight on the year as he faces Alberto Mosquera in a scheduled 10-round welterweight bout Friday evening at CONSOL Energy Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The same venue played host to the unbeaten southpaw’s last ring appearance, a thrilling 9th round knockout of James Stevenson on a card that also saw a Fight of the Year contender emerge in Monte Meza-Clay’s 10th round knockout of Alan Herrera. Many hailed the August doubleheader as the best U.S. TV card of the year, and it only makes sense to bring back the winners for this Friday’s show, which airs live on beIN Sports Live.
Meza-Clay will appear in the co-feature, as he faces Rod Salka in a local grudge match.
“We’re coming out smoking, we’re coming out with entertaining fights,” Tyson proudly proclaims.
Vasquez Jr. (16-0, 12KOs) has been smoking hot from the moment he put on a pair of gloves. Boxing since the age of nine, the Western Pennsylvania native—affectionately known as ‘The Who Can Mexican’ took a break from the spot during his first tour of duty in Iraq while serving as a member of the National Guard. His second tour overseas led to an opportunity allowing him to return to the ring, having never looked back ever since.
The amateur run—which boasted over 200 fights—concluded with his falling just short in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials. His success was motivating enough to stick with boxing, turning pro that April, and thrilling crowds ever since.
Never one to shy away from a slugfest, Vasquez Jr. caught the collective eyes of those who run the day-to-day operations at Iron Mike Productions. His ability to thrill in the ring and pack venues in the greater Pittsburgh area was enough to bring Showtime to the region earlier this year.
Vasquez Jr. barely gave fans a glimpse of what’s to come, drilling previously unbeaten Juan Rodriguez Jr. inside of a round in their ShoBox headliner this past April.
It was the fight before that could’ve provided insight as to what he’s capable of overcoming in the ring. In his first fight under the Iron Mike Productions banner, Vasquez Jr. was forced to climb off the canvas to eventually pound Berlin Abreu—yet another unbeaten welterweight opponent—into submission just seconds into the 4th round of their February clash in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
The action-packed slugfest is part of a current seven-fight knockout streak for a two-fisted puncher who has found a variety of ways to stop his opponents. Although boasting one-punch knockout ability, it’s not always a quick night in the office. The 28-year old southpaw has four first-round knockouts, with exactly half of his pro fights ending in three rounds or less.
There is also the attrition side to his game, as evidenced in his most recent ring appearance.
Action was expected in the Fox Sports 1 headliner between Vasquez Jr. and Stevenson, a pair of unbeaten welterweights known for their knockout prowess. It took a couple of rounds for the bout to get going, but once the action picked up in round three, neither fighter ever looked back.
Nobody would have blamed Stevenson if, at any point, he chose to play it safe and box. As for Vasquez Jr.; well, he really didn’t have a choice in the matter. As has oddly become custom for Iron Mike Production’s deal with Fox Sports 1, Tyson sat ringside with the broadcast team, calling the action while his fighters perform for his entertainment.
To his credit, Tyson doesn’t show any bias whatsoever, other than cheering for the guy who punches the hardest—and letting the viewing audience know when he’s displeased.
The former undisputed heavyweight king expressed grave disappointment in his fighter, Argenis Mendez in what eventually became a 130 lb. title losing effort in his stinker of a rematch with Rances Barthelemy in July. Neither fighter ever took a risk, a fact not at all lost on Tyson, who expressed greater concern with the fans getting their money’s worth than whether or not his fighter could rally and find a way to win.
Needless to say, Vasquez Jr. knows that he’s on the hot seat whenever he represents Iron Mike Productions in the ring.
“It puts a lot of pressure on you, but in a good way,” Vasquez Jr. acknowledges of his promoter’s desire for in-ring entertainment from his fighters. “He tells you exactly what he wants, what he expects of you, and it’s our job to live up to that.”
The rising prospect certainly lived up to the task. Even as his best early moments were met with earth-shattering bombs in return by Stevenson, the action eventually swung in favor of the local hero. Vasquez Jr. had Stevenson on the verge of a knockout at several points in the fight, including a round five that will once again resurface in conversation come year-end awards season. The visiting banger from Baltimore kept digging deeper in search of an upset but hit a wall following one last stand in round seven.
Vasquez Jr. eventually sent “Keep ‘Em Sleepin’” Stevenson napping, dusting off the spent fighter early in the 9th round of a thriller that did its part to provide as much entertainment as a Fight of the Year contender in the form of the evening’s chief support.
It was also enough to prompt the folks at Iron Mike Productions to find ways to get him in front of a TV camera for the fourth straight time in 2014. By Friday night, Vasquez Jr. will have appeared on four different networks in as many fights, with a June tune-up on ESPN2 mixed in for good measure.
There exists the potential for yet another explosive televised performance. Aside from Vasquez Jr. being who he is, in Mosquera (21-1-2, 14KOs) he gets an opponent whose best work has come one division south and who enters on the heels of a knockout loss in his last fight.
Nevertheless, he knows better than to take any opponent—or fight—lightly. As long he prides himself as a man of the people, and as long as his world-famous promoter will sit courtside to make sure his client delivers the very best performance, every night boasts the potential for something memorable.
The past few fights have been enough to have his promoter come up with a new nickname.
“Forever I’ve been known as The Who Can Mexican. It’s something my pop (Sammy Vasquez Sr., who serves as his son’s local promoter) called me as a kid and it’s always stuck,” Vasquez Jr. explains. “I started out ‘The Who Can Mexican’, but now Mike calls me Sensational Sammy.”
Quips Tyson: “You are sensational. I call you what you are.”
The still-improving knockout artist certainly appreciates the high praise, enough to where he’s even considering a merging of worlds—his promoter’s high praise connecting to his roots.
“Maybe I can be the Sensational Who Can Mexican,” the young fighter ponders.
From an obscure puncher to a hot prospect on the verge of becoming a household name in less than a year. The timeline suggests he can be anything he wants.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as the Records Keeper for the Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and a member of Boxing Writers Association of America. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
