By Mark Vester
In the first two months of 2009, two of boxing's rising stars are set to face their toughest tests. Their upcoming fights will make or break their young careers. On January 17th in the first HBO televised event of the year, WBC welterweight champ Andre Berto (23-0, 19KOs) defends his title against mandatory and former welterweight champion Luis Collazo (29-3, 14KOs).
Collazo is a crafty boxing, not as quick as Berto and maybe not as strong, but possibly stronger than any of Berto's past opponents and certainly a more dangerous fighter from top to bottom. Opponents say that Collazo hits much harder than his record indicates. Berto's most well known opponent to date is junior welterweight Steve Forbes. Collazo will provide a much tougher test than Forbes.
Since 2002, Collazo has only lost two contests, to Ricky Hatton and Shane Mosley. The Hatton loss was by a very close decision. Collazo was the bigger and stronger fighter in the bout and began to wear Hatton down by the late rounds and had the Manchester fighter close to being out in the final round. A lot of people scored the fight for Collazo. Hatton had a tough enough time that afterwards he vacated the title and moved back down to 140-pounds. Against Mosley, Collazo gave the veteran some problems in the early rounds, but badly injured his hand during the early rounds and Shane ran away with the fight. Even with an injured hand, Collazo was able to hang in tough to the final bell.
A win over Collazo will open the door for Berto to face the bigger names at the weight.
On February 14, Valentine's Day, there will be no candy and gifts when junior middleweight prospect Alfredo Angulo (14-0, 11KOs) collides with former two-division champion Ricardo Mayorga (28-7, 22KOs), also on HBO. Angulo, compared by many to Antonio Margarito, is being moved fast against tough opponents and he's been able to handle any fighter that his promoter, Gary Shaw, has thrown his way.
Mayorga is a very dangerous opponent and he's given problems to every opponent. Angulo promises to take the fight to Mayorga from the opening bell, which is going to show us what Angulo is really made of. Mayorga was recently stopped by Mosley, but he gave Shane a lot of trouble and did very well in the fight. He actually did much better than many predicted and showcased some improvement in his fighting style. In the last ten years, Mayorga has only lost to the big names like Felix Trinidad, Oscar De La Hoya, Cory Spinks and Shane Mosley. He also beat former and current champions like Vernon Forrest (twice), Fernando Vargas and Michele Piccirillo.
One thing is for sure, the fight will not go the distance. A win for Angulo could present a title opportunity by the end of the year.
Send News Tips and Comments To Mark Vester @ boxingscene@hotmail.com
