By Lyle Fitzsimmons

Devon Alexander is not interested in subtle transitions.

Rather, as the soon-to-be 23-year-old prepares for a 140-pound title unification with rugged Colombian Juan Urango early next month in Connecticut, his mission is better defined by home invasion.

“I’m definitely still proving myself. I just won the WBC title. But I’ve still got people that think ‘Who is that?’ and they don’t think I’ve fought enough,” he said. “And that’s why I’ve got to start somewhere, and it might as well be on March 6.

“So when fight night comes I’m just going to break in the door.”

Now unbeaten in 19 fights, the St. Louis southpaw heard much of the same chatter before his last encounter with a foe perceived tougher and more accomplished – veteran WBO champion Junior Witter – before taking the older man’s title by an eighth-round stoppage.

And this time around it’s Urango, an incumbent with a pair of IBF reigns who’s perhaps better known for gutty title losses to Ricky Hatton and Andre Berto.

The two straps will be on the line when the two meet at the Mohegan Sun.

“That’s what I want. I want people to think I might not be ready. That motivates me,” Alexander said.

“Witter had faced better competition and the lights were supposed to overwhelm me, but people don’t realize that this is what I’ve been working for since I was 7. No one that I’ve fought has been a bum. I’ve been in with good fighters and my promoter hasn’t been protecting me.

“And no matter what he’s been in against, he’s still going to have to come in and fight me.”

In the middle stages of a Las Vegas training camp with longtime mentor Kevin Cunningham, Alexander claims to be at “65 to 70 percent” of where he’ll need to be to contend with Urango – who initially won and lost the IBF title in 2006-07 before winning it again over Herman Ngoudjo last January.

He went up seven pounds in an unsuccessful challenge of Berto nine months ago in South Florida, then came back down to stop challenger Randall Bailey in 11 hard-fought rounds in August.

The eight-year pro is 22-2-1 with 17 KOs in 25 fights.

“I don’t feel any different for this fight. I just know he’s a rugged guy who likes to brawl,” Alexander said. “We can prepare for that. I can box. However they want to fight, we can do it. If they want to brawl, I can box. If they want to run, I can chase them and cut the ring off and gun them down.

“Each camp I try to do something different and I learn more. I’m still learning every day and trying to master the craft. Whenever I go to the gym I’ll do something and realize I just learned that. Not a day goes by that I’m not trying to get better at what I do.”  

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Reports of DeMarcus Corley’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.

My own reports, that is.

On the short of end of a split decision against Colombian journeyman Dairo Esalas two Novembers ago in Tampa, the then 33-year-old ex-junior welterweight belt-holder seemed content to return to his native Washington, D.C. and begin a full-time career as an ex-prizefighter.

Admittedly not on the level that had yielded a two-defense run as the WBO’s 140-pound champion and a memorable back-and-forth with Miguel Cotto, the soft-spoken Corley sat in a makeshift locker room at the Doubletree Westshore Hotel and told me he’d finally conceded enough was enough.

“There's a pretty good chance this might be the last time you'll see me,” he said that night. "I had a great career. I'm pleased. I'm satisfied with it."

The satisfaction, however, seems to have worn off pretty quickly.

Not only was Corley in a Madison Square Garden ring as a foil for the aforementioned Alexander just two months later, he’s spent the subsequent two years adding prodigious frequent-flyer miles in a vain and punishing search for the fountain of youth.

A one-punch loss to Mexican Freddy Hernandez Friday night was his 11th fight since the Esalas loss and the latest on an inglorious journey that’s seen him crisscross six U.S. states and two ex-Soviet strongholds on a seemingly direct flight to irrelevance.

While his first phase featured competitive go-rounds with Zab Judah, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Cotto, the encore has seen unneeded losses to the likes Ashley Theophane, Hector Sanchez and Fariz Kazimov mixed with fleeting defeats of Donnell Logan, Sidney Siqueria and Harrison Cuello.

And his record, which was 26-1-1 the night he won the title, now stands at 36-13-1.

Nonetheless… to hear Corley tell it, the end is nowhere in sight.

“I got caught, simple as that,’’ he said. “It happens to the best. Instead of me going bing, bing, bing and moving out of range, I went bing, bing, bing and stood up and got caught with a clean shot. Until then, I was frustrating him and fighting my fight. But I’m not going anywhere.

“As soon as I can return to the gym, I will. I’m definitely going to fight again.”

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This week’s title-fight schedule:

SATURDAY
WBO bantamweight title – Las Vegas, Nev.
Fernando Montiel (champion) vs. Ciso Morales (No. 6 contender)
Montiel (39-2-2, 29 KO): First title defense; Former WBO champ at 112 and 115
Morales (14-0, 8 KO): First title fight; First fight in the United States
Fitzbitz says: Montiel by decision

Last week’s picks: 1-1
Overall picks record: 73-28 (72.2 percent)

Lyle Fitzsimmons is an award-winning 21-year sports journalist, a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and is a little unnerved that a fighter barely more than half his age is already a world champion. Reach him at fitzbitz@msn.com , follow him at twitter.com/fitzbitz or read more at fitzbitzonfights.wordpress.com.