Gonzalez Already Nearly at Weight, Ready For Russell

By Jake Donovan

As often as fighters insist they are ready to fight “right now” no matter how far out from the actual date of their next ring appearance, Jhonny Gonzalez certainly looks like he’s ready for his showdown with Gary Russell Jr.

The defending featherweight titlist is already within one pound of the divisional limit with plenty of time to spare before Friday’s official weigh-in. The two collide Saturday evening at The Palms in Las Vegas, with their bout headlining live on Showtime in the United States.

As per terms of the World Boxing Council (WBC) – who recognizes Gonzalez (57-8, 48KOs) as its champions – all bouts under the auspices of the Mexico-based sanctioning body must conduct pre-fight safety check weigh-ins 30 days and 7 days from the scheduled event.

The purpose of the safety checks is to ensure that fighters aren’t losing an extreme amount of weight in a short period of time. Under the WBC, fighters cannot weight more than 10% of the contracted weight limit 30 days prior to a fight, and not more than 5% above the limit seven days out.

Gonzalez held an open-to-the-public event for his 7-day weight check Saturday morning in Mexico. The three-time titlist – spanning two weight classes – tipped the scales at a near-fighting ready 127 lbs., just one above the actual featherweight limit. The 7-day allowance is 132.5 lbs.

“I will not sacrifice my time for anything,” insists Gonzalez, who makes the third defense of his second reign as featherweight titlist. His most recent performance was a massive event in Mexico, scoring a11th round mercy stoppage of faded Mexican boxing legend Jorge Arce last October.

Gonzalez previously reigned as a bantamweight titlist early in the ‘00s, enjoying a near two-year stay as champ before suffering a body-shot knockout loss to Filpino great Gerry Peñalosa in Aug. ’07. A climb up the scale resulted in an unsuccessful bid at a junior featherweight title before moving up for good to the featherweight division.

The extra weight has done well for Gonzalez, 33. Two separate title reigns at featherweight are part of a stretch where he has won 17 of his last 18 fights. The lone loss was the interruption between title tours, dropping a technical decision to Daniel Ponce de Leon in Sept. ’12. The bout marked the last time he has fought in Vegas prior to this upcoming weekend’s road trip.

“I’m thrilled to return to Vegas, and am determined to score a big win for Mexico boxing,” Gonzalez promises of Saturday’s bout, just his second in the United States since the loss to de Leon.

The lone other stateside appearance marked a resurrection point in his career. Gonzalez landed on the favorable end of 2013’s Upset of the Year, scoring a stunning 1st round knockout of previously unbeaten three-division champ Abner Mares at the StubHub! Center in Carson, California.

The balance of his current five-fight win streak has taken place in various parts of Mexico.

Russell Jr. (25-1, 14KOs) is a near 2-1 betting favorite to come up aces in his second attempt at an alphabet title. The previous try resulted in the lone loss of his career, as he was outpointed by two-time Olympic Gold medalist Vasyl Lomachenko last June, with the Ukrainian capturing a separate title in just his third pro fight.

The 26-year old boxer from the outskirts of Washington D.C. has since rebounded with a 10-round decision over Christopher Martin last December. Despite his lack of experience at the top level – or against opposition beyond time-filler – Russell is viewed as enjoying a favorable style matchup, which in part explains why the far more experienced and established Gonzalez heads in as the underdog.

Not that it matters to the defending titlist; if anything, he enters the fight with a nothing-to-lose mentality.

“We know when to attack Russell,” Gonzalez promises. “I have big plans for the rest of my career, and am not about to let him throw them to the ground.”

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox