SAN BERNADINO – Luis Coria’s phone had rung with the same call before. Over the last few years, promoters had tried to match him with a fighter he has known for around a decade, Jessie Magdaleno, but this time he accepted the challenge.

It was never a case of him fearing the former champion, but he had too much respect for him. They had been friendly for years.

“Then [trainer] Robert [Garcia] calls us, ‘Hey, we got a fight for you, Jessie Magdaleno,” Coria explains. “I just said yes on the spot. They’ve offered us Jessie three times, I think. But out of respect for him, his dad, his brothers, I trained with all of them, so I know them. I’ve always declined it. I don’t want that. Who wants to fight their friend? This fight, we hadn’t been offered anything. I didn’t know what to do. I was trying to look for a way out just to make some money because I already had kids, another kid coming. Then Robert came with us to this one. I didn’t hesitate. I said, ‘You know what? Nothing’s coming. I just got to take it. I just got to take it.’ This camp, we did everything right. I’m going to be with my friend in there, so it’s going to be a fun night. But yeah, I expect nothing less from him. I see him as the same threat as he was two, three years ago.”

For 10 rounds, or however long the fight at 130lbs lasts, Coria will put their friendship on hold.

“I'm not underestimating him. Tonight, everything changes. There’s no friend relationship. We’re just going to work. We’re just two athletes going to work. That’s it,” Coria says.

Coria is 26 now. ProBox TV’s Chris Algieri calls him the best 15-7 fighter in the world and he’s pushed numerous future champions and contenders, including Adam Lopez, Robson Conceicao, and Enrique Vivas all the way. He’s also coming off two losses in the last two years.

“I’ve been out for a little bit, but hopefully it’s the same Luis, the same aggressive, but yet smart, pressure fighter,” Coria said.

Coria believes a victory over Magdaleno could be the one to catapult him back into big fights and significant opportunities. He concedes he might not be seen as the favorite, but plenty believe he represents a potential banana skin for the veteran Magdaleno.

“I think I’ve been tested more. And honestly, I think I’ve been a little out of luck,” Coria continues. “Maybe it’s having to put in more hard work, but there’s something missing. There’s something missing where I can’t just break this barrier. I can’t break this barrier. And I’m just trying to hope for the opportunity to show itself and get that recognition. Hopefully. Jesse’s a good friend. He’s a good guy. He’s a bad motherfucker, I know that. So we know not to underestimate him.”

Coria admits that past defeats have “beaten him down” but he still has the enthusiasm and ambition for the sport that means he answers all questions of his career with a smile.

“Look, after my first loss, I did not care about a loss at all. I know what I can do, and it’s like my father says, he’s always told me, you’re only as good as your last fight. And the Lopez fight, the Conceicao fight, the Vivas fight, even this last Top Rank fight I did in Texas against [Charly] Suarez, that one I was injured on a rib injury and I fought him. So, all these guys I’ve fought, there’s this barrier, there’s a bit of, how do I want to say, maybe jealousy, regret. I’m like, ‘Man, all these guys are getting these shots and I’m just here on the side bench.’”

It is almost unfortunate that Coria, in order to finally break that barrier, has to go through a friend and he is hoping that tonight in San Bernadino on ProBox TV, he breaks through his glass ceiling.

“I’m just trying to make something before my time’s up,” he said. “And I hope that time isn’t now, because just like some of us that have been in the ring, not many of us get the opportunity, and there’s always that time that's like, man, is it even worth it anymore?”

Magdaleno, for his part, said he is no gatekeeper and he is prepared to stand his ground. And while he is 33, Magdaleno says he is as good as ever and that is certainly the fighter Coria has prepared to face.

“He’s been stopped twice already. I’ve never been stopped,” adds Coria. “I’m younger. He’s still a bad motherfucker, like I said. I’m not going to underestimate him, but... I mean, the way he’s gone down these past two fights [losing to Brandon Figueroa and Raymond Ford], I don’t know. I’m just going to do what I know I can do, put the pressure, break him down, and just... There’s no hard fights. There’s just only fun nights. That’s it. Fun nights.”