MONTREAL – As Osleys Iglesias stood backstage at Casino Montreal, it was clear that he had been in a fight. Though he had won all seven rounds before stopping Vladimir Shishkin Thursday, he was marked up a little around the face, having been hit more than he had in his five previous fights combined.
Shishkin, whose only previous loss was on a close decision to William Scull last year for the IBF super middleweight title, had used his veteran experience to land jabs and right hands to slow Iglesias down before succumbing to the southpaw punching power of the Germany-based Cuban.
In some ways, it was better to go later rounds instead of scoring an early knockout, especially if the goal is to eventually challenge fighters on the level of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez or Terence Crawford. The 27-year-old Iglesias acknowledges that he probably learned a few things in the victory.
“It was a lot of experience for me. I went eight rounds with a guy that can take a lot of punishment and I still knocked him out,” said Iglesias.
“I usually don’t look for the knockout but in the fifth round I slowed down a little bit, just to study him, to see what was going on. I saw that he was throwing his right a lot and I saw something there and just kept going. And I got the knockout.”
With the victory, Iglesias became the IBF’s number one contender at 168lbs, putting him in line for a potential mandatory opportunity against the Alvarez-Crawford winner. While it’s one thing to be told you’re next in line, it’s quite another to convince a superstar level fighter that you’re worth the trouble. Iglesias says he felt he made a big enough statement to earn the fight.
“I think I made a statement. If he doesn’t want to fight with me, it’s not because I don’t give a good show. It’s because he’s scared. I’m a young boxer, I’m hungry, I have a good punch,” said Iglesias, who says he expects Alvarez to beat Crawford when they meet on September 13 in Las Vegas.
“If he doesn’t want to fight with me, it’s because he might be scared that I’m too young and too strong for him.”
Promoter Camille Estephan of Eye of the Tiger agrees. He tells BoxingScene that he believes the win over Shishkin, who had never previously been stopped, underlined his potential as a top fighter.
“He will keep fighting, we don’t wait around for anyone,” said Estephan.
“We want the biggest names and the world is taking notice. This is a generational talent, this is not just some regular fighter. I don’t think we’ve seen many like Osleys in Canada or anywhere else. His upside is potential superstar and he proved it tonight. What he did to Shishkin is quite a statement.
“I’m always nervous throughout the fight, it’s a very high level fight. Shishkin did better against Scull than Canelo, so we cannot forget that. Osleys schooled him, he hurt him bad, many, many times, it’s just that guy had heart, he was backed up to the wall, this was probably his last opportunity and he kept going.”
If Iglesias doesn’t get the call to fight Canelo or Crawford next, Estephan says they will seek the next biggest fight available instead.
“He’s comfortable fighting at 168 or 175. We’re gonna take on all comers,” said Estephan.
“[Jaime] Munguia? [Edgar] Berlanga is not even in the same league. You name them, bring them all. I’m not just saying this because I want to sell it, I really believe this, and he showed it, so obviously he’s making us look good.”
Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ryansongalia@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.
