By Dr. Peter Edwards

Only one man stands between a defining trilogy bout being contested between Jose Luis Castillo and Diego Corrales, and his name is Rolando Reyes.

A training injury to Corrales derailed what should of been a trilogy showdown between Castillo and Corrales. The injury of Corrales gave an early Christmas present to Reyes, a chance to fight Castillo on a high profile televised event.

"My weight is cool and I am ready to go. My mind is on winning. I am ready to shock the world. Castillo expects an easy fight. I don’t think he trained hard enough. I am going to prove that I am a fast, good fighter and that it is not going to be easy for him." said Reyes

Reyes brings to the table a somewhat deceiving record of 26-3-2, 16KOs. The reason I say deceiving is because the record on the inside is not as bad as it appears on the outside. A native of California, Reyes has power in his punches and has defeated several B level opponents like John Brown and Courtney Burton in very impressive fashion.

Suffering three defeats by decision in his career, two early in his career, Reyes believes that he has tremendously improved as a fighter in the last couple of years. The claim of possessing a set of very sturdy set of whiskers will be tested for validity when Castillo lands the first hard punch of the fight.

No defeats since June of 2004, and 5 straight wins, Reyes is looking to continue the year of upsets by taking the fight to Castillo and walking away with the biggest win of his career.

"This may just be another fight for Castillo, but for me this is my big chance, my golden opportunity. Win it and I am right where I want to be.’’

After the recent fall of his countryman Erik Morales, the other Mexican warrior known as "El Temible", is not about to become the next victim of an upset. Castillo knows that Reyes is coming in hungry, and is geared up to answer the challenge.

"I know Reyes is coming to fight and that I can’t underestimate him. This is going to be a great fight.’’ said Castillo

Most expect a fight at close range, with Castillo imposing his size and experience on Reyes. As shown in his split-decision loss to Miguel Angel Huerta, Reyes can be hurt early. After recent rumors have surfaced with respect to Castillo overlooking his upcoming opponent, the equation of an upset taking place is suddenly a possibility.

All we have to do is cross-reference with the recent bout between Zab Judah and Carlos Baldomir to see what happens when a world-class fighter does not take what appears to be an easy opponent serious.

Based on his last fight, a 4 round destruction of Diego Corrales, Castillo looks stronger than ever. It will be interesting to see if making the weight has drained away any of his strength. If Reyes survives the early rounds, will Castillo have the stamina to go the distance in what appears to be tough fight? He tried everything in his power to make weight for the biggest fight of his career, a rematch with Diego Corrales - and failed.

Some say he made no effort whatsoever to meet the lightweight limit and others say Castillo is killing himself to get down to 135 pounds. Corrales made the rematch easy for Castillo, he stood right in front of him from the opening bell and decided to contest a battle of who could take the best shot.

Reyes will not become a stationary target like Corrales. He will move, box, counter and bang away with Castillo when the moment arises. 

"It is going to be a great fight," Reyes said. "Castillo is a real aggressive fighter. I am a boxer, and I am just going to outbox him. I have been looking for this great opportunity, and am going to win."

The best strategy for Reyes is to make Castillo work for his money. Keep Castillo working and not allow him any time to catch his breath. If he sees Castillo start to fade in the later rounds, Reyes must jump on him and bang to the body in order to chop him down.

It will be hard for Castillo to look as impressive against Reyes, as he did against Corrales, due to the contrast in styles between both opponents. Castillo must stay focused on Reyes and forget all about a third meeting with Corrales, at least until the weekend is over.

A tough fight is expected exactly how tough depends on how badly Castillo strained to make weight and how seriously Castillo trained in the gym for the bout.