Jayson Velez senses Oscar Valdez doesn’t truly realize what awaits him Tuesday night.
Velez has heard and read so much about a Valdez-Miguel Berchelt bout, the durable Puerto Rican contender cannot help but believe Valdez and his team are overlooking him entering their 10-round junior lightweight fight. If Valdez defeats Velez in a main event ESPN will air from Las Vegas, promoter Bob Arum intends to match him against Berchelt next in a fight for Berchelt’s WBC super featherweight title.
“He’s underestimating me,” Velez told BoxingScene.com. “They are talking too much about fighting Berchelt, but I will destroy that plan. I will beat Valdez, and then I will go for Berchelt. They’re talking too much. They’re secure in that they will beat me, and that’s not gonna happen. When I fought ‘JuanMa’ Lopez, it was the same. He was talking about fighting [Yuriorkis] Gamboa and a rematch against [Orlando] Salido. I ruined that plan, and I will do the same with Valdez.”
Velez stopped Juan Manuel Lopez in the 12th round of their March 2018 bout in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. By then, though, a deteriorated Lopez was 34 and already had lost five fights, each by knockout or technical knockout.
Valdez is only 29. The former WBO featherweight champion has endured some difficult fights, but he remains unbeaten (27-0, 21 KOs).
The aggressive Valdez showed some vulnerability in his last fight, when Adam Lopez drilled Valdez with a short, left hook that sent Valdez to the canvas with a minute to go in the second round. Valdez recovered, regained control of their bout, dropped Lopez (14-2, 6 KOs) with a right hand in the seventh round and stopped him before that round ended November 30 at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas.
The knockdown Valdez suffered surprised Velez because Lopez weighed in at only 126 pounds for a fight that he took on about 30 hours’ notice once Valdez’s original opponent, Andres Gutierrez, came in an inconceivable 11 pounds overweight. Nevertheless, Velez was impressed by the valiant Valdez’s resilience in that fight.
“He’s a warrior,” Velez said. “He knew how to come back from being down and won the fight. He’s a great fighter, and he proved that on that night. The knockdown, that could happen to anyone. So, like I said, he proved he’s a great fighter. He got up and won the fight.”
The 32-year-old Velez (29-6-1, 20 KOs) hasn’t been knocked out in a 12-year, 36-fight pro career. Conversely, Velez nearly knocked out Panama’s Jaime Arboleda (16-1, 13 KOs) in the 12th round of his last fight, but Arboleda withstood Velez’s late onslaught and won a split decision February 8 at PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Valdez is more accomplished than Arboleda, but Velez is very confident he’ll execute an upset against a fighter that handicappers have made at least a 17-1 favorite entering their bout at MGM Grand Conference Center (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT).
“He thinks that he will pass this test, but that’s not gonna happen,” Velez said. “I’m gonna show that I’m better than him. I am bigger than him and this weight class is mine. I will prove that.”
The 5-feet-8 Velez stands 2½ inches taller than Valdez and has competed at the 130-pound limit for four years.
“That’s a great advantage,” Velez said. “I am bigger, I am taller, my reach is more than his. The day of the fight, I will be like 147. He’s not a 130-pounder yet, so it’s an advantage for me.”
Velez realizes, of course, that he, too, has accepted a challenging assignment. Whatever occurs, he expects them to deliver one of the best actions fights of 2020.
“It’s a great opportunity,” Velez said. “We will shock the world. Don’t miss this fight. It will a great fight, like always with Puerto Rico versus Mexico. Jayson Velez and Oscar Valdez have the styles for a great fight. I think it will be the best fight of the year until now.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
