By Jake Donovan
Some divisions are just meant for everlasting glory. Others are forced to wait out the lulls before new talent is cycled in.
This weekend’s pay-per-view headliner won’t exactly cement a legacy or confirm superstardom, but at least provides the chance for Wilfredo Vazquez Jr to audition for the role of the next leader of a suddenly bone-dry super bantamweight division.
The second-generation prize fighter from Bayamon, Puerto Rico makes the first defense of his alphabet title on Saturday when he faces unbeaten challenger Zsolt Bedak, a former member of the Hungarian boxing squad in the 2004 Summer Olympics.
It won’t be carried by a major network, and isn’t even the lone independent pay-per-view telecast of the day. But the bout comes at a time when people have once again begun talking about the potential rebirth of the division, one that has become rich in crowd pleasing fights.
No weight class has produced more Fight of the Year winners (and candidates in general) over the course of the past decade than the 122 lb. division, yet it’s been the welterweight division that has dominated the headlines.
The trend makes sense – fighters coming up to welterweight grow comfortable at the weight and with the money being paid and tend to settle in. It’s not always the case in the lower weight classes. A fighter obtains glory and a little bit of money – suddenly, it’s more difficult to resist the urge to just gain four more pounds rather than boil down to make weight.
Despite all of the year-end awards racked up by the boys at 122, the faces don’t remain the same for very long. Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales stuck around long enough to build names for themselves and igniting an eventual legendary rivalry, only to move up not so long after their legendary first battle in February 2000.
On a much smaller scale, Israel Vazquez and Oscar Larios took turns beating each other earlier in the decade, before Vazquez became the division’s lineal champion thanks to his injury stoppage win in their December ‘05 rubber match.
Lost in the shuffle was an unbelievable war of a rematch that just so happened to land on the eve of the first fight between Micky Ward and Arturo Gatti. But Vazquez would carve out his own niche in finding ways to thrust himself into the headlines.
It truly began with his off-the-canvas knockout win over Jhonny Gonzalez on a Barrera pay-per-view undercard in September ’06. Soon thereafter came the jumpoff to the three-fight series as we want to remember it, one that saw the 122 lb. crown change hands twice in perhaps the top two fights of 2007 before their rubber match ran took top honors in 2008.
The third fight was enough to convince both to take a long extended break, one that meant neither would ever return to the weight once they once again resumed their careers.
Others tried to fill the void in the absence of the division’s top two players in their absence, but all that would be offered was unfulfilled potential.
Juan Manuel Lopez was believed to be that man, but his grand arrival on the scene – a first-round knockout against Daniel Ponce de Leon in June 2008 – turned out to be more memorable or noteworthy than anything in the 16 months that followed.
The closest he came to keeping 122 on the map was his unexpectedly close call against Rogers Mtagwa, one that was hailed by many to be among the top fights of 2009. It was also his last fight at the weight, coming back days after the fight with a doctor’s note claiming it was no longer medically safe to make super bantamweight.
Such news meant that much less chance of landing a fight with Celestino Caballero. The two fighters were perceived to be the top two in the division by default, but spent far more time calling each other out in the media than they did at the negotiating table.
The tactic helped arouse interest in Caballero’s career, including an impressive showing against Steve Molitor in the November 2008 alphabet unification match. It was enough to prove his worth as one of the sport’s bet, but did little to help convince anyone that they needed to pursue a fight against a 5’11” super bantamweight who redefined the term “high risk, low reward.”
If Lopez and Caballero are to ever collide, it will have to take place at featherweight or beyond. There is zero chance of either fighter returning to 122, especially when the far more lucrative fights exist four pounds north.
Left in the division are a bunch of fighters who are long on talent, but short on notoriety beyond their home country.
Golden Boy Promotions recently announced the signing of once-beaten alphabet titlist Poonsaway Kratingdaenggym. In theory, such news should help expand the Thai fighter’s marketability, though it’s hard to believe that his signing has anything to do with the chance of his becoming a mainstream star in the states.
There exists the belief that he’s being kept warm for Antonio Escalante, an all-action fighter who has become quite a draw in his hometown of El Paso, Texas.
Escalante stands a great chance of one day becoming a star, though he is already threatening to outgrow the division. His last three fights have taken place at featherweight, where he is ranked by the major sanctioning bodies. It’s possible he drops back down one day for his first title shot. But, why take the risk when the greater reward exists at the more comfortable weight to make.
Plenty of others can be offered as the guy to restore interest at 122, but most of them remain longshots to run the table or generate enough interest without an already built in audience.
That’s where Wilfredo Vazquez Jr (18-0-1, 15KO) has the chance to jump in.
Like most other next generation fighters, the familiar bloodlines certainly give him a head start. Not only is he the son of former three-division champion Wilfredo Vazquez Sr, but is also trained by the legendary Puerto Rican.
Guiding his career is the same company – All Star Boxing – who helped Wilfredo Sr. earn his first title more than two decades ago, which went a long way in building him up in the Central Florida region. It also helped establish “WV2” as a built-in attraction on the Telemundo circuit.
He still has a way to go before becoming a mainstream attraction, but is already becoming a big star in his homeland of Puerto Rico. This weekend marks his second straight appearance in his hometown of Bayamon, on the heels of his career-best win just three months ago when he easily handled previously unbeaten Marvin Sonsona for a vacant super bantamweight strap.
The win came just over three years into his career, the most obvious signal that a much greater push was given to his career than has been the case for his Generation Next peers. With the frequent Telemundo appearances came a steady upgrade in competition at an ambitious rate leading up to and including the fourth round knockout of Sonsona.
A win over a second straight undefeated fighter in Bedak will serve as fitting resume filler, though he still has a long way to go before his name and the word “superstar” can be properly used in the same sentence.
But there exists potential at the very least, which is the best news that can be offered for a super bantamweight division that continues to watch more big names leave than have arrived.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com and an award-winning member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Contact Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com .
