Yunieski Gonzalez Set To Return To The Ring on November 12

By Elisinio Castillo

Light heavyweight contender Yunieski Gonzalez (17-2, 13KO) is ready to return to action, with a date of November 12th set down for the Double Tree Hotel at the Miami Airport Convention Center.

Gonzalez fought at the same venue on August 6th, when he demolished Jackson Junior (21-7, 19 KO) in the first round. He dropped Jackson three times before the referee stopped the fight. Junior fought another Cuban light heavyweight in Umberto Savigne back in 2013. Savigne stopped Junior in four rounds, but the fight was later changed to a no-contest when Savigne tested positive for a banned substance.

Gonzalez reached the highest point of his career when last July 25 he lost a controversial decision to Jean Pascal in a war that was televised by HBO from the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. A few months later, Gonzalez lost a hard-fought decision to Ukrainian Vyacheslav Shabransky in December.

The defeat to Shabransky led to changes with Team Gonzalez - as his longtime trainer, Orlando Cuellar, was replaced by Pedro Diaz, one of the most prestigious technicians, who has designed a new plan of work for the boxer.

"The decision to return to the city is for two reasons: We've been waiting for several weeks to get a date from HBO and we've decided not to wait nay longer, '' said Michael Luzbet, one of the managers of Gonzalez, to George Ebro. "And we did very well with the event on August 6. People responded and the evening was a success. ''

It's well known in the industry that HBO has been cutting back on their budget and the amount of contests being secured for their network has decreased.

"We all know the big fight in light heavyweight division is taking place on November 19, between Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward, which is where Yunieski fights,'' said Luzbet. "HBO is very busy with the PPV and does not seem inclined to accommodate other fights.''