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By Jake Donovan - With the interim title he held, Marco Antonio Rubio could have milked the clock in waiting out a mandatory shot at World middleweight king Miguel Cotto. Such a fight easily would have been the biggest payday around, if not the biggest of his career.
At age 34 and already having come up short in two previous tries at a middleweight title, nobody would have thought twice about Rubio taking a stay busy fight or two, or even sitting on the sidelines.
Instead, the veteran contender opted to sprint towards the sound of gun fire, opting for a challenge that few else were anxious to pursue. Most middleweights accept a fight with Gennady Golovkin simply because they’re out of other options. Rubio took the fight because, well he wants a big fight right now.
“Since Miguel Cotto didn’t want to fight me, we’re fighting Gennady Golovkin,” Rubio boldly stated in August when accepting the fight, which takes place on October 18 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California, with HBO to televise. “I never back down from anyone.”
Rubio (59-6-1, 52KOs) is in this position because he and his team had the courage to stand up to the World Boxing Council (WBC) when they felt they were severely wronged. The troubles stemmed from the aftermath of his failed mandatory title bid versus then-unbeaten titlist Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in February 2012. Rubio came up short in the ring in dropping a unanimous decision, but the WBC and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation dropped the ball altogether in failing to ensure that necessary drug testing was performed and supervised. [Click Here To Read More]
At age 34 and already having come up short in two previous tries at a middleweight title, nobody would have thought twice about Rubio taking a stay busy fight or two, or even sitting on the sidelines.
Instead, the veteran contender opted to sprint towards the sound of gun fire, opting for a challenge that few else were anxious to pursue. Most middleweights accept a fight with Gennady Golovkin simply because they’re out of other options. Rubio took the fight because, well he wants a big fight right now.
“Since Miguel Cotto didn’t want to fight me, we’re fighting Gennady Golovkin,” Rubio boldly stated in August when accepting the fight, which takes place on October 18 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California, with HBO to televise. “I never back down from anyone.”
Rubio (59-6-1, 52KOs) is in this position because he and his team had the courage to stand up to the World Boxing Council (WBC) when they felt they were severely wronged. The troubles stemmed from the aftermath of his failed mandatory title bid versus then-unbeaten titlist Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in February 2012. Rubio came up short in the ring in dropping a unanimous decision, but the WBC and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation dropped the ball altogether in failing to ensure that necessary drug testing was performed and supervised. [Click Here To Read More]
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