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by James Slater - Almost immediately after his brave but losing challenge of WBC heavyweight king Vitali Klitschko on September 26th, heavyweight contender Chris Arreola promised the fans he felt he'd let down he would go back to the gym, try even harder, and then fight again either before the end of the year or by early next year. Well, according to Box Rec, "The Nightmare" is keeping his promise..
Scheduled, according to Box Rec, to make his return on the Paul Williams headlined card of December 5th (venue to be determined) Arreola will be back in action in pretty quick time; less than three months on from his 10th-round retirement loss to "Dr. Iron Fist." So far, as is the case with "The Punisher," no opponent has been named for the 28-year-old who is now 27-1(24), but it's good to see how the Riverside native is keen to get back to winning ways so soon.
Many good fighters, after suffering the kind of tough loss Arreola suffered at the hands of Klitschko, would want to hide away and feel sorry for themselves and not go near a ring again for nigh on a year or so. But the Mexican/American slugger, who still wishes to make history as the first ever heavyweight world champion with Mexican roots, proved he is made of stern stuff last month.
Though it might be a hard road Arreola will have to travel to get himself another shot at world honours (how hard may depend on how much belief the fans and TV networks retain in him now that he's lost his unbeaten record), there is still a future for the 28-year-old. We now know for sure how good a chin Arreola has, and we know the kind of determination he has to go along with it. He lost to the world's premiere heavyweight alright, but would Arreola have a shot at the eventual Valuev-Haye-Ruiz winner? Damn straight he would. But will Chris get a shot at the WBA crown?
A rematch with Vitali is a no-go, for obvious reasons, but how would Arreola get on with Wladimir? He'd go in as a huge underdog almost certainly, and rightly so, but would Arreola have more of a chance with the younger brother and Ring magazine and IBF and WBO champion? Now a fully established name if he wasn't before, Arreola could perhaps be a fighter who is colourful enough and exciting enough to get himself one or two further title shots.
It will be interesting to see who "The Nightmare" fights on December 5th (assuming, of course, that Box Rec is correct and he does fight on that date). It will also be interesting to see what kind of physical condition Arreola climbs into the ring with. Post-fight on Sept. 26th, Chris also promised he'd give up the beers between fights from now on and work even harder in the gym. We will see if doing this proved to be as easy as saying it come December 5th.
It's likely Arreola will fight a "name fighter," who will give him something of a test without being too dangerous when he returns. Coming back as quickly as he is, and after such a punishing defeat, the likeable Californian tough guy sure deserves that, though .
Who'd have thought, moments after his loss to the WBC heavyweight champion, that Arreola would be back in action before the man who beat him!
Scheduled, according to Box Rec, to make his return on the Paul Williams headlined card of December 5th (venue to be determined) Arreola will be back in action in pretty quick time; less than three months on from his 10th-round retirement loss to "Dr. Iron Fist." So far, as is the case with "The Punisher," no opponent has been named for the 28-year-old who is now 27-1(24), but it's good to see how the Riverside native is keen to get back to winning ways so soon.
Many good fighters, after suffering the kind of tough loss Arreola suffered at the hands of Klitschko, would want to hide away and feel sorry for themselves and not go near a ring again for nigh on a year or so. But the Mexican/American slugger, who still wishes to make history as the first ever heavyweight world champion with Mexican roots, proved he is made of stern stuff last month.
Though it might be a hard road Arreola will have to travel to get himself another shot at world honours (how hard may depend on how much belief the fans and TV networks retain in him now that he's lost his unbeaten record), there is still a future for the 28-year-old. We now know for sure how good a chin Arreola has, and we know the kind of determination he has to go along with it. He lost to the world's premiere heavyweight alright, but would Arreola have a shot at the eventual Valuev-Haye-Ruiz winner? Damn straight he would. But will Chris get a shot at the WBA crown?
A rematch with Vitali is a no-go, for obvious reasons, but how would Arreola get on with Wladimir? He'd go in as a huge underdog almost certainly, and rightly so, but would Arreola have more of a chance with the younger brother and Ring magazine and IBF and WBO champion? Now a fully established name if he wasn't before, Arreola could perhaps be a fighter who is colourful enough and exciting enough to get himself one or two further title shots.
It will be interesting to see who "The Nightmare" fights on December 5th (assuming, of course, that Box Rec is correct and he does fight on that date). It will also be interesting to see what kind of physical condition Arreola climbs into the ring with. Post-fight on Sept. 26th, Chris also promised he'd give up the beers between fights from now on and work even harder in the gym. We will see if doing this proved to be as easy as saying it come December 5th.
It's likely Arreola will fight a "name fighter," who will give him something of a test without being too dangerous when he returns. Coming back as quickly as he is, and after such a punishing defeat, the likeable Californian tough guy sure deserves that, though .
Who'd have thought, moments after his loss to the WBC heavyweight champion, that Arreola would be back in action before the man who beat him!
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