By Chris Robinson

The first quarter of 2012 is shaping up in the boxing world and already some intriguing fights have been set.

On February 25th, brazen puncher Marcos Maidana will travel into former champion Devon Alexander’s hometown of Saint Louis, Missouri in a can’t-miss attraction. Both men will be moving up to 147 pounds for the contest and the clash of styles will showcase the relentless aggression and brute power of Maidana against the slick, southpaw style of Alexander.

 

For nearly the last five weeks, Maidana has been training in the Province of Santa Fe in his native Argentina and will be traveling to Puerto Rico on January 2nd where he will set up his official camp for the fight.

 

A soft-spoken soul, I caught up with Team Maidana to get Marcos’ take on the challenge that Alexander presents and what he has thought of some of the close decisions that have gone in his favor in bouts with Andriy Kotelnik and Lucas Matthysse.

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But there was a bit more on the agenda as Maidana also gave his take on some storylines in the sport connected to him in one way or another. Such topics included Roger Mayweather’s interest in a fight between Maidana and his nephew Floyd Jr., the recent upset scored by Lamont Peterson over Amir Khan, and his take on the February 11th rematch between Victor Ortiz and Andre Berto.

 

Speaking through his advisor Sebastian Contursi, here are a few sound bites that Maidana shared…

Thoughts on Devon Alexander…

“He’s a very skillful and slick boxer. Probably he didn’t put up brilliant performances in his last few fights but he still is a dangerous opponent. At this level almost every fighter will give you tough fights and Alexander is one of them.”

Alexander’s close calls against Kotelnik and Matthysse…

“Kotelnik should have definitely gotten the victory over Alexander. For me it was a clear win for Kotelnik. And the fight with Matthysse was very close I believe. It could have gone either way yet the knockdown was probably a little edge for Matthysse.” 

Whether he saw Lamont Peterson’s upset over Amir Khan and what he felt of the fight…

“I did. It was a close fight as well. Peterson was the aggressor throughout most of the bout and Khan could not handle his pressure. Yet it was a close and entertaining fight and cold have gone either way.”

 

Why he feels no sympathy in the rematch pursuits of Khan, who he himself suffered a close points loss to in December of 2010 while never being able to get a second fight…

“So good luck for Khan in his quest of a rematch yet rematches are sometimes very hard to get even if the first fight was a close one. I know that very well.”

Answering Roger Mayweather, who expressed interest in a Mayweather-Maidana fight…

“It’s an honor for me that my name is even thrown around [the] Mayweathers. Coming from his trainer means much to me. Who wouldn’t want to face Mayweather? But I also know that I still have to earn that chance.”

Anticipating Victor Ortiz-Andre Berto II…

“Another great fight there. The first one was one of the best of this year and I think the rematch could be explosive as well. Hard to call since both are talented and have the power to knock out the opponent."

Whether he feels if Ortiz has improved since their June 2009 encounter, a fight won by Maidana via 6th round TKO…

“Yes, especially in the Berto fight when he proved himself to be a great fighter. We always knew that he had the talent but in that fight he showed huge determination. Then, he played very fool in his next fight against Mayweather but everybody makes mistakes and he will probably come back now.”

[Reader's note: Visit the following slideshows for a look back on 2011 with boxing's

biggest stars Nonito Donaire / Juan Manuel Marquez / Victor Ortiz ]

Chris Robinson is based out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He can be reached at Trimond@aol.com . Please follow him at www.Twitter.com/CRHarmony