MASAM SPORTS 3: ERROL SPENCE JR. VS. YORDENIS UGAS BECOMES A REALITY
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 07 Jan 2022
The fight seemed to look impossible at the beginning but soon it will be realized when the World Boxing Association (WBA) gave the go signal on the proposed unification of its Super champion Yordenis Ugas with the IBF and WBC titlist Errol Spence Jr.
Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) failed to stake his titles against the legendary Manny Pacquiao last August 21, when he suffered a retinal eye injury. Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs) took over as an eleven-day late-replacement and the rest is history as the Cuban champ dominated the Filipino in a lopsided unanimous decision win.
Ugas scored the greatest victory of his boxing career by beating an eighth-division champion. Now he is inspired to add more feathers to his cap by defeating one of the top ten active pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
“I am happy that we will have a great fight, the fight that I wanted, a fight that as I have always said will be historic for Cuban boxing. I'm happy to fight one of the best pound-for-pound. So I feel blessed and excited about this challenge," Ugas told George Ebro via Boxing Scene.
"One hundred percent [I can win this fight]. The fight that is not won is the one that is not fought. It's going to be a tough, strong fight, but my mindset is just that, looking for the toughest fights and giving everything of myself. It's going to be very tough, but I'm already preparing for that."
Ugas is considered by most fans and experts as a huge underdog. But inactivity has been the drawback of Spence because of the eye injury and likewise due a horrific car accident in 2019.
"There are fighters who seem easy or people believe they have no chance of winning, but I think I've gained a lot of respect since the Pacquiao fight and that is going to help me a lot with the [opinions of] people," Ugas said.
Ugas vows to train hard for the hardest fight Spence may wage on him. He knows that the American has a lot of power left in him inspite of his lesser fights.
“We'll see [what he has]. He is a great fighter regardless. For my part, I'm going to prepare myself for the best version of Spence. I don't want anything to surprise me," Ugas said.
Spence says the fight is scheduled to happen in April at a venue which is still to be determined. "The fight is in April. Man down, strap season. He already knows what time it is,” Spence said on Instagram live.
Ugas is grateful to the WBA for allowing him to fight the three-belt unification. "Thanks to the WBA for doing the right thing. It is an award for my dedication, and for being a brave man in and out of the ring. I will be fighting one of the best [pound-for-pound]. I'm a warrior. First Cuban fighting for three belts one night," he was quoted by Skysports.
Mikey Garcia says Ugas is a “dangerous” fight for Spence because he is recovering from an eye surgery last August. Spence is risking serious injury to his eye, cautions Garcia as quoted by Boxing News24.
“That’s a tough one for Spence because he’s coming off eye surgery and all that,” said Garcia in Fighthype.
The former four-division world champion Garcia is alarmed that the 31-year-old Spence directly chose to face a tough tussle against Ugas who is one of the deadliest fighters in the welterweight division.
Spence is not used to engaging in tune-up fights which is great for the fans, but it may also hurt him. He could possibly injure his eye again, which could mean permanent retirement for him.
Mikey considers Ugas as one of the best fighters in the welterweight division. He punches strong and defeated Pacquiao resulting in his retirement during his last fight when he substituted for the injured Spence.
The boxing world can't wait to see the Spence-Ugas WBC/IBF/WBA unification match.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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