VALERO-PITALUA IN ?LIGHTWEIGHT LIGHTNING?
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 22 Mar 2009
Knockout artist Edwin Valero faces Antonio Pitalua for the vacant WBC lightweight title on April 4 on Austin, Texas. It will be for the WBC interim lightweight title in the main event of the Golden Boy Promotions called ?Lightweight Lightning.?
Valero and Pitalua have all it takes to bring up a good fight. Valero is rated No. 1 by The Ring in the junior lightweight (superfeatherweight) division. Pitalua is the current WBC interim lightweight champion.
Valero, who has a perfect record at 24-0 (24 KOs) including18 consecutive first-round KOs, said he saw Pitalua?s last fight with Jose Armando Santa Cruz in Monterrey, Mexico. Pitalua floored Santa Cruz in round four and then put him to stop at 2:50 of round six.
He praised the Colombian for being very aggressive and very strong and a warrior with a lot of will to win. But he added he would not allow Pitalua to realize his dreams. ?That?s what we?re looking forward to on April 4th, to have my hand raised, and Pitalua brings the perfect style for him to fall and get knocked out. He?s perfect for me.?
Pitalua who is 46-3 (40 KOs) responded that although Valero is already challenging Juan Manuel Marquez, without considering their April 4 fight first, he assured that he is going to show to the whole Hispanic world that Valero could not stop him. Valero already made public his intention to fight Marquez and eventually Manny Pacquiao.
?I respect Valero?s words,? Pitalua said, ?but I haven?t lost since 2000. I?ve been winning by 13 straight knockouts since then. We?ll see on April 4th. He says I bring the perfect style. He brings the perfect style for me too, and we?ll see who brings out the best of whom!?
The 39-year-old Pitalua has an advantage in experience with his 49 pro bouts and having fought eight or more rounds in seven fights. Valero, 27, has fought eight rounds or more only twice in his 24 bouts, many of these fights did not go beyond the 3-minute mark.
Pitalua has a size advantage, too, being a very big lightweight. More than half of Pitalua?s bouts were fought at junior welterweight and some were even in the welterweight division. Valero stayed at the130-pound limit for most of his pro career.
?It was beginning to be a tremendous sacrifice for me to make 130 pounds,? the Venezuelan southpaw said. ?That?s why I vacated the WBA superfeatherweight title. I feel that I?m faster and stronger at lightweight. We felt it was time to move up, that?s why we vacated the belt, and moved up to 135, gained a little weight and feel strong and good here.?
Last March 2008, Valero was examined by neurologists in Texas and in an exceptional decision, the Department of Licensing and Regulation gave him the clearance to fight in the state. So far, Texas is the only U.S. state in which Valero is permitted to fight, but his new manager, Jose Castillo, is consistently petitioning the commissions of Nevada and California to give license to the undefeated fighter.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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