An Open Letter To Chris Arreola
By William Trillo
Chris,
As soon as your fight with Deontay was announced I have wanted to reach out to you. The reason is simple. Chris, you can beat this guy. In fact, if all the pieces are in place I believe you will.
Whether or not those pieces are in place is your responsibility, yours alone. I hope you are already putting those pieces in place Chris. This championship has been your destiny and now you are getting this one last shot. And let’s be clear, this is your last shot. You and I both know that.
Yes, I have been hard on you in the past, and rightly so. I saw you way back when you were making your start in Ontario. There was no doubt in my mind you had what it took to become a world champion. I clearly remember a night you were in attendance as a fan at Montebello’s Quiet Cannon. I pointed you out to my brother and proclaimed to him that you were the next heavyweight champ of the world.
When the fight with Bolo was upon us and the jury was spilt on which California fighter would prevail I picked you to destroy Wills. It was laughable to me that anyone thought Bolo stood a chance. You didn’t let me down.
But after that fight it seemed to me your focus waivered. I am not sure if it was over-confidence, lack of discipline or both but it was from that point on it seemed cerveza and burritos were the major part of your training staple. You ballooned up to epic proportions and any hope I had for a champ from California vanished. I popped a picture of you one night that made the rounds on the internet and you yourself said you looked HUGE as you made fun of your own self. To me it was a shame. By the time you fought Vitali there was no way your discipline or lack thereof was going to allow you to defeat him.
You had two more shots at a world title but the result was the same.
Of all the things I remember about the second Stiverne fight it is the small press conference you had with the media a couple days before the fight. As you were sitting next to the late Dan Goossen I asked you, “Chris, not only does America need a real heavyweight champion right now but the boxing fans here in Southern California have been waiting for one of their own to go all the way to the top and become the baddest man in the world, the heavyweight champ…can you be that guy?”
Sitting directly across the table you looked at me and without hesitation you answered, “I am that guy!”
Chris, you still can be that guy.
I know right now you don’t want to talk too much trash about Wilder for more than obvious reasons, so allow me.
Deontay is the figment of someone’s imagination. He has been on the receiving end of some of softest matchmaking in boxing. He has been served up some real bums and even with that he has been rocked pretty good. If the palookas he fought had any finishing skills Wilder would already be yesterday’s news. His lack of a chin and chicken legs is a recipe for disaster and you Chris can be the chef to stir that up into a gourmet meal that ends with you holding that belt you have wanted for so long over your head.
Chris, Wilder is primed and ready for you to dismantle, trust me on this. He can spew whatever blather he is going to run at the press conference this week but the fact is he will be taking you very lightly. They (you know who I mean) think you are washed up otherwise they (same people) would have never put you in the ring with their “Meal Ticket”.
In my humble opinion you will need to go all Seth Mitchell on this guy. Meaning, bum rush him from the opening bell and do not give him room to breathe. I doubt he will believe you can pull that off and it will give you a chance for an early blow out. Please don’t try to feel this guy out and box with him. My fear is that will allow him to land that huge right hand and put you in big trouble. Do not let that happen.
You are a huge underdog here. No one expects you to win. I believe that leaves the door wide open for you to pull off the Buster Douglas over Mike Tyson kind of upset. Truth be told I already grabbed a little bit of that betting action in Las Vegas. That is how certain I am you can do this.
Do this for Dan Goossen. He above everyone else deserves this victory. He always felt you could do it. I am sure he is watching you and will be there in spirit on fight night. Do it for Dan!
You are that guy Chris…you still are America’s Hope…now is the time for you to finally prove it.
Sincerely,
William Trillo
Check out www.Pound4Pound.com for all the latest boxing news.
I haven’t chimed in on the blog comments in a while, but want to also say I feel the same way. I truly believe Chris can do it, and with ease, but it has to be the Chris who wants it more than anything, the Chris we had before who was an animal. I know it’s been an up-and-down roller coaster career, and most will write him off, but we’ve seen Wilder struggle with fighters who don’t even show up in shape and aren’t as good as Chris once was.
Chris, do you still have it in you? If so, I can see an early win for you on fight night. Good luck.
I am sorry. I like Chris alot, he is witty, charming, and refreshingly honest. He is a rare breed of cat that doesn’t exist in any sport and its great to hear him.
But there is almost NO CHANCE!!! I am sorry as I know Bill he is the son that you never had/love child of your boxing passion. And I know you hate Deontay Wilder (don’t know why since he is the best thing in the heavyweight division sans Tyson Fury). But look at the common opponent.
Bermane Stiverne flat out mauled Arreola, just countering him and dropping him twice. He exposed Chris’s flaws for being a wild brawler who just doesn’t care about being in condition. When Stiverne and Wilder met, Wilder just flat out hurt and hustled Stiverne to take the title.
Maybe things would be different if Joe Gossen or Barry Hunter were training Chris but when you talk to Chris he doesn’t like getting screamed and yelled at. He doesn’t want abusive trainers so that eliminates guys who show tough love.
For god’s sake when is the last time we saw Chris Arreola put punches together, outbox his opponent and in shape… Damian Willis. back in 2007…
I am sorry. I like Chris alot, he is witty, charming, and refreshingly honest. He is a rare breed of cat that doesn’t exist in any sport and its great to hear him.
But there is almost NO CHANCE!!! I am sorry as I know Bill he is the son that you never had/love child of your boxing passion. And I know you hate Deontay Wilder (don’t know why since he is the best thing in the heavyweight division sans Tyson Fury). But look at the common opponent.
Bermane Stiverne flat out mauled Arreola, just countering him and dropping him twice. He exposed Chris’s flaws for being a wild brawler who just doesn’t care about being in condition. When Stiverne and Wilder met, Wilder just flat out hurt and hustled Stiverne to take the title.
Maybe things would be different if Joe Gossen or Barry Hunter were training Chris but when you talk to Chris he doesn’t like getting screamed and yelled at. He doesn’t want abusive trainers so that eliminates guys who show tough love.
For god’s sake when is the last time we saw Chris Arreola put punches together, outbox his opponent and in shape… Damian Willis. back in 2007… BACK NINE YEARS AGO.
Every time Chris stepped up (Vitali, Adamek, Stiverne, Fred Kassi) he could not win. His best wins are Seth Mitchell, Eric Molina and Manuel Queazada. Wilder beat Stiverne and Dauphaus and Artur Szpilka (who I would have favored over Chris Arreola).
The last time Chris even scored a KO win was back in 2013 vs. Seth Mitchell (who you also bagged on) and Curtis Harper nearly had him out.
Its time you end the love affair Bill. I get you love Chris like the lost son, that he is a fun loving, beer drinking, bad ass son of a gun. But Deontay Wilder is just a much better fighter, a harder puncher and no matter what will be in shape and looking like he is ready to go 12 rounds.
Will make a small wager that Wilder starches Arreola within 5 rounds.
Mark,
Are you so flabbergasted by a simple blog that you had to post your response twice? Chris can do it because fighters never lose their punch and Deontay has a glass chin. Simple. Of course Chris is a huge underdog and rightly so. But…yo boy Deontay was taken to task by no named bums. If Chris nails him it’s over.
Are you on Haymon payroll Mark? Is that why you seem to have so much inside info? Unless you prove otherwise I will assume the answer is yes. Ask yo daddy Al why he is throwing ANOTHER one of his own under the bus now. I guess when you got 200 fighters and little or nothing to do with them a good percentage will be handed the crap end of the stick.
I’ve been as hard as Chris as anyone and have ripped him unmercifully when he let his career go down the tubes. But he has a legit chance here because this is his last hurrah…he has nothing to lose and will go for broke. If he clips Beyonce its over.
Your son I never had blast is a bit low. I have two wonderful daughters and would not trade them in for anyone.
Now praddle along to yo daddy you never had (Al) and tell him what a good job you did today commenting on my letter to Chris.
Mark…The lightbulb just went on. I know who you are now.
Damn….really?
My apologies about the posting twice. (I blame Windows 10)
I am not insuating that you are not happy with your daughters but I get your love for Chris. And while I am not on the Haymon payroll (would love to have some extra bucks) I am just too beaten down by the “Chris can do it.”
Deontay may not be a world beater but he took some good shots from Stiverne and Szpilka and didn’t go down. He also has a napalm of a right hand that puts people to sleep.
As I said, if you told me this fight would happen in November and that Barry Hunter or Robert Garcia had replaced Henry Ramirez, I would say “Chris might win.” But reports are coming out that he is still drinking too many Carona’s, smoking pot, eating his queasillas and just training hap hazardly.
If you put Librado Andrade’s heart and dedication in Arreola’s body, you would have had a great Latino American champion. But Chris is the same guy who last fight out was getting worked and beaten up by Travis Kaufmann. Had I told you 4 years ago that Travis Kaufmann would nearly beat Chris Arreola you would had told me I was crazy and stop sniffing the white powder.
As I said, I hope your right and Chris comes into shape but at the end of the day I am going with the guy who has a legit trainer and comes in with a six pack of ribs rather then the guy who will be trying to come in with a six pack of Corona.
(BTW Corona Inc…. I would love to get a check since I have promoted your product on this blog)
If Tinkerbell really is America’s hope then it’s too late: the USA might as well form a union with Venezuela and give up being taken seriously.
An obnoxious, fat slob has been given a third chance he never earned to become world champion. Right now, he’s not even on the same level as Molina, Duhaupas or Szpilka. Boxrec has him ranked as the 45th best heavyweight in the world, and those guys are rarely wrong. A world champioin against a boxer ranked 45 tells you all you need to know about how corrupt Uncle Mauriccio is, too.
The only chance Arreola has is if Wilder strolls to the centre of the ring after the first bell with his hands by his waist. Then, he might walk onto a lucky punch. And if this minor miracle takes place and we have a new WBC champion, how do you find a suitable opponent for his first defence? Even a rematch with Fred Kassi would be a 50-50 fight.
Face it, Arreola was never good enough in his prime to become number one. That peak was about ten years ago. Now, he’s just a bloated husk of a fighter looking to collect his last meaningful pay cheque. It’s all downhill after July 16.
Mark,
The evil Widows 10 I forgive. And the daughter/son reaction is duly noted. OK…If you are not on Haymon payroll I have no idea who you are. If you are telling the truth. 😕
This is Arreolas last hurrah and I think he just may finally step up and do it. Iv’e been wrong before….but I have been right about some major upsets as well.
I am sticking with my prediction.
McGarry, Don’t give Obama any ideas. Not in this lame duck year. PLEASE
Chris has one very good chance and it may go as you say. Look for Chris to land that bomb early, and he won’t let chicken legs off the hook.
If he wins the rematch must be in place. I hope they do it in Ontario California. I may lift my self imposed moratorium on PBC events and attempt to go if they do it there…the rematch that is.
Yes there will be a rematch
BOOK IT
I just can’t Bill. Maybe it has been the “fool me once shame on me” words from Chris. The fact he keeps telling us “this is it”; the fact that we keep thing he will turn it on.
I don’t see how Deontay Wilder will loose to Chris Arreola. Especially when my sources are telling me that he is weighing once again around 285 and not in shape. That he is looking more like Vince Wilfork than Vince McMahon. That he has not learned a damn thing from any of his losses.
I am a Deontay Wilder fan (I know your not William, but to each his own) but you have to admit that Wilder is always in shape, no love handles, and he seems to be learning on the fly about range and tactics.
We talk about his shaky chin but who has dropped him since Harold Scooniers? More importantly, who has gotten close enough to hurt him?
I sat down this morning and watched the last two Arreola fights and its scary how far he has regressed as a boxer. Against Willis and Travis Walker he was throwing crisp and straight right hands. Now he is more of a Butterbean “just wing it” puncher.
I know you hate the Wilder but my fear is that Arreola will force you to cry. Not out of saddness but out of anger and shame. Anger and shame that dammit he did it again; he made you believe that he could do it and then he goes out and gets KTFO in 3 rounds by a Wilder right hand.
If this was the Hot Tub Time Machine and we get the 2007 Arreola, I would say bring it on and bring the popcorn.
This 2016 Arreola… I don’t think he could beat Charles Martin or Eric Molina let alone Deontay Wilder.
Better check your sources…I hear otherwise.
Chris looked like a champion early on but once he went on the late night burrito run express he never fooled me….NEVER.
As sure as I was that he would beat Bolo I was just as certain he would not beat Vitali, Adamak, Stiverne etc.
And just to set the record straight, my article is imploring Chris to do everything he can to prepare to beat Wilder. I did not say he will beat him. I hope like no ones business Arreola flattens Bum Squad. The sooner we are rid of that guy the better. His is a paper champion….let us expose him now.
Charles Martin?….my mail man can beat Charles Martin.