| |
|
|
Edwin Valero To Defend WBC
Lightweight
Crown Against Interim Champ Antonio DeMarco
On Sat., Feb. 6, In Monterrey
Mexico
LIVE On SHOWTIME® at 9 p.m. ET/PT
SHOWTIME Sports® will present a fight card from Mexico for
the first time in nearly 12 years when devastating,
undefeated knockout artist and two-time world champion Edwin
Valero (26-0, 26 KOs), of Las Vegas, Nev., by way of Merida,
Venezuela, defends his World Boxing Council (WBC)
lightweight crown against streaking, once-beaten WBC
135-pound interim titleholder Antonio DeMarco (23-1-1, 17
KOs) of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, on Saturday, Feb.
6.
In the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING co-feature, unbeaten,
world-ranked Luis Carlos Abregu (28-0, 23 KOs) of Salta,
Argentina, will be opposed by Richard Gutierrez (24-3, 14
KOs), of Miami, Fla., via Arjona, Colombia, in a 10-round
welterweight bout. The doubleheader will be shown live on
SHOWTIME® (9 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast).
The event at Arena Monterrey is promoted by Gary Shaw
Productions, LLC, and will take place during the celebration
of the bicentennial of Mexico’s Independence.
The last time a SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING broadcast aired
from Mexico was March 7, 1998, when Julio Cesar Chavez boxed
a draw with Miguel Angel Gonzalez. It’s the first card on
SHOWTIME from Monterrey in more than 15 years, or since
Chavez stopped Tony Lopez on Dec. 10, 1994.
The 5-foot-7 ˝-inch, 28-year- old Valero was victorious by
first-round knockout in his initial 17 starts after turning
professional on July 9, 2002. He has 18 opening-round KOs
overall.
“There was pressure on me when I was winning all those
fights in the first round, but once that ended so did the
pressure,’’ said Valero, who’ll be making his debut on
SHOWTIME. “Now, I take it round by round and let the
knockout come. I don’t go into any fight looking for a quick
knockout.
“I try and measure my opponent and get my timing down and go
from there. I’m in there to do a job, which is to win and
stay undefeated and keep my title. If this goes the distance
and I win, I’ll be just as happy as if I win by knockout. I
am a pressure fighter, but I know I have to also fight
smart.’’
Valero captured the World Boxing Association (WBA) super
featherweight championship in his 20th outing, and made four
successful defenses of the 130-pound belt before stepping up
a notch in weight and winning the-then vacant WBC title with
a second-round TKO over Anthony Pitula on April 4, 2009.
In his lone WBC defense and most recent start, Valero
registered a seventh-round TKO over Hector Velazquez on Dec.
19, 2009.
“I’m very excited about this fight and thrilled to be
fighting on SHOWTIME,’’ Valero said. “DeMarco is a good
young fighter who has great aspirations, like most young
fighters, and I respect him a lot. But I believe my
experience will be an important key. He hasn’t fought the
kinds of fighters I have and he hasn’t fought in world title
fights. I’m very confident that once I connect with one of
my power punches, he will feel it.’’
Valero is a world traveler who has fought in many countries,
including the United States, Venezuela, Panama, France,
Argentina and Japan. This will be his second world title
fight in Mexico. On Dec.15, 2007, he scored a third-round
TKO over Zaid Zaveleta in Cancun, Mexico, to retain his WBA
belt.
“Fighting in Mexico is actually a benefit for me and I look
forward to it,’’ Valero said. “Mexican fans are great fans
and they know this sport very well.’’
Valero, who doesn’t watch tapes, will be spotting DeMarco a
few inches in height and reach.
“I like to make adjustments in real time, in the ring,’’
Valero said. “Fighters give you tapes but then they fight
differently. I’ve fought a tall lefty once before and won so
I expect to be comfortable in the ring. If I’m patient and
fight my fight, I’ll get inside and land my shots.’’
DeMarco will be making his seventh appearance on SHOWTIME.
He’s fought thrice on both SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING and
ShoBox: The New Generation. If triumphant, DeMarco will
become the 41st ShoBox alum to earn a world title belt.
“I'm sincerely thankful to SHOWTIME for the support they’ve
given me,’’ said the son-in-law of former WBC 122-pound
champion Raul “Jibaro’’ Perez. “I am going to do everything
possible and use everything I can -- my reach, height, you
name it – to win. This is a huge privilege to fight in my
country. Words cannot describe how very honored I am to have
this fight in my backyard and in my territory.
“This is going to be a very emotional night not only for me
but for my family, who have given me unconditional support,
and to my countrymen, who have supported me in that same
manner.’’
The Valero-DeMarco clash of southpaws is a classic
puncher-boxer matchup, although the 5-foot-10, 24-year-old
DeMarco is anything but a runner.
“Valero’s a great champion of the world and it’s an honor to
get into the ring with him,’’ he said. “I have a lot of
respect for him as a person and for what he’s accomplished.
There’s a reason he’s champ and he deserves all the
accolades. But, for me, once I get in ring, it is my job to
win and walk away victorious.
“That means I have to not only box and move but also to
fight and earn his respect. I know what kind of fighter he
is, I know his record and that he hits hard. But I’ve been
working on several strategies with my team. In the event one
doesn't work, you have to switch it up and make the proper
adjustments to win.’’
A winner of 12 and a row and unbeaten in his last 16
(15-0-1) dating to May 2006, DeMarco is coming off a
superlative 10th round TKO over former world champion Jose
Alfaro to secure the WBC interim title last Oct. 31 on
SHOWTIME.
“I will absolutely have the same mentality on Feb. 6 as I
had last time,’’ DeMarco said. “I’ll walk into the ring
knowing I have to win and that nobody is going to keep me
from my destiny. Winning this fight would be the highest
honor. Nothing can compare and I can’t describe it in words.
But it will be every emotional.
“I will have many motivations when I enter the ring. In
order, they are (1), my daughter, (2) my wife and (3) my
parents and family, and when I say my family I also mean my
adoptive family in Tijuana. They were ones who gave me a
blanket to cover myself and food to eat when I came to
Tijuana.
“A win would be so incredibly significant for all of us.
Every win I get is a step in the right direction but this
would be the absolute best. This is not just another fight,
it is everything. The way I see it, I’m the challenger and
he’s the absolute champion. I win and I walk out of the ring
as champion of the world.’’
The five-foot-10-inch, 27-year-old Abregu registered a
fourth-round knockout over Diego Gallardo in his last start
on Aug. 4, 2009. Two outings back, on ShoBox, Abregu got
floored twice (in the first and fourth) before bouncing back
to score a fourth-round KO over Irving Garcia in a wildly
entertaining affair on May 1, 2009. Abregu is ranked sixth
in the WBC and ninth in the International Boxing Federation
(IBF).
Gutierrez went 21-0 at the outset of a career that began in
December 2001. The five-foot-nine-inch, 31 year old has
fought some good ones, including Joshua Clottey and Alfredo
Angulo. He is coming off a close 10-round decision loss to
Antwone Smith on May 22, 2009.
|
|
|
