THE camp of YordenisUgas has tapped two southpaws with solid credentials, including a two-time Olympic gold medalist, to prepare the Cuban for his defense of the World Boxing Association super welterweight title against left-handed Manny Pacquiao on Saturday (Sunday in the US) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Elisinio Castillo of boxingscene.com, in a story posted on the website yesterday, wrote that Ugas’ trainer, Ismael Salas, hired Carlo Marrero of the Dominican Republic and Cuba’s Robeisy Ramirez as the sparring partners of the Cuban defending champion with just four days left before the fight.
The veteran Marrero, 32, held the WBA interim and International Boxing Organization featherweight titles in 2017 while Ramirez, 27, now fighting as a featherweight, bagged gold medals in the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympic Games.
Ugascame in as last-minute replacement for Errol Spence Jr., the original opponent who was supposed to stake his World Boxing Council and International Boxing Federation welterweight titles against Pacquiao but had to withdraw after it was discovered in a routine check-up that he had a detached retina in his left eye.
The Cuban, who was originally in the undercard of the Pacquiao-Spence title clash, saw his own rival, Francis Maidana, also pulling out after the Argentine boxer suffered a bad cut in his right eye intraining, paving the way for his once-in-a-lifetime shot at the popular Pinoy ring star.
Despite being the reigning champion, Ugas, 35, who has won 26 times, 12 by knockout, against four defeats, is a 3-1 underdog against Pacquiao, 42, who sports a record of 62 wins (39 KOs), seven losses and two draws.
To drumbeat the title clash, the two came face-to-face for the first time yesterday (Tuesday in the US) at their “grand arrival” in front of the 20,000-seat T-Mobile Arena, followed by the pre-championship match press conference today (Wednesday in the US).
In front of a sparse crowd, Pacquiao wore a simple white shirt with collar and black jogging pants while Ugas was clad in a red track suit and a cap of the same color.
The fighting lawmaker is out to retake the title that was stripped from him by the WBA in January after he failed to fightin over a year, awarding it to Ugas, the top-ranked contender in the Panama-based world boxing body’s welterweight division.
“Yordenis has had several fights come up at the last minute, it is a great challenge, but without challenges we have no reason to be in (boxing) and we accepted. Sometimes opportunities like this come along and you have to take advantage of them,” Salas was quoted as saying.
“We have made a number of changes. But with the help of Robeisy Ramirez and Claudio Marrero, two lefties, we’ve done work to adjust to what Pacquiao demands,” he said. “This is not magic. It has taken away my sleep a bit because I have had to review Pacquiao’s fights, like those with (Miguel) Cotto and (Keith) Thurman. We are making adjustments.”
Cotto lasted 11 rounds with Pacquiao, who captured the World Boxing Organization welterweight belt with a technical knockout win over the Puerto Rican 12 years ago.
Pacman also wrested the WBA super welterweight crown from the erstwhile undefeated Thurman with a split decision victory on July 20, 2019 at the MGM Grand Arena in LasVegas.
Salas, who also trained fellow Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux, credited Robeisy for providing valuable pointers in the build-up to the Pacquiao fight.
“Robeisy is observant, he helps me in the gym. I have respect for his vision. That’s why he has been a two-time Olympic champion. We are family and we all help each other,” the trainer noted “Robeisy has said things about Pacquiao that (will) help us.
“This will be my 190th world championship fight. This is a legend about to retire. It is a great opportunity, important for Ugás and the whole team. We’re going to do everything we can to get our hands on the guy,’’ Salas said.
ESPN ring analyst and writer Mike Coppinger noted that Ugas has what it takes to make Pacquiao work hard but added he would lose his title.
“Ugas was a decorated amateur from the vaunted Cuban boxing program who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. And even at 35, Ugas seems to be peaking,” Coppinger noted in an interview posted on the American sports network’s website yesterday.
“When he fought Shawn Porter in 2019, Ugas proved he’s one of the best welterweights in the world. The consensus opinion was that Ugas deserved the decision, but instead, the judges narrowly gave Porter a split decision win,” he recalled.
“And unlike most Cuban fighters, who are all about defense and movement, Ugas likes to mix it up on the inside and has proved his toughness in the ring time and again,” Coppinger noted.
“On Saturday, we’ll see what Ugas is capable of. The Porter fight was Ugas’ only appearance against a true top-level opponent to this point, and now he gets to prove himself against a giant in the sport,” he said.
