For “The Hawaiian/Pinoy Punch,” that’s precisely what talk of a Calderon bout is. Unnecessary and unwanted clutter. And they will not repeat the mistakes of the past.
"Y’know, it happened to me before with the Omar Nino fight. They talked about how I was going to go with Koki Kameda in Japan. Koki Kameda fights for millions of dollars there and sells out 90 to 95 percent of the ratings there; everybody watches the fights," recalled Viloria, of his first run as a major world champion that was short-lived. As he came into that bout with Nino in August of 2007, he was embarking on just his second title defense of the WBC title he had captured by stopping Eric Ortiz in one. In a fight that Viloria was heavily favored to win, he was thoroughly defeated by Nino. It sent him on a tailspin that saw him go winless for over a year.
"So I do not want to think about anybody else but Carlos Tamara in this fight. This is my world championship fight. This is my big payday fight. So anything after this, I’m really not going to pay attention to it," says Viloria, now 29 years old. "I really want to concentrate on just one fight at a time. I don’t want to find myself overlooking any opponent again. And Carlos Tamara is my Ivan Calderon, right now, and I’m going to have to go in there and prove why I’m the world champion and bring this home. After this fight, we’ll talk again and we’ll see if an Ivan Calderon-Brian Viloria fight is going to happen."
Despite what you may have read of ongoing negotiations, Viloria’s manager, Gary Gittelsohn says, "There’s no truth to it, whatsoever. I had one 30-second conversation about Calderon with Bob Arum and Calderon’s promoter when we were all gathered in the same place in the press room for the Pacquiao-Cotto fight. I said, at that time, I was agreeable to looking into putting something together and I still am, but I haven’t said a single word about it since. I haven’t had a single conversation about it since but I’ve seen reports to the contrary that simply aren’t true."
The respected manager has been through this before, not just with Viloria, but with Junior Jones, who always seemed to get tripped up looking ahead to bigger and better things. "In this sport, I’ve seen too many times where, if you start planning ahead, God laughs,” lamented Gittelsohn.
Tamara, who hails from Colombia with a mark of 20-4 with 14 KOs, is not an easy out. He has never been stopped and all his losses have basically all come to either world champions or undefeated prospects.
"He’s a very durable fighter. He was a former Olympian himself, from Colombia," says Viloria, in describing his foe. "I expect a really tough match come the 23rd of January. I’m not overlooking this guy. This guy’s a lot taller than I am, with a longer reach. So he’s going to possess a lot of obstacles that I need to overcome that night. He has a lot of experience, also, as an amateur fighter.. So I expect a good veteran coming out of this fight."
It’s been well-chronicled that Viloria’s tailspin a few years ago landed him at the Alameda Swap Meet in Los Angeles. It was a far cry from performing at the Staples Center and Thomas and Mack Center. For Viloria, it was a humbling experience, but one that might go a long way in making this title reign a much more prosperous one.
"It’s always in the back of my mind," said Viloria, who began and ended his 2008 at this venue, "We talked about how I had to overcome that whole obstacle with trying to get my whole foot back in the door, becoming a world champion, again. And I had to start off with fighting in the Alameda Swap Meet. How I came so far and how much I appreciate being a world champion, how hard it is to stay as a world champion, [it] goes to show you how I am, as far as me trying to be resilient in the sport.
"I just look back at those type of experiences and it’s like, ‘Man, I do not want to be back to that whole situation again.’ It motivates me to stay strong and be in shape all the time in every fight. I just think back to those type of fights and it’s like, ’I came a long way from that.’"
While he refers to that period of his career as “Ground Zero,” he actually has fond memories of the venue.. From the freezing torrential downpour in his first outing there in January of 2008, where he had to be carried into the ring so his boxing shoes could stay dry to the smell of bacon dogs that permeated the air.
The last time he had a title, Viloria, just rented it. He might be ready to have ownership of it this time around.
"Brian’s a much more mature person," pointed out Gittelsohn. "He understands that the first time around came very, very easy to him. I think he also appreciates that you rarely get a second bite at the apple. He appreciates what he has now and he knows that he can’t be complacent and that he has to work very, very hard to keep what he has. Sometimes you have to work harder to keep a world title than to achieve one.’
The Crimson Tide and Saban pointed to their 2009 blowout loss to Utah in the Sugar Bowl as a motivating factor in winning the BCS title this past season. Viloria, points to this. "I just have to look back at the Alameda Swap Meet and that’s my main motivation of wanting to stay as a world champion as long as I can," said Viloria, who decisioned Jesus Iribe in his hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii in his last performance. He captured his current title by knocking out Ulises Solis in April to win the IBF strap. "That whole year was a rebuilding year, but it also made me realize that anything can go the way you don’t want it to go. So you have to hold onto every moment, prepare for every fight like it’s your last fight and I’ve matured so much from that point and learned so much from that experience that it made me a fighter that looks at every fight like it’s my last fight."
Now, there’s an attitude that would make coach Saban smile.
GRANDPA
Part of Viloria’s rehabilitation process going into 2008 was situating him with the right trainer and the proper training atmosphere. Gittelsohn decided that taking Viloria out to Oxnard and its relatively Spartan conditions, under the guidance of Robert Garcia, would be the remedy. Garcia is quickly becoming an elite cornerman; with a roster of fighters that also includes WBO featherweight champion, Steven Luevano, Brandon Rios and his highly touted younger brother, Miguel Garcia.
The trainer put the “punch” back in “The Hawaiian Punch” and gave him a ring identity.
"It’s really a big difference. When he first came to me, he was too nice in the ring. It seemed like he didn’t want to really hurt his opponent. The very first fight he did with me, he should’ve won by knockout but he was too careful to take a chance and hurt his opponent. I didn’t know if it was the fights he lost, or what happened, with Ruben Contreras," said Garcia, of the opponent who was hospitalized after his fight with Viloria in May of 2005 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. "I don’t know what was holding him back, but little by little, we kept pushing him in the gym. All the other guys, not only myself, but Brandon Rios, my brother, Steven Luevano, pushed each other to be better and better. So that started bringing that back in him.
"And me of course, telling him, ’Hey, we gotta do this,’ pushing him. So he came to the point where I wanted him to be and it looks like he’s doing good now."
In his view, he has the best junior flyweight on the planet.
"Yes, right now he is," Garcia said. "With my fighters in their division, I always like to see fights of the other fighters that are champions in their weight class. I see the108-pounders, the only one that could be up there with him is Calderon because of his style; the way he boxes. He’s a beautiful boxer, he can out-box anybody. But I see him already getting to a point where he’s tired of the sport. He’s already looking at a big fight, a big payday against Viloria because he knows he’s running out of time. So I think it’s a perfect time for Brian right now to be able to beat him.
"I see (Giovanni) Segura; I’ve seen a few of his fights,” continued Garcia. “Segura’s just very, very strong but he lacks skills. (Edgar) Sosa, I think Brian beats Sosa. Brian lost to him when Brian was out of boxing, his mind wasn’t there. So that’s when he lost to him. But Brian beats Sosa without a problem. Calderon might be the only one [to give Viloria a run for his money] because of his style."
PPV
This card will be broadcast on pay-per-view in the States on Friday night beginning at 10 PM, Eastern/7 PM Pacific, and will also include the battle for the WBO minimumweight title between titlist Donnie Nietes and Ivan Meneses.
THE REMATCH
Just in case you missed it, here are my thoughts on the rematch between Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones that his slated for April 17th in Las Vegas: http://www.maxboxing.com/news/sub-lead/b-hop-rj-ii-wtf-
FINAL FLURRIES
It looks like it’s official. WBA junior welterweight titlist Amir Khan, has now joined the Golden Boy Promotions stable. Khan joins the likes of Naseem Hamed, Ricky Hatton and Joe Calzaghe, as guys built and developed into attractions by Frank Warren, who have bolted from him once they came on American soil. Who’s drawing up his contracts?...Just wondering, does this eventually lead to a Khan-Hatton showdown in the summer? Both have ties with GBP...I thought Kassim Ouma might have beaten Vanes Martirosyan, who got back on his roller skates for this fight...Tony Romo became, what we all thought he was...I’ll say it right now, LeBron James might be the greatest athlete I’ve ever seen in the NBA. He has the size of a power forward, runs like a guard and has the strength and power of a center...Remember “Up Close” with Roy Firestone on ESPN? I used to watch that religiously as a kid. ESPN Classic is showing “Up Close Classics” and I can’t get enough of them...Any questions or comments can be directed to me at k9kim@yahoo.com... twitter.com/stevemaxboxing…
