The Top Puerto Rican Boxing Prospects: March 2014

1.                  Jose “Sniper” Pedraza 16-0 (10 KO) [Super Featherweight]

2.                  Jonathan “Mantequilla” Gonzalez 17-0-1 (14 KO) [Jr. Middleweight]

3.                  Luis “Orlandito” Del Valle 18-1 (13 KO) – Bayamon [Featherweight]

4.                  Felix Verdejo 11-0 (7 KO) [Lightweight]

5.                  McWilliams Arroyo 14-1 (12 KO) – Fajardo      

6.                  Carlos Ivan “Twin Dream” Velasquez 15-1 (11 KO)

7.                  Gamalier Rodriguez 22-2-3 (15 KO) – Bayamon [Featherweight]

8.                  Luis “El Artesano” Cruz 21-2 (16 KO) – Las Piedras [Lightweight]

9.                  Prichard “Digget” Colon 7-0 (7KO) – Orocovis [Jr. Middleweight]

10.              Jesus M. Rojas 19-1-1 (14 KO) 

11.              Jayson “La Maravilla” Velez 21-0 (15 KO) – Juncos [Featherweight]

12.              McJoe Arroyo 13-0 (7 KO) - Fajardo [Super Flyweight]

13.              Luis Rosa 16-0 (7 KO) – Connecticut, USA [Super Bantamweight]

14.              Michael Perez 19-1-2 (10 KO) – Newark , NJ [Jr. Welterweight]

15.              Emmanuel “Manny” Gonzalez 14-0 (7KO) – NYC [Super Featherweight]

16.              Reylando “El Maestro” Ojeda 13-0 (8 KO) – San Juan / Canovanas [Lightweight]

17.              Miguel “No Fear” Cartagena 12-0 (5 KO)

18.              Emmanuel Rodriguez 8-0 (5 KO) – Vega Baja [Super Flyweight]

19.              Frank “Notorious” Galarza 12-0-2 (7KO) – Brooklyn , NYC [Jr. Middleweight]

20.              Thomas Dulorme 21-1 (14 KO) – Carolina /D. Republic [Jr. Welterweight]

21.              Robert J. Acevedo 8-1 (5KO) - Bayamon

22.              Vicente Miranda 16-1 (9 KO) – Bayamon

23.              Jonathan Oquendo  24-3 (16 KO) – Vega Alta

24.              Jorge “Destroyer”  Melendez 28-3-1 (26 KO) – Manati

25.              Jose “Wonder Boy” Lopez 13-0 (11 KO) – Carolina [ Super Bantamweight ]

26.              Israel Vazquez 9-0-2 (6 KO)

27.              Wilkins Santiago 9-0-1 (1KO) -  Ohio, USA

28.              Gabriel Bracero 23-1 (4 KO) – Brooklyn, NYC

29.              Frank Santo de Alba 10-1-2 (4KO) – Bayamon / Pennsylvania, USA

30.              Jose Martinez 10-0 (7 KO)

31.              Luis “La Roca” Hernandez 10-1 (6KO) – Rio Piedras

32.              Alberto Mercado 8-0 (2KO) – Las Piedras

33.              *Dusty Harrison-Hernandez 20-0 (11KO) – Washington D.C.

34.              John Karl Sosa 8-0 (6 KO) – Caguas [Jr. Welterweight]

35.              Edgardo “Sasso” Lopez 9-0-1 (4KO)

36.              Jose Martinez 10-0 (7 KO) - Las Marias [Bantamweight]

37.              Javier Flores 9-0 (8 KO) – Hartford, Connecticut, USA

38.              Rafael Vasquez 10-1 (8KO)

39.              Emmanuel Rivera 9-1 (5 KO)

40.              Edgardo Laboy 7-0 (4 KO) [Featherweight]

41.              Eliezer Gonzalez 14-0 (9 KO) – Cupey Alto [Jr. Middleweight]

42.              Jonathan Vidal 17-2 (9 KO) – San Juan [Bantamweight]

43.              Antonio “Carita” Nieves 5-0 (2KO) – Ohio , USA

44.              Jose Aguirre 6-0 (4 KO) – Manati

45.              Janiel Rivera 10-1-2 (6KO)

46.              Edwin Soto 9-0-2 ( 4 KO)

47.              Kevin Nieves 6-0 (3KO)

48.              Starling Cordero 7-0 (4KO)  - Carolina [Bantamweight]

49.              Andy Mejias 14-0 (6KO)

50.              Angel Fret 16 -0 (13KO) – Vega Alta [Super Bantamweight]

51.              Alberto “El Explosivo” Machado 5-0 (3KO)

52.              Fransisco Almestica Garcia 6-0 (4 KO) – [Welterweight]

53.              Charlie Clemente 6-0 (4KO) – Carolina [Super Flyweight]

54.              Carlos Narvaez 6-0 (5 KO)

55.              Jonathan Perez 5-0 (3KO) – Moca [Jr. Welterweight]

56.              Fransisco “Pechuga” Vargas 2-0 (2KO)

57.              Braulio Santos 11-2 (10 KO) – Carolina [Featherweight]

58.              Jeffrey “Dinamita” Fontanez 15-0 (11 KO) – Caguas [Lightweight]

59.              Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez 13-1 (11 KO) - Caguas [Flyweight]

60.              Jorge Diaz 17-3 (10KO)

61.              Daniel Rosario 7-0 (6KO) - Caguas

62.              Angel “Tito” Acosta 6-0 (6KO)

63.              Osenohan Vasquez 6-1 (1 KO) – Jersey City , NJ

64.              Abner “Pin” Cotto 17-2 (7KO) [Lightweight]

65.              Yomar “The Magic” Alamo 4-0 (4KO) – Aguas Buenas

66.              Christopher “Pitifo” Diaz 3-0 (2KO)

67.              Kenny Galarza 16-2 (15KO) – Ponce / Juana Diaz [Jr. Welterweight]

68.              Noel Echevarria 11-2 (6 KO) – North Carolina, USA [Lightweight]

69.              Camilo Perez 9-2 (4 KO) – Carolina

70.              Miguel “El Loco” Robles 12-4 (5 KO) – San Juan

71.              Edwin Rodriguez 5-0 (4KO) [Super Flyweight]

72.              Emmanuel De Jesus 10-0 (6 KO) – Canovanas [ Jr. Middleweight]

73.              Antonio “Cacique” Ortiz 4-0 (3KO) - Humacao

74.              Miguel Marrero 7-0-2 (4KO)

75.              Kenneth Rivera 5-1 (4KO) [Featherweight]

76.              O’Nell Negron 9-1-2 (8KO)

Danny “Swift” Garcia: The Irrational Scrutiny.

Let’s look at Danny “Swift” Garcia at 26 year boxer with a professional boxing record of 28 – 0 16 KO’s, the WBA (Super) & WBC 140 lbs. champion, with 6 successful world title defenses, and the undisputed champion at 140 lbs. Not even the future IBHOF Miguel Cotto achieved that much at 140 lbs. At any rate, you see a lot of irrational hate towards Danny Garcia many times this is fueled by things other than boxing, and a group of so called fans that use the sport to push their own agendas.

Garcia has defeated Lucas “The Machine” Matthysse the mythological boxer juggernaut, and the darling of the network commentators and the casual fans. Looks like many in the boxing sports media and commentators still have some residual trauma from seeing their darling Matthysse being defeated.

Garcia defeated Zab Judah, Erik Morales twice, Amir Khan, Kendal Holt, and Nate Campbell. A pretty good record for a 26 years old boxer that is under constant scrutiny by the boxing media and the causal fans mainly dominated by ethnics groups not very partial, or objective towards any Puerto Rican boxer with any kind of success. All one has to do is look at all the boxing threads through the web and people will obtain an idea.

The most recent fight vs. Mauricio Herrera for the WBC and WBA (Super) world titles is the most recent example of the bias and hate towards Garcia. In contrast, you won’t see the same hate and criticism for a boxer like Mikey Garcia that is not even the undisputed world champion in his respected division. Additionally, Mikey Garcia has been fighting the old WBO recycled C class boxers, yet he is deemed to be among the pound for pound best.

The double standard and hypocrisy is great, yet Garcia continues on regardless of all that is said. Be that as it may, the casual fans and media can create a new monster that will defeat Garcia, and it will give him an opportunity to prove them all wrong and shut their mouths. Looks like the new adopted monster is Provodnikov or at the age of 33 Mayfield that has accomplished nothing but defeat NABO boxers.

The intelligence of the average boxing fans has gone down since the 1990’s with the rise of human piñatas and their fan base that believe that the Rocky Movie is the standard of great boxing. Notice that the new hero of the causal fans is Mauricio Herrera, I counted a total of 73 clinches by Herrera, and according to the commentators and many in the boxing media smothering, head-butts, jabs, rushing in head first, and landing an occasional right hand wins a world championship.

However, what matters is the judges and their scoring that was Gustavo Padilla (Panama) 114-114; Carlos Colon (Puerto Rico) 116-112; Alejandro Rochin (Mexico / USA) 116-112. Sorry, but Steve Farhood, Paul Malignaggi, Al Berstein, and others are not professional judges, but simple commentators that are there to entertain and appease the ethnic demographics that supports their network. Their opinion is irrelevant outside entertaining and nothing more.