By Dan Ambrose: Former WBA lightweight champion Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KO’s) says that his promoters at Top Rank will be bringing hm back in the ring next May against a still to be determined opponent. Rios, 27, wants the opponent to be WBO light welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov (23-2, 16 KO’s). However, it’s doubtful that the World Boxing Organization would sanction a title fight between Provodnikov and Rios given that Rios has lost his last two fights and he’s not ranked in the top 15 by any of the sanctioning bodies at 140.
“They said [I’ll be fighting in] May,” Rios told esnewsreporting. “Ruslan Provodnikov, it would be one hell of a fight. Me and him going at it toe-to-toe; whoever gets dropped wins.”
Provodnikov has been talking about wanting a fight with Juan Manuel Marquez, but it doesn’t look like he’s going to get that fight because Marquez only wants Tim Bradley. Provodnikov will likely settle for a Rios bout if that’s all Top Rank can offer him for his next fight. But if the WBO says no to Rios as his opponent then Provodnikov will likely have to fight Mike Alvarado in a rematch. It’s going to be likely a Top Rank fighter that Provodnikov fights in his next bout, and that means either Alvarado or Rios.
Rios needs a victory really badly, because if he loses to Provodnikov or whoever he’s matched again, it’ll be his third consecutive defeat. I can’t see Top Rank wanting to hold onto Rios for too much longer if he loses that many fights for them. I suspect they’ll hold onto Rios long enough for him to fight Alvarado for a third time, and if he loses that fight, then Top Rank will cut Rios. Once Rios has lost a certain amount of times, he’s dead weight for Top Rank. They can’t use Rios for Pacquiao anymore because of his one-sided loss to him. And Top Rank can’t use him for Bradley, because he needs some solid wins over contenders in the 147 or 140 lb. divisions for him to be given another title shot.
Rios vs. Provodnikov would be a decent fight. I think Provodnikov will turn Rios into a punching bag the same way that Pacquiao and Alvarado did recently, but it’ll be interesting for as long as it lasts. Like I said, I think Top Rank will keep Rios long enough for him to fight Provodnikov and Alvarado. If he loses both of those fights, then he’s probably gone.
I guess Golden Boy Promotions or one of the other promotional companies can sign him, but I’m not sure what direction he’d be able to go. Rios hasn’t been the same fighter since he moved out of the lightweight division, and I think he’s just not cut out to be a contender at 140 of 140. His whole thing was his weight advantage that he had when he was fighting at 135. Without the weight advantages, Rios is a mediocre fighter who absorbs a lot of punishment in his fights.
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