By Chris Williams: Unbeaten lightweight contender Mercito Gesta (24-0, 12 KO’s) will be looking to impress next Saturday night in his 10 round scheduled fight against Oscar Cuero (15-7, 12 KO’s) on the undercard of the Brandon Rios vs. Richard Abril fight card at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Gesta, 24, has got to try and look a little better than he did against Manuel Perez last September in Gesta’s very controversial 10 round unanimous decision win. Gesta’s hand speed looked okay in that fight, but his defense was atrocious. He was hit everything that Perez threw and dominated in almost every exchange.

I had Gesta losing the fight by four rounds, and I was amused to see him get the decision. I wasn’t surprised because a lot of people have interest in seeing him succeed, but the performance told me that Gesta won’t succeed unless the lightweight division clears out all of the talent and Gesta improves a whole heck of a lot in the near future. Gesta is ranked #7 WBA, but I don’t see him as a 1st tier lightweight. He fought worse than Perez, who isn’t a 1st tier lightweight.

That makes Gesta a 2nd tier, non-top 15 ranked lightweight in my eyes. Until he improves, if that’s even possible, I see him as a 2nd tier guy trying to find a way to the top tier. They’re doing Gesta no favors by ranking him at #7 in the World Boxing Association rankings. If he gets put in with Brandon Rios any time soon, Gesta will be decimated. For that matter, if they put Gesta in with Rios’ opponent this Saturday night Richard Abril, Gesta would still be destroyed. We’re talking different classes here. Gesta is purely a 2nd tier fighter, while Rios and Abril belong to the first class.

I don’t know what to say about Gesta’s opponent for this Saturday the 26-year-old Cuero. He’s lost five out of his last seven fights, and that’s terrible. Question: Why is Gesta being put in with a fighter like this if he’s got a #7 ranking? Shouldn’t he be matched against better opponents than this? This tells me that even Gesta’s management may see some flaws and might not feel confident that Gesta could beat a 1st tier contender or a high level 2nd tier fighter.