By Gav Duthie: 35-year-old Yuriorkis Gamboa 28-2 (17) shaded a majority decision in a tough fight against former world champion Jason Sosa 20-3-4 (15) on Saturday night. Some view the decision as controversial after Gamboa was knocked down in round 7 and deducted a point in round 10 for holding.
The judges however scored the bout 94-94, 95-93 and 96-92 in the Cuban’s favor. Given that he took the fight on only 3 weeks’ notice it was still an impressive scalp for the former two weight world champion. The question is how much does he have left?
Pound for pound
Gamboa was an Olympic gold medalist in 2004 and turned professional in 2007 taking only 2 years to win his first world title knocking out Whyber Garcia in 4 rounds. By the end of 2011, Gamboa was considered a top pound for pound fighter after taking Jonathon Victor Barros unbeaten record, outpointing Odlandier Solis and beating Jorge Solis and Daniel Ponce De Leon. He moved up in weight adding another world title but struggled to get a career defining fight. A move to Curtis 50 Cent Jackson SMS Promotions proved frustrating as he became extremely inactive. He had to fight the much bigger Terrence Crawford to get that bout he craved inevitably losing much like Guillermo Rigondeaux is being forced to do with Vasyl Lomachenko now.
A chance to be active
After taking the entirety of 2016 off he finally signed with Golden Boy Promotions with Oscar De La Hoya giving him the chance to get back to the top. Unfortunately, the plan went south when he quit against the world’s best journeyman Robinson Castellanos. After quitting many thought it was over but he took another fight 2 months later and now the Sosa fight at short notice.
Basic Fundamentals
During his loss to Robinson Castellanos co-commentator Teddy Atlas said that Gamboa lacked basic fundamentals in boxing and his previous success had been solely due to his talent. It’s a common story when older fighters who base their game on reflexes and speed start to show signs of decline much quicker than tactical fighters. The Cuban has also been knocked down in 8 of his 30 fights although most of the time he has got up to win. That’s exactly what he’s trying to do now. He was considered down and out after he decided not to come out for round 8 against Robinson Castellanos but he is fighting back with these recent victories.
What’s next?
With the clock ticking on his career the Cuban needs to stay active and look for a big fight as soon as possible. At the moment, Gamboa is weighing in somewhere between the 130-135lb divisions. It would make sense to stay in the super featherweight (130lb) division as this is a more natural weight for him and he has more chance to win a title there. His new trainer Pedro Roque says Saturday night was just the beginning for the pair.
Current champions
WBC – Miguel Berchelt 32-1 (28)
WBA – Alberto Machado 19-0 (16)
IBF – Currently vacant (stripped from Gervonta Davis)
Tevin Farmer 25-4-1 (5) v Kenichi Ogawa 22-1 (17)
WBO – Vasyl Lomachenko 9-1 (7)
It should be said that before he looks towards world titles he may owe Jason Sosa a rematch for the controversy of the decision or he may try to avenge the defeat to Robinson Castellanos. In all honesty as much as I respect Gamboa for what he was, I think he struggles to become a world champion again. I think the power and pressure of Miguel Berchelt stops Gamboa, Machado’s strength also. He would stand little chance against Lomachenko also. His best chance is to go for the winner of the vacant IBF clash between Farmer and Ogawa on December 9th, 2017. Another possibility is an all Cuban clash if Rigondeaux somehow wins against Lomachenko also on December 9th. I’m just glad to see there is some life in the old dog yet.