By Jeff Aronow: Gabriel Rosado is motivated and ready to face former two-time world champion Daniel Jacobs after learning that he wants to fight him next. Of all the fighters offered to Jacobs (36-3, 30 KOs) at 168, he said he wanted to fight former world title challenger Rosado (25-12-1, 14 KOs) next.
It’s not that the 34-year-old Rosado has accomplished great things in his career that makes Jacobs want to fight him. Rosado has insulted Jacobs by calling him a “Bootleg Andre Ward.”
Rosado has reinvented himself with his new trainer Freddie Roach, and he believes that he’s winning a world title at 168. His goal is to beat Jacobs in his next fight and then go after one of the world champions at super middleweight to win a belt.
Rosado has been in with of the best during his 15-year professional career, but unfortunately, he’s come up short. Here are is a shortlist of the big names Rosado has fought:
- Peter Quillin
- Gennadiy Golovkin
- Alfredo Angulo
- Jermell Charlo
- David Lemieux
- Martin Murray
- Maciej Sulecki
Jacobs vs. Rosado is huge for boxing
“I gave Danny a list of all the champions at 168, and he said he wants to fight you,” said Hearn on his Instagram site in talking on Danny Jacobs wanting Rosado fight next.
“I think it comes from we’re two East Coast guys. He’s from Brooklyn, and I’m from Philly,” said Rosado about Danny Jacobs. “Me and him were supposed to fight years ago back when I fought Peter Quillin for the title, which was a fight that I was winning, but it got stopped on cuts at the end.
“He was up to fight the winner, and then it just started from there. We were supposed to fight, and it never happened. And then I said some things that he didn’t like. I called him a ‘bootleg Andre Ward,’ and he didn’t like that. So he threw shots back, and that’s just where it came from,” said Rosado.
“I’ve been calling him out, and I’ve wanted to fight. I think the fight is huge in boxing period, especially on the East Coast, being that he’s from Brooklyn. I’ve headlined in Brookly and Madison Square Garden, so I’ve got a big fan base in his hometown,” said Rosado.
Jacobs, 33, has fought just once since moving up to super middleweight in a fight against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Before that, Jacobs lost to Canelo Alvarez last May.
Rosado has got the talent and the power to give Jacobs a lot of problems if he fights the way he did in his last bout against Humberto Gutierrez Ochoa. Using his boxing skills, Rosado whitewashed Ochoa in beating him by a lopsided 12 round decision.
Rosado confident of beating Jacobs
“I spoke to him the other day, and he said he was happy to come to Philly,” said Hearn on Jacobs being willing to fight Rosado in his backyard in Philadelphia.
“Did you see the crowd for Sulecki?” said Rosado in mentioning a recent fight that he lost.
“Unbelievable, that was one of my favorite fights,” said Hearn to Rosado. “The atmosphere was unbelievable. I agree. I think you and Danny Jacobs in New York or Philadelphia goes well. Are you confident in that fight? He’s a two-time world champion, and he moved to 168. You’re not really a 168, Gabe, but he’s moving there,” said Hearn.
“Here’s the funny thing. Me and Jacobs, we did a camp many years ago in PA, and I see, and I’ve seen it over the years,” said Rosado. “I’m with Freddie Roach, and we had a great camp. We were preparing like we were fighting Jacobs, thinking that Chavez would come out.
“So we had a great camp, great sparring. I feel stronger at 168 now that I don’t have to cut down. I walk around like 185. For me to get down to 160, it takes a lot of work. So I like my chances against anyone at 168,” said Rosado.
Gabe has seen enough of Jacobs to make him feel confident that he can beat him. He’s got the size and power to defeat Jacobs, and he definitely has the heart. In some of Rosado’s toughest fights. He’s held his own and never backed down.
Against a prime Gennadiy Golovkin in 2013, he lit him up in the 6th round. Golovkin came back in the 7th and hurt Rosado with an uppercut, and took advantage of a bad cut that he had to score a stoppage.
Saunders the weakest of 168-lb champions – Gabe
“You’ve got [Callum] Smith, you’ve got Saunders, you’ve got Canelo and everybody. So I think with Freddie Roach, we’re ready for everybody,” said Rosado.
“You know boxing inside out. We talk about the 168 lb division, and we look at the champions,” said Hearn. “I’ll give you those four world champions, Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders, David Benavidez, and Caleb Plant. Starting with #4, the weakest, I want you to rate those four champions for me,” said Hearn.
“I’d say #4 because he’s the most inconsistent is Saunders,” said Rosado. “Saunders is inconsistent, and he’s just everywhere. I would put Saunders #4, and I would put Plant at #3, even though I like Plant a lot. He hasn’t fought a big name. Then I would put Benavidez and then Smith.
“I wouldn’t consider Canelo the top guy because Canelo is holding the interim, and Smith holds the world title. Benavidez is a good fighter, but he’s still young, and he has a lot of learning to do. He’s a good fighter. Saunders has skills,” said Rosado.
Saunders vs. Rosado would be a great fight if it could get made. Billy Joe is still supposed to be fighting Canelo Alvarez next. Unfortunately, the battle has a high chance of being canceled. If Rosado defeats Jacobs, then Saunders may be an option if he’s still the WBO super middleweight champion by then.
Callum Smith put in a less than stellar performance against John Ryder last November, which has resulted in many boxing fans in downgrading him. They no longer view Callum as the #1 super middleweight in the world.
Rosado’s goal is to win a world title at 168
“Hopefully, we’ll get through this soon, and we’ll look to make the Jacobs fight,” said Hearn to Rosado. “Let’s talk about your career. You’ve had some amazing fights and amazing nights. You keep reinventing yourself. ‘Ah, Rosado’s done,’ and then he comes back with a couple of good wins.
“You lost against Sulecki in a tight fight. If you’d started better, you would have won that fight comfortably. What’s the future look like for Rosado over the next few years? You’ve given a lot to the sport,” said Hearn.
“I’ve had 14 or 15 years as a pro,” said Rosado. “As Bernard Hopkins says, ‘You’re lucky to have ten years.’ To have 15 is insane. I think I’m sharp with the experience, and I think bringing in Freddie for this new chapter, it’s going to open everything up.
“I think for sure we’re going to surprise the 168 lb division. My goal is to win a world title against whoever it is. I believe with my A-game, I can do anything. Any fight that I lost, it wasn’t like I got dominated. Some matches were close, bad decisions, cuts, or things like that,” said Rosado.
Fighting at 160 hasn’t worked out well for Rosado. Moving up to 168 at this stage of his career is the best decision. Rosado should have made that move a while ago. Some dangerous guys could be risky fights for Rosado, but Jacobs and Saunders are both matches that he can win potentially.
Rosado predicting knockout of Jacobs
“So it wasn’t like [I got dominated]. The Golovkin fight was a fight where he got the best of me,” said Rosado. “It was Golovkin in his prime. Other than that, I’ve always been in a fight. It’s up to me to stay focused, stay sharp, have a good camp, and bring in a trainer like Freddie, who pretty much controls the camp.
“I’m a control freak. So if you allow me to control the camp, I’m going to call the shots, and we’re going to do it the way I’m going to do it. With Freddie, it was the first time doing a camp with Freddie, where I did everything he wanted.
“No entourage, and no nothing. It was just Freddie and me. That was kind of new, where I went into the fight feeling great. It was just a different look. So I think we’re going to see Gabe Rosado win a world title Hopefully, this year,” said Rosado.
“I think you and Jacobs has a good chance of happening, and I think the winner of that fight will have to go on for a world title,” said Hearn.
“Listen, I will knock out Danny Jacobs if the fight happens,” said Rosado. “I can beat Daniel Jacobs because I see a lot of flaws in his game. And I think he’s more hype than anything.
“I like the guy, but I don’t think he’d what they make him out to be. So I would like to fight Danny Jacobs and do what Canelo didn’t do, or GGG didn’t do,” said Rosado.
It would be a shock to a lot of boxing fans if Rosado stopped Jacobs because Canelo and Golovkin failed to do so. The only guy during Jacobs’ career that was able to knock him out was Dmitry Pirog in 2010. That wasn’t a fluke thing either. Pirog was on him the entire fight, getting the better of Jacobs, and punishing him.
