By Jeff Sorby: Carlos Cuadras expects his headliner fight against Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez to be a war from start to finish on Saturday night when the two of them tangle for the vacant WBC super flyweight title on DAZNat the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
The 33-year-old Cuadras (39-4, 27 KOs) was originally scheduled to face former WBC 115-lb champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai for the vacant super flyweight title but he pulled out because he was feeling ill.
Luckily, the 22-year-old ‘Bam’ Rodriguez was available to step up and take the fight, but it could be bad for Cuadras because he’s a much different type of opponent than the heavy-handed Rungvisai.
This is a tough fight for Cuadras, as he’s no longer in his prime, and has really struggled since losing a grueling 12 round unanimous decision to Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez in 2016.
On Friday, a drained-looking Cuadras weighed in at 114.4 lbs and looked terrible. Rodriguez looked a lot better in weighing in at 114.1 lbs, which isn’t surprising because he’s coming up in weight from the flyweight division.
This isn’t the youthful Cuadras that many boxing fans remembered from his fights with Chocolatito, Rungvisai, Juan Francisco Estrada, and Koki Eto. Back then, Cuadras looked strong making weight, but today, he appeared emaciated.
Cuadras lost his last fight to Estrada by an 11th round knockout in October 2020, and he probably should be taking a tune-up instead of jumping into a title fight.
Cuadras says it’ll be a “war”
“I believe it’ll be a tough fight from the beginning to the end,” said Cuadras to Matchroom Boxing on his clash with ‘Bam’ Rodriguez on Saturday night.
“It will be a war from the beginning. I’m going to always be in charge,” said Cuadras. “I want to be in command from the beginning so that he knows that I will be the one that wins the fight.
Watershed moment for Cuadras
“I still have good mobility in my legs, but I’m more settled now. So I don’t jump as much when it’s time to throw punches. I can throw fast, and move myself and throw with power.
“My next fight will be my watershed moment in my career,” said Cuadras in hinting that he may be hanging up his gloves if he loses.
“Either I will rise again to the elite level of boxing or my career will begin to decline. I feel it’s a watershed moment. That’s why I’m preparing at 100 percent. I think I can still be at the elite level of boxing for another three or four years but at 100 percent.
“It would be a great honor for me to be the first Mexican world champion in 2022, as I am very anxious to be back in the ring.
“In 2021, I didn’t step into the ring for one reason or another because of the pandemic or my opponent. But I am anxious to be back in the ring.
“It will be a big honor for me to give Mexico its first world champion in 2022. I’ve watched boxing since I was a kid. I have an uncle who was a boxer. My father boxed as a hobby. He always liked boxing.
“I got into fights a lot in high school. I was a fighter until I decided with my father to go to a gym, and that’s when I really began to like it.
“I haven’t let boxing go ever since. It became part of my life. I preferred boxing more than I did school. That’s when I joined the Mexican team and represented Mexico in many tournaments.
“Then I decided that boxing would become my life,” said Cuadras.
Complete weights for Cuadras – Rodriguez:
- Carlos Cuadras 114.4 vs. Jesse Rodriguez 114.1
- Jamie Mitchell 117.2 vs. Carly Skelly 116.2
- Raymond Ford 126 vs. Edward Vazquez 125.9
- Lorenzo Smith 111.5 vs. Fernando Diaz 111
- Khalil Coe 179.5 vs. Dylan O’Sullivan 177.9
- Elijah Garcia 163.5 vs. Antonio Hernandez 162.5
- Adam Stewart 234 vs. Alvin Davis 223.9
- Aaron Aponte 139 vs. Louis Jourdain 138.8
