Rios-Chaves

(Photo credit: Ed Mulholland/HBO) By Dan Ambrose: #10 IBF Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KOs) plans on finding out what Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KOs) has left in the tank tonight by taking the fight to Rios in the center of the ring and testing his chin in a way that he’s not been tested before.

Rios has taken beatings in his last two fights against Manny Pacquiao and Mike Alvarado in losing both fights. The kind of punishment that Rios has taken sometimes causes deterioration in a fighter. If there is any, Chaves will bring it out because he’s going to be looking to knock Rios out with every shot he throws.

“This will be war in the center of the ring,” Chaves said.

By Dan Ambrose: Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KOs) made weight today for his fight this Saturday night against Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KOs) at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Rios weighed in at 147 pounds.

Surprisingly, Rios didn’t look nearly as weight-drained as he normally does for his weigh-ins. He still looked a little weight drained, but not to the extent for his recent fights.

Rios has been talking about having gone back to the basics for this fight and worked extra hard without the help of a strength and conditioning coach to help him shed the excess weight. Rios feels that he was drained from his workouts with his strength coach for his last two fights.

By Dan Ambrose: Former WBA lightweight champion Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KOs) says for his fight this Saturday night against Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KOs) that he’s trained like he used to do when he was a world champion years ago.

Chaves is by far the biggest puncher that Rios have ever faced before during his career and he’s going to be hit a lot in this fight. Rios takes pride in having a great chin that he feels is unbreakable, but we’re going to find out if that’s true or not when he starts getting hammered by Chaves’s huge shots.

By Dan Ambrose: #10 IBF Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KOs) has received his visa today to travel to the United States to face former WBA lightweight champion Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KOs) this Saturday night on HBO from the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

Chaves had to wait to get his visa due to a backlog on visa applications. Rios’ promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank pushed hard in reportedly contacting senator Harry Reid to see if he could speed up the process. Arum was ready to have light welterweight Jose Zepeda step in and take the fight with Rios if Chaves couldn’t get the visa.

By Chris Williams: Top Rank promoter Bob Arum got help by senator Harry Reid in getting the visa for Brandon Rios’ opponent for Saturday Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KOs), according to Dan Rafael of ESPN. Arum contacted Reid when it appeared that Chaves wasn’t going to be able to get his visa in time due to a backlog of visas at the U.S immigration services.

Chaves is traveling from his home country of Argentina to face Rios in a fight televised by HBO at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

“We had Harry Reid’s office helping us with the consulate in Buenos Aires,” Arum said to Dan Rafael of EPN. “We got a call from Sen. Reid’s office that the visa was cleared. Sen. Reid knows this is an important event for Las Vegas and his office went to bat on it and accomplished a miracle.”

By Dan Ambrose: Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KOs) will be fighting for the first time in nine months when he gets in the ring in fight against the tough #10 IBF Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KOs) in a 10 round bout at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Rios-Chaves fight is part of an HBO After Dark split site double-header. WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (24-0-1, 22 KO’s) defends against #10 WBO Blake Caparello (19-0-1, 6 KOs) from the Revel Resort, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA.

By Dan Ambrose: Former WBA lightweight champion Brandon Rios (31-2-1, 23 KO’s) is calling his August 2nd fight against #10 IBF Diego Chaves (23-1, 19 KO’s) a “Do-or-die fight for me,” when he faces the tough Argentinian at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

At media workout today in Oxnard, California, Rios said Chaves is a tough fighter. I expect a hard fight and one the fans will enjoy. Believe me, I’m far from finished. I want to get to the position I was in before.”