Viloria heeds Freddie’s advice

Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach was back in former WBC/IBF lightflyweight and WBA/WBO flyweight champion Brian Viloria’s corner for his fight against Mexico’s Jose Alfredo (Diablito) Zuniga at the Cotai Arena in the Venetian Macau Resort last Saturday night.

Roach’s assistant Marvin Somodio worked Viloria’s corner in his previous bout, a win over Juan Herrera in Las Vegas last March, but was on assignment in another fight card in the US. Instead, Roach joined cutman Ruben Gomez and Wild Card Gym hand Roger (Speedy) Gonzalez in Viloria’s corner in Macau. Roach also worked Chinese flyweight Zou Shiming’s corner that night.

Viloria, 33, was sensational in scoring a knockout in the fifth round, using a single left hook to the liver to flatten Zuniga. Referee Danrex Tapdasan counted Zuniga out. It was over at 1:42 of the fifth. “I was patient in the first four rounds,” said Viloria. “Zuniga came to fight, he wanted to win. He changed his style a little bit and  tried to catch me off-guard by moving around and boxing. I expected him to attack and throw body shots like he did in his last few fights.”

Viloria said Roach wanted him to go to the body. “Freddie told me to throw combinations and attack the body which I did,” he went on. “I got him with a shot to the liver and he was out for the count. I thought I was in control of the fight from the start. But Zuniga’s a tough guy. He wasn’t going away easy.”

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It was Zuniga’s sixth loss and fourth by stoppage but his first abbreviated setback in five years. In December 2009, Zuniga was halted by Gerardo Pinon also with a body shot in the 10th round of a fight for the vacant WBC Latino lightflyweight crown in Mexico.

Viloria said he was happy to post his first win in Macau and it was spectacular. In April last year, his Macau debut was hardly a career highlight as he lost his WBA/WBO flyweight titles to Mexico’s Juan Francisco Estrada on a split 12-round decision. Viloria has repeatedly called out Estrada for a rematch but the Mexican is conveniently playing deaf.

Viloria’s manager Gary Gittelsohn, who was at ringside, said he’s working on a world title shot before the year ends. “We will look to get Brian in a world title contest as soon as possible, certainly before the end of the year,” Gittelsohn told The Star.

Viloria’s one-punch knockout win was described by Gittelsohn as “one of his best performances ever.” Gittelsohn continued, “He showed the full complement of his enormous skill set, he didn’t waste any punches, he made them all count and he demonstrated a veteran champion’s patience, I couldn’t be more pleased with this outing.” Gittelsohn said even as Viloria is turning 34 late this year, the future looks bright.

Viloria said the key is to stay active. “You’ll never know when the opportunity will come for a world title shot,” he said. If Estrada continues to duck him, Viloria said he won’t wait forever. There are two other world flyweight champions to challenge – IBF’s Amnat Ruenroeng of Thailand and the WBC’s Akira Yaegashi of Japan.

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Viloria left Macau for Los Angeles the day after the fight with wife Erica. “We miss (new-born son) Tyler a lot,” he said. “We can’t wait to see him again. We left him in the care of Erica’s parents and sister in L. A.”

Reminded that he’s the missing jewel to restore the country’s “Three Kings” with Manny Pacquiao and Nonito Donaire Jr. back as world champions, Viloria said he’s excited to complete the threesome again. But there’s no pressure to push him to do it. “I don’t feel the pressure at all because in fact, I’m the one who’s looking for a title shot,” he said. “I’m happy for Manny and Nonito. I know the Filipino fans are waiting on me to be back as world champion. I know I’ve got to be patient. I’m leaving it up to Gary to make it happen. My job is to be ready for whatever comes my way.”

Surprisingly, Viloria isn’t ranked by the WBC. He’s rated No. 4 by the WBA, No. 6 by the WBO and No. 7 by the IBF. He’ll probably move up a notch or two as a result of his knockout win over Zuniga.

Estrada, 24, has repulsed two Filipino challengers Milan Melindo and Richie Mepranum since dethroning Viloria. Melindo lost on points while Mepranum was stopped in 10. Estrada is scheduled to make the third defense of his twin crowns against countryman Giovani Segura in Mexico City on Sept. 6. Segura, 32, was halted by Viloria in 2011 and has a 32-3-1 record, with 28 KOs. Estrada’s mark is 26-2 with 19 KOs. Viloria’s win over Zuniga raised his slate to 34-4, with 20 KOs.

Viloria said he won’t mind taking Estrada on in his backyard. “Sure, I’ll fight him in Mexico but it’s got to be a lucrative offer, otherwise it wouldn’t be worth the risk,” he said. “But I think Estrada doesn’t want to fight me. We’ve reached out to him for a rematch but he’s ignoring us. He’s avoiding me.” Since Viloria gave Estrada a chance to win his titles, surely the Mexican should be man enough to repay the Hawaiian Punch with the opportunity to regain the WBA/WBO championships. Or maybe, Estrada just isn’t man enough to face Viloria again.