Rees Comeback - Gato is Tough Opposition
Published October 15, 2008 by Martin Bean
Wales’s Gavin ‘The Rock’ Rees (27-1, 13 KO’s) will make his return to the ring on the undercard of the Joe Calzaghe-Roy Jones match on 8th November at Madison Square Garden.
Rees, former WBA Light Welterweight Champion and out of action since being dethroned by rugged Andriy Kotelnik in March of this year, has not been handed an easy comeback.
In the opposing corner will be hometown New Yorker, El Gato Figueroa. Not a name immediately known by British fight fans, but a talented fighter nonetheless. Gato is rated highly by the governing bodies (WBC No. 4, IBF No. 8 and WBC No. 14) and has compiled an impressive 19-2 ledger (13 KO’s) against tough opposition.
Gato is likely to know all about Rees too—he has recently been sparring Britain’s Ashley Theophane (who himself is set for a big fight against Zab Judah the same night) so I suspect he will have been quizzing his sparring partner for information on Rees.
The only surprise is that Rees has taken this match at Light-Welterweight; although it is the division Rees won the WBA title in, he previously admitted to not being a natural at the weight and was widely expected to move back down to the Lightweight ranks. This only serves to add further intrigue to the contest.
It is shaping up to be a fantastic night of boxing at the Garden (good, competitive fights on the undercard for a change!) and I have a feeling that Gato-Rees will be a classic fight between two excellent fighters. A full preview will follow, including an interview with Gato himself.
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