Former WBA lightweight champion Brandon Rios could be back in the ring as early as March or April next year after a brief retirement from the sport following his TKO loss to Timothy Bradley last July.at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
In a post-fight interview after the Bradley fight, Rios stated that while he loved the sport, he feels that his body isn’t functioning the way he wanted which may have been caused by the long layoff he recently had as well as the weight changes in his recent fights. Rios’ manager Cameron Dunkin said that while Rios has announced his retirement after the Bradley fight, he has since reconsidered his decision. “He said to me, ‘I let so many people down. I don’t want to go out like this,’ ” Rios’ manager Cameron Dunkin said. “But a couple of days after the fight, he reconsidered his decision. I didn’t say anything because there was the possibility he might change his mind again. When I talked to him Tuesday, he said he definitely wanted to keep fighting so we’re going forward.” Rios was visibly out of shape when he fought Bradley which is the reason why he lost. Dunkin thinks Rios will perform well at 147. “He can make 147,” Dunkin said. “But you can’t do it when you start at 205 six weeks before a fight, which is where Brandon was when he began training for Tim. “Bottom line? If Brandon takes care of himself, he can get where he wants to be,” he added. Rios was coming off a TKO win in a rematch against Mike Alvarado last January in Colorado before losing to Bradley last Nov. 7. Dunkin has mentioned Ruslan Provodnikov, Lucas Matthysse and Jessie Vargas as Rios possible opponents for his next fight.
