World Boxing Council (WBC) lightflyweight champion Brian Viloria stakes his crown against Mexican veteran Jose Antonio Aguirre in a scheduled 12-round bout at the Alladin Casino in Las Vegas on Feb. 18.
Viloria’s manager Gary Gittelsohn confirmed the match in a recent e-mail to The STAR.
It will be Viloria’s initial defense of the title he wrested from Eric Ortiz on a first round knockout at the Staples Center in Los Angeles last September.
Gittelsohn’s confirmation ended speculation that Viloria might appear in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Erik Morales rematch at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas on Jan. 21.
World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight titlist Antonio Margarito will take on Manuel (Shotgun) Gomez in another fight on the Top Rank pay-per-view show. WBO strawweight champion Ivan Calderon, who is rumored to be considering a jump to the 108-pound division to challenge Viloria, will also see action.
Aguirre, 30, is in the crossroads of a pro career that started in 1995 when Viloria was only 14. In his last fight, Aguirre floored Roberto Vasquez but couldn’t finish him off and surrendered after suffering a severe cut in his left eyebrow in the fourth round of a World Boxing Association lightflyweight championship bout in Panama City.
Aguirre’s edge is his experience. He has fought in 38 fights compared to Viloria’s 19. A Morales protege, Aguirre held the WBC minimumweight crown for over three years and lost it to Eagle Kyowa on points in his eighth defense in Tokyo in January 2004.
Viloria, however, has the advantage of youth and power. He knocked out Ortiz with a single blow in the first round while Aguirre was stopped by the same Ortiz in the seventh round last March.
But Aguirre had a better showing against two other common opponents. He halted Juan Alfonso Keb Baas in the seventh round while Viloria went the 12-round distance in outpointing the Mexican. Aguirre took only two rounds to dispose of Juan Javier Lagos but Viloria couldn’t put him away and settled for a 12-round decision.
Viloria’s record is 18-0, with 12 KOs and a no-contest. Aguirre’s record is 33-4-1, with 20 KOs.
Because Aguirre is in the twilight of his career and has nothing to lose, he looms as a dangerous challenger for Viloria. Aguirre will go all out to dethrone Viloria and is determined to get the job done.
“We’re already going full blast in training,” said Viloria’s father Benjamin.
Viloria resumed working out at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles a month ago.
Last weekend, Viloria took time off from the gym to host the Honolulu Marathon Race Day Walk in Hawaii. He conversed with the walkers before the fun 10-kilometer event, signed autographs, posed for pictures, led them to the finish line and distributed McDonald’s Apple Dippers after the race.
Viloria was chosen by the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Hawaii to be the walk’s celebrity endorser and honorary team leader. The event was held to raise funds for the benefit of kids and families served by the McDonald House of Charities. From each entry fee of $32, an amount of $20 went to charity.
Viloria, Pacquiao and bantamweight prospect Rey (Boom Boom) Bautista bowled over their opponents on the same Staples Center card last September.
Bautista has since knocked out Tanzania’s Obete Ameme in the second round to retain his WBO Asia-Pacific bantamweight crown in Tagbilaran City and is slated to face rugged Gerardo Espinoza of Tijuana at the Sycuan Resort and Casino in El Cajon, California, near San Diego, on Dec. 23. The fight will be telecast on Telefura’s Solo Boxeo de Miller.
Bautista, 18, has an 18-0 record, with 14 KOs, and is ranked No. 1 by the WBO in the 118-pound division. Espinoza has a 28-9 record, with 26 KOs.
