“I sparred eight rounds with Manny Pacquio today,” said IBF super bantamweight champ Israel “Magnifico” Vazquez (38-3, 27 KO) from his home in Los Angeles. “He’s the fastest fighter I’ve ever been in the ring with. He’s very unforgiving. You make a mistake and you pay for it. I’ve learned a lot from Manny,” said Vazquez of the former world champ who will be co-headlining at the Staples center along with Tijuana’s Erik “El Terrible” Morales. “Pac-Man” shares trainer Freddie Roach with Vazquez so a sparring session between the two at the “Wilcard Gym” in North Hollywood was likely. Vazquez realizes that because of the quality of opposition Pacquio has faced, the lessons learned from their sessions are priceless. “He’s gone up against Marquez, Barrera and Morales. It’s a chance to see if I can hold my own against one of the best in boxing,” added Vazquez.
Unfortunately for Vazquez, the action against Pacquio is the most he’s seen in a while. Vazquez’s career has been stuck in stall mode after a few setbacks in the last couple of months. Fights falling apart are nothing new for Vazquez who had three fights postponed against Willie Jorrin for his first title shot. Lately, that same luck has been following Vazquez as other important bouts fell wayside. First, a fight against the highly popular Johnny “Mi Vida Loca” Tapia collapsed at the eleventh hour due to behind the scenes politics. “That was a big disappointment for me but I’m just going to keep training and waiting for the call. That’s all I can do. That’s my job,” says Vazquez. Soon after, negotiations started for a third match against WBC champ Oscar “Chololo” Larios which ultimately led to nothing. Vazquez and Larios had fought a classic give and take war in 2002 with Larios victorious after eleven and a half brutal rounds. The third match was considered the “rubber match” since Vazquez had defeated Larios early in their careers via devastating first round knockout. According to Vazquez, negotiations fell through after a disagreement concerning options, “Larios’s people wanted a situation that just wasn’t right for us. In the end all my promoters were asking for was even terms. No options, nothing. I still want that fight but it doesn’t seem likely it will happen soon,” says Vazquez.
Ironically, according to a recent AP report, Larios is currently negotiating to fight Johnny Tapia and once again options are an issue. Tapia’s people want options on Larios but the WBC champ feels the he’s the one in position to make demands.
The word is now that Vazquez will fight his mandatory IBF challenger, the very dangerous Celestino Caballero out of Panama in late September or October. Sycuan Ringside, which promotes Vazquez, recently confirmed that negotiations between them and Felix “Tuto” Zabala had begun. No contracts have been signed and no venue has been set. Strangely enough, the manager of record for Caballero is Rogelio Espino and not Zabala and it is also rumored that Caballero is now being promoted by Don King. The setting sounds ripe for more uncertainty for Vazquez who somehow manages to make the best of the situation. “Everything happens for a reason. Sycuan and my manager Frank (Espinoza) are making sure we get the best deal and if we have to wait then we’ll wait. I know I’ll eventually get the chance to prove my quality against the top fighters in the world. Caballero is world class so a win over him would mean a lot to my career,” says Vazquez. “After all, I can hold my own against Manny Pacquio who’s one of the best pound for pound. That has to mean something.”
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