Here’s fair warning to Manny Pacquiao who reportedly has little respect for his next opponent Jorge (Coloradito) Solis.
According to Top Rank publicist Ricardo Jimenez, the Mexican is no pushover and fights like Juan Manuel Marquez, the durable warrior who survived three knockdowns in the first round to salvage a draw with Pacquiao three years ago.
Jimenez told The STAR in an e-mail from Los Angeles the other day that Solis is “a very good technical fighter who is at his best as a counterpuncher.”
Solis, 27, takes on Pacquiao in the main event of a Top Rank card called “Blaze of Glory” at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on April 14. He is rated No. 2 by the WBC and No. 4 by the WBO. The Guadalajara fighter has reigned as the Mexican featherweight champion since 2003 and has a 32-0-2 record, with 23 KOs.
“Solis reminds me of a younger version of Marquez,” said Jimenez. “Of course, he doesn’t have the experience and the ability to keep Pacquiao off him and that will be the key to the fight.”
Jimenez said if Solis fights Pacquiao like Marquez did, the Filipino will be in for a long night. Clinical counterpunchers, who control the tempo of a fight with their jab, frustrate sluggers like Pacquiao because they don’t give them the chance to engage. That’s how Marquez managed to go the distance with Pacquiao and almost stole the decision.
Jimenez said Solis, a bachelor, is “totally dedicated to his boxing career” and fighting is in his blood with older brother Ulises (Archie) Solis the IBF superflyweight champion. With everything to gain and nothing to lose against the world’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter, Solis looms as a dangerous foe. He’s expected to go for broke in the ring, realizing a win over Pacquiao will be his ticket to fame and fortune.
A 5-10 stylist, Solis towers over Pacquiao and will use his advantage in height and reach to fight from a distance and keep the Filipino at bay.
Solis has vowed to end Pacquiao’s dominance over Mexican fighters and is calling on Hispanics to jam the Alamodome to jeer the Filipino. He’s turning the fight into an ethnic war by calling Pacquiao “Republica Enemy No. 1” for humbling Mexican fighters Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales twice, Oscar Larios, Emmanuel Lucero, Hector Velazquez and Gabriel Mira.
Fight tickets – priced from $35 to $300 – went on sale last Feb 24, a Saturday, and Top Rank announced the opening weekend sales nearly grossed $500,000. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said it was the second biggest opening weekend sales for a boxing event in San Antonio history since the Julio Cesar Chavez-Pernell Whitaker bout in 1993. It eclipsed the early sales for the Oscar de la Hoya-David Kamau fight in 1997 and the Pacquiao-Barrera duel in 2003.
To spice up the Alamodome show, Arum assembled a strong undercard.
Brian Viloria faces Mexico’s Edgar Sosa for the vacant WBC lightflyweight crown while WBC superflyweight champion Christian Mijares stakes his crown against two-time world titlist Jorge Arce in a Mexican civil war.
“Arce will be looking for his third world title in three different divisions and it should be a great fight which, in any other card, would be the main event,” said Jimenez. “Viloria will be looking to regain the WBC belt against another tough Mexican and Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. will also be part of the card.”
