Underdog Boxing: Brian Viloria gets one more shot at a world title

At 30 years of age, Brian “The Hawaiian Punch" Viloria is clearly in the twilight of his career. Starting as a terrific amateur prospect, Viloria showed flashes of brilliance throughout his professional career; winning a couple of world titles. However, these title reigns were short and uneventful. He first won a world title with a scintillating first round knockout win over Eric Ortiz. He won his next fight but lost the title in his second defense. He tried to recapture the WBC light flyweight title but he failed twice. Viloria’s second reign as a world champion came at the expense of Ulises Solis. Viloria fought the fight of his life, finishing Solis in the 11th round and appending the IBF light flyweight title. But again, Viloria won his next fight only to lose the title on his second defense. This, sadly, has been the story of Viloria’s career. All we’ve seen are flashes of brilliance. He’s clearly a very talented fighter but there’s something that prevents him from having a long reign as a world champion. After his last bitter defeat, Viloria decided to go up to the flyweight division. He has won a couple of fights and has earned himself another world title fight. Viloria will go up against Julio Cesar Miranda (35-5-1, 28 KOs) of Mexico. Miranda won the vacant WBO flyweight title when he stopped Filipino Richie Mepranum in the fifth round. He has since successfully defended his title three times, all by knockout. Miranda is one of the strongest punchers in the flyweight division, perhaps second only to Giovanni Segura, but he is not technically sound. He is also a switch-hitter meaning he can fight both as an orthodox and a southpaw. Miranda uses these alternately to confuse his opponents. He has a pretty good left hand which he uses more effectively in the southpaw stance. Viloria has a legitimate shot at winning this title if he stay patient and picks his spots. Of course, it also does not hurt that the fight will be held at Viloria’s hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii. It is a well-known fact that Viloria finds it tough to fight boxers. His losses to Omar Nino, Edgar Sosa, and Carlos Tamara have proven this. However, when up against brawlers, such as Miranda, Viloria fights much better. Miranda will go all out from the opening bell and Viloria will most likely fight fire with fire which only means it will be a very interesting fight. It’s do or die for Viloria. If he fails to get this title now, it may be his last shot. If this doesn’t inspire him, then nothing should. There’s also a chance that Drian Francisco will make his return to the ring in the undercard of the Viloria-Miranda title fight. After losing his interim WBA super flyweight title in Thailand, Francisco has been contemplating on moving up to the bantamweight division. However, he still needs to secure the proper documentation before he is allowed to fight in Hawaii. -- OMG, GMA News