Retirement still not an option for Brian Viloria

From the way Brian Villoria talks, it seems retirement is still far from his mind. "I would rather die doing something I love than live doing something that I don’t," said Viloria during his first public interview after yielding his International Boxing Federation (IBF) light-flyweight belt against Colombian Carlos Tamara last week.

The 29-year old former two-time champion admitted during Friday’s lunch at the Mabuhay Palace of the Manila Hotel that hanging up his gloves would be a very difficult decision for him to make. "It will be tough. It’s (boxing) something I’ve been doing since I was a kid," he said. But all available options will be weigh-in by him once he leaves for Los Angeles this weekend along with fiancée Erika Navarro. "It’s too hasty yet to come up with a decision now. I’ll sit down with my team once I arrive in L.A. and then discuss our next move." "These are decisions I really have to weigh in when I come back to L.A.," said Viloria, adding manager Gary Gitthelson and trainer Robert Garcia will definitely have a huge say on the next major decision that he will make. Viloria lost a 12th-round technical knockout against Tamara in their title fight at the Astrodome last Saturday.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV The Hawaii-born Filipino-American just came out of the Makati Medical Center Monday night after spending three days at the high-end hospital where he was rushed shortly after fainting inside his dressing room just minutes following his loss. Still sporting a small bruise in his left eye covered by a small bandage, Viloria said that low potassium and dehydration caused him to lose a fight he was winning until the eighth round. "As much as I wanted to keep on fighting, when dehydration comes in, your body just shut off. My mind was strong. I wanted to fight, but my body tells otherwise," said Viloria, who gained around 20 pounds days after the fight, owing it to what he referred to as ‘salt table’ given to him by his doctors. Humble in defeat, the ex-champion said Tamara is a great fighter. "I remember one round where I know I hurt him. He was already gasping for air. So after that, I tried to pour everything on him, which unfortunately, took its toll on me later in the fight." "Not to take away from Tamara, but he took all those punches I threw. He really is a great fighter," Viloria added. The Fil-Am boxer also credited referee Bruce McTavish for stopping the fight with 1:45 to go in the final round. "It could have been worse," said Viloria, admitting that initially he thought it was premature to stop the fight since “I’m not hurt and I was blocking all his punches. But Bruce thought it was the right thing to do. I’m just happy I’m still alive." In the event he decides to continue his career, a major alternative is to move up in weight. "Maybe I needed to go back at 115 (lb). 108 has been there for me for years now." – GMANews.TV