Undefeated 28-year-old Joselito Velazquez from Oaxaca, Mexico is ready to shine bright on the undercard of the upcoming light heavyweight clash between Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Dmitry Bivol, which takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Velazquez will go against Jose Soto.
Velazquez, whose record is 14 and 0 with 9 KO’s was signed to Espinoza Boxing Club after a stellar Amateur career. He was a pan-am games gold medalist in 2011 and 2015. He also represented Mexico in the 2016 Olympic games.
He’s coming off a unanimous decision win over Gilbert Mendoza and is being groomed for a world title shot in the near future.
“Joselito is a talented fighter and he’s getting better and better every time he fights,” stated his long time manager Frank Espinoza. “I’m very pleased with his progress.”
A world title shot is something Velazquez and Espinoza are shooting for in 2022 or 2023.
“I’ve trained hard for this. This a very important fight which puts me on a path to become a world champion. Soto is my biggest test yet and I plan to pass with flying colors,” Velasquez said. “I’m going to prove that I have what it takes to fight for a world title.”
Espinoza agrees.
“This fight will tell us a lot. Soto is pretty good little fighter but Joselito has consistently improved. I think we’ll see another solid performance from Joselito this weekend. As long as he keeps winning, a title shot is inevitable.”
Velazquez has been training alongside “Canelo” Alvarez in San Diego under the guidance of Eddy Reynoso.
“Training with Eddie and alongside 'Canelo' has been a real blessing. I’ve learned a lot and I’m inspired,” he said. “It makes a huge difference and it makes me a better fighter overall. I’ve adapted well to their training and discipline. I've also incorporated some of their more defensive style into my own and it’s just made me a more complete fighter.”
It’s exactly what Espinoza was expecting when he decided to bring Velazquez into Reynoso’s camp.
“We knew Eddie and Canelo would have a positive impact on Joselito,” he said. “Reynoso is the best and Canelo is the best fighter pound for pound. The positive impact on Joselito is obvious and it’s been crucial to his development.”
Velazquez understands the importance of being on such a high-profile card.
“It’s a big deal of course. The whole world will be watching and I plan to make the most of it,” he says. “It’s historic. Canelo is my teammate and it’s great to be a part of this. It means a lot to me.
“This is the most important fight of my career and I’m going to make the best of it. I hope the fans are ready for a great performance. That’s what it’s going to take to get a title shot and being a world champion is all I think about.”
Espinoza, who was responsible for putting Velazquez on the card feels exactly the same.
“This is going to provide Joselito with tremendous exposure not only on television but in front of the fans at the MGM. What they’re going to see is a talented young man on his way towards a title shot.”