Gilroy’s Guerrero returns to ring Dec. 20 with televised fight
in Miami, Florida.
GILROY – It’s been four months since Robert ‘The Ghost’ Guerrero has fought – the longest lay-off of his brief professional boxing career. But Friday night in Miami, Florida, Gilroy’s undefeated junior featherweight will make his return to the ring for a six-round bout – which will be televised on ESPN2 at 6 p.m.
“I feel good. I feel strong. I went to see (my doctor) today. He said I’m ready to go. I’m ready to get in there,” said the 19-year-old pugilist, who took time off for his strained shoulder to heal. “I’ve been wanting to fight. I was going to fight last month but the doctor said to take more time. If not, I could cause more injury.
“For a fighter, (four months) is a long time.”
Guerrero won a unanimous decision over Freddie ‘The Rabbit’ Castro back in July at the Riot At The Hyatt in Monterey, but not before suffering a shoulder strain and deep gash over his eye.
“He’s 100 percent now,” said Ruben Guerrero, Robert’s father and trainer. “He was going to fight earlier but the doctor figured he should give it more time for his shoulder to heal. He didn’t want to risk it because if he’s not 100 percent, he could get injured and his career could be ruined.”
With a 8-0 record, including one knockout, the southpaw slinger heads to Miami to fight an unannounced opponent. According to the Guerrero camp, a former world champion is being lined up but they will not know until the middle of the week who it will be. Guerrero – a 122-pounder – is expected to fight at 126 pounds in his upcoming bout.
“When you’re coming up in the rankings – right now he’s fighting six- to eight- rounders until he’s a main event – it’s just the way it is,” Ruben Guerrero said. “Right now, you have to be ready for anybody. Lefthander or righthander, you just don’t know.”
On thing’s for sure, Guerrero will be ready for anybody since he has been training down at the Joe Goosen Camp in Los Angeles – where many world champions have come out of. The Gilroy-native, who still works out at the Sixth Street Gym in Gilroy, was welcomed by Goosen so he could get better sparring partners before his next bout.
“Basically, everything is the same, but the sparring is more intense and more work. I can hit these guys and they won’t get hurt,” said The Ghost of sparring in Los Angeles. “They get me in more shape and keep me on my toes.”
Guerrero – who has won all three of his fights in Miami – was sparring in the Sixth Street Gym yesterday before flying out today. Taking the trip with him are his father, Ruben, and manager, Bobby Santos, of San Jose, and well-known cutman Chuck Bodack.
“That’s why we’re leaving so early. We want him to get used to the climate. He’ll do some running and a little bit of sparring when he gets down there,” Ruben Guerrero said. “He wants everyone in Gilroy to know he’s fighting again.”
“I like fighting down there, but it’s hot and humid,” added The Ghost as he jumped some rope. “It really doesn’t bother me, though.”
Guerrero – whose impressive amateur career with the Silver & Black Boxing Club in Gilroy encompassed 150 fights – is anxiously awaiting his first fight in four months.
“My game plan – supposedly he’s a former world champ – is I’m just going to go out the first round and a half and feel him out and see what he’s got,” Robert Guerrero said. “Then pour it on and put everything I learned in the gym to use… I’ve got to get my rhythm going.”
The Ghost is becoming a hot commodity in the boxing world with four scheduled dates on ESPN. In addition, promoters are hoping to pick up Guerrero so he can get on some Home Box Office (HBO) and Showtime cards as he works his way to the top.
“We just take it as it comes. If the knockout comes, then it comes. As long as he gets the win. These guys are pretty experienced. They’re not there to lay down,” Ruben Guerrero said. “He’s been working on more conditioning, more power punching, and a lot more speed.”
