This Saturday night Manny Pacquiao defends his WBC Welterweight title against Shane Mosley before a sold out MGM Grand Garden arena. Before the crowd sits down to watch the clash of two future hall of famers, the undercard has Top Rank fighter Mike Alvarado of Denver, Colorado, 28-0 ranked 7th in the world by boxrec.com. He will put his undefeated record up against Ray Narh 25-1 of Ghana, who is coming into the fight on a 15 win streak, also on the line is the WBC Continental Americas light welterweight belt.
MyBoxingFans.com had the opportunity to speak to Mike Alvarado about his upcoming fight. When asked what if any concerns he had with Nahr, Alvarado said, “Nahr has a great record but I had a great training camp, my team and I have watched a lot of tape on him and I don’t see anything that I haven’t trained for.”
Mike Alvarado was once considered a prospect by many boxing scribes with a solid chin and power in both hands has seen his stock rise and fall rather abruptly. A brush with the law landed him on probation then a 2nd offense led him to do almost a year in jail. Before he went to jail, Alvarado had a fight with Paulie Malignaggi who was coming off a loss to Ricky Hatton however a month before the fight, Alvarado injured his elbow and had to pull out.
Malignaggi on the other hand, ended up fighting Juan Diaz twice, thus resurrecting the New Yorker’s career (and bank account), and now finds himself mentioned as a contender for big fights and even bigger paydays.
That fight could have led Alvarado down a far different path than he is on now. Alvarado had the power to give Malignaggi trouble and it could have been an exciting fight, but it never came to be. Alvarado feels that he would be farther ahead in his career had that fight happened, however Alvarado now is still looking for a win to put him on the map once again and in a division with such names as Devon Alexander, Marcos Maidana, Amir Khan and Timothy Bradley, coincidentally all fighters that were considered prospects around the same time as Alvarado but now have moved on to become champions or have fought for a title. A win and there are some very good match ups in the future. When asked who he may be targeting after this fight should he win, Alvarado made no bones about him looking for all fighters with the belts, “Timothy Bradley is the top guy and we are both undefeated so that fight makes the most sense but any of the guys with a belt would be fine, Zab Judah or Amir Khan.”
Nahr may not be the name Alvarado is looking for but he must have a definitive win this Saturday night that can thrust him into being mentioned for bigger fights and with Top Rank behind him, it definitely does not hurt his cause.
Alvarado is no longer a prospect and at 30 years of age, time may not be on his side. This is a pivotal year for the Colorado native. A win Saturday almost puts him in position for a big name in the fall or perhaps a 2012 title shot. A loss and its back to square one. Mike’s a good fighter with a good record and recognizable names on his resume. This Saturday is Alvarado’s chance to put himself and his career back on the map.