Mike Alvarado of Colorado looks to inch one step closer to a title shot as he steps into the ring to face rugged Maurico Herrera of Riverside, California on the undercard of the Brandon Rios fight this Saturday, April 14 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, live on Pay Per View. Also on this championship double-header telecast is Juan Manuel Marquez vs Sergey Fedchenko.
Alvarado who was considered by many to be a prospect is now finally looking like the prospect many considered him to be. However, Alvarado may be one step closer to a title shot should he win this Saturday; Maurico Herrera is not push over.
Maurico Herrera is coming into the fight reeling off five wins since his lone defeat back in December of 2010 and looks to add Alvarado as his 6th straight to up his record to 19-1. Along with the win, Herrera will also land himself in a position to be fighting for a major belt in the near future should he win.
Unfortunately even though Herrera has been on a winning streak, the streak should end this Saturday as Herrera is not ready for the power Alvarado brings to the fight. While Herrera does have a style that can and will cause problems for Alvarado, Herrera also allows himself to be pulled into an Alvarado tailored fight.
Herrera will abandon his jab and try to make it an inside fight. I feel that Herrera will want to prove that he can hang with the harder puncher and stay in the pocket willing to trade punch for punch with Alvarado. This game plan works in Alvarado’s favor and while the action will be great for the fans it may not be as much fun for Herrera.
Herrera can make the fight a little more interesting if he can get an eye to swell up on Alvarado or perhaps a cut, because as much as Alvarado likes to make it a rough fight, it also allows Alvarado to get caught with far more punches than he should. Alvarado also lacks good movement which will allow the more nimble Herrera to outbox Alvarado if he chooses to box from the outside, however while Herrera may try and use this game plan in the beginning, the harder punches from Alvarado will take its toll on Herrera and end up costing him the fight.
In the end Alvarado should have another late round knockout somewhere between the 7th and 10th round.
And then…
Top Rank needs to set Alvarado vs. Rios up should both men win Saturday. These two fighters are what HBO boxing after dark should go after or HBO championship boxing, screw it Showtime should step and pay a significant amount for the fight. While the fight card this Saturday is PPV, Rios is not a PPV fighter. If 
Rios is moving up in weight, then a undefeated fighter such as Alvarado would be the perfect first fight at 140lbs to see what Rios has moving up in weight with power and size. If Alvarado would win then it’s a win-win for Arum and company. While Top Rank may lose a little something with a Rios loss, they gain a good amount with Alvarado. A talented high school wrestler turned boxer, Mexican-American just like Rios, a solid fan base back in Colorado that would explode into a very large fan base should Alvarado be put on the map and Top Rank may finally get their monies worth in Alvarado…Yet it’s all “ifs” it still would something fight fans should call for. Then again perhaps fighting on the same card, Top Rank may already have the wheels in motion…
Place your Bets
Mike Alvarado vs. Mauricio Herrera
Mike Alvarado learned his lesson his last time out, and showed a lot of grit coming from behind to stop Prescott. At 31, he knows now is the time to get a title shot. I don’t think he’ll let Mauricio Herrera ruin that. Alvarez by late rounds KO.
This is the fight I am looking for I dont even care for the main event.
I have seen Maurico Herrera fight live several times and his a pit bull. Many might not know him, just like Tim Bradley, they were both under the same club promoter, Thompson.
Maurico also gave Mike Dallas his first lost.
Make sure to place your bets. I am also willing to take private bets on our new forum.
http://www.myboxingfans.com/forums/
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