Puerto Rico’s newest, freshest star, Oscar Collazo has real greatness on his mind, the achieving of real greatness. The reigning WBA/WBO/Ring Magazine 105 pound champion, southpaw Collazo currently has a Plan-A and Plan-B with which to become a modern great: unify the belts at his current weight, or move up not one but two weight divisions to challenge two-belt flyweight ruler Ricardo Sandoval.
Collazo, like Sandoval, is one of the hottest, most exciting young world champions on the scene right now, and a fight between the two would not only be an addition to the always-fierce Mexico Vs. Puerto Rico rivalry, it would also be a fight between two superb, at or around their peak operators, each man having a fan-friendly style.
Collazo’s Options: Unify or Leap Two Divisions
Collazo, 13-0(10) retained his belts on Saturday night, this when challenger Jayson Vayson’s corner strangely decided to pull their man out in the seventh-round, this when he was seemingly unhurt and very much still in the fight. Sandoval, of Rialto, California, is 27-2(18) and he scored a brilliant win over Japan’s Kenshiro Teraji to become champion in July.
Both Collazo and Sandoval are promoted by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy, so this fight could indeed happen so long as both fighters want it. Collazo wants to scoop up all the belts at 105 pounds, but if he can’t get the unification fights, or maybe after he has been able to unify his current division if he can actually do so, Collazo wants to fight Sandoval.
Puerto Rico vs Mexico: A Classic Rivalry Rekindled?
As of right now, Melvin Jerusalem holds the WBC belt at 105, while Pedro Taduran is the IBF champ at the weight. Collazo says he would skip the 108 pound division, where his countryman Rene Santiago is the WBO champion, and get it on with Sandoval at 112 pounds.
“If we don’t get that unification fight, and my respect for Rene Santiago, my fellow Puerto Rican at 108, I would love to go to 112 and I would like to fight Ricardo Sandoval. Puerto Rican and Mexican, hey, that’s a good matchup,” Collazo said when speaking with Chris Mannix of DAZN.
It is indeed a good matchup, in fact, maybe a Sandoval Vs. Collazo fight would prove to be a great, great fight. Let’s see if De La Hoya and co can make it happen.
