Xander Zayas claims that he’s going to show fans that he’s an “elite fighter” on Saturday, when he battles Jorge Garcia Perez for the vacant WBO junior middleweight title at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City.
“I’m thinking a perfect night where he does what I want him to do. Obviously, that’s not going to happen. He has a corner and he’s going to make some adjustments,” said Xander Zayas to Sean Zittel, talking about his fight against Jorge Garcia Perez this Saturday.
Perez: Zayas’ Nightmare Foe
It could be a real nightmare for Xander on Saturday, going up against the Fundora-esque Jorge Garcia (33-4, 26 KOs), who has power and toughness that he can only dream of having. We could see Zayas get exposed on Saturday, and Top Rank will likely face criticism from fans for creating this hype job that wasn’t prepared for this level of fighting.
“This is going to be one of those ones where people see the difference between the prospect and the world champion. You guys are going to see the difference between the Xander Zayas kid and the Xander Zayas grown man. The elite-level Xander Zayas.”
Let’s get this straight. Xander is NOT an elite-level fighter. He’s not even an A-level guy. His talent falls within the C+ range. He lacks the power and offensive skills to be a B-level fighter.
“I feel like this is the moment. This is the perfect fight to do it. Mexico-Puerto against a fighter who has earned his opportunity and who is hungry to come out victorious. I have to lock in. I’ve been locked in. It’s going to be an exciting night,” said Xander.
Zayas’ Power Deficiency
It’s possible that Zayas can beat Perez on Saturday if he hits and runs all night. But if he stands and trades, he’s going to get mowed down because Perez has a lot more to his game on the offensive side. Zayas has zero power, and he’s been matched by Top Rank the same way they did with Edgar Berlanga when he was with the company. They’ve fed Xander stiffs his entire six-year career to get him to this point. Saturday is really Zayas’ first fight of his career. The 21 guys he fought before were scubs.
“There’s no running after this. There’s no, ‘Oh, he hasn’t done this.’ You’ve got to fight me. I’m the champion now. So, this is one of those fights,” said Zayas.
Top Rank’s Matchmaking Strategy
It’s doubtful that Top Rank will want Xander to fight the top guys if he gets his hands on the WBO 154-lb title. Zayas is not good enough to beat the top contenders, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, Israil Madrimov, Erickson Lubin, or Serhii Bohachuk. Zayas lacks the offense to defeat Vergil Ortiz Jr, Sebastian Fundora, or Yoenis Tellez.
Top Rank would be crazy to match him against any of those fighters because he’ll likely lose the WBO title right away in his first defense. All the money they’ve poured into Xander will have been wasted.