By James Slater: Five years ago today (January 25th) Nicaraguan wild man Ricardo Mayorga well and truly established himself at the elite level of the welterweight division, with a stunning and unexpected 3 round TKO win over the talented World Boxing Council 147 pound champion Vernon “The Viper” Forrest. Mayorga, then aged 29, and with a relatively modest record of 24-3-1(22) had won the WBA version of world honours at welterweight, with a TKO win over Andrew Lewis in his previous fight. But going into his bout with the 35-0 Forrest, “El Matador” was very much the underdog.
Forrest, then aged 32, had just beaten the sensational “Sugar” Shane Mosley (twice) to win his WBC belt. Going up against the dangerous, yet wild and reckless Mayorga, Forrest wasn’t expected to have too much trouble. What actually followed, however, was a huge upset.
The fight took place in Temecula, California, and very quickly it was clear Forrest was in with a fighter he was having trouble with. Mayorga’s punch power was also soon causing the WBC champ a lot of problems. Forrest began round one by boxing and moving, but towards the very end of the round Mayorga caught him with his powerful punch and sent him down. Forrest complained, claiming he’d slipped, but a count was given by referee Marty Denkin.
Now it was obvious to everyone how dangerous Mayorga was. A good round of two-way, slugging action ensued in the next three minutes, with Forrest having the definite edge. This made the ending, when it came in round 3, somewhat unexpected, to say the least. Catching Forrest as he was along the ropes, Mayorga sent him reeling with a big right hand and down “The Viper” went. Forrest beat the count, but was deemed too badly hurt to continue by the third man in the ring. Ricardo Mayorga was the new WBC/WBA welterweight king at two minutes and six seconds of round number three!
Assuring everyone he’d lost only because he’d boxed the wrong type of fight, Forrest got himself an immediate return. Meeting again six months later, this time in Las Vegas, the two men battled for the full 12 rounds. Mayorga won a much closer fight via a majority verdict. Proving victory number one had been no fluke, the Nicaraguan had beaten the gifted Forrest for a second time.
Today, with both fighters having re-emerged on the world scene after suffering a combination of injuries, defeats (in Mayorga’s case, anyway) and layoffs, a third bout is a strong possibility. Forrest recently climbed to the top of the light-middleweight division with a points win over Carlos Baldomir – in a fight that contested the vacant WBC 154 pound title – while Vargas put himself back in the big picture with a points win over archrival Fernando Vargas at super-middleweight.
Presuming a suitable weight for both men can be arranged, a Mayorga Vs Forrest fight three is now very much on the cards for the near future. With Mayorga still being the only man to have ever beaten him, Forrest is desperate for revenge!