Proving once again how he is never, ever in a dull fight, Mexican warrior Orlando Salido stopped late sub Aristides Perez last night in Sonora, Mexico. The teak-tough veteran forced Perez – a late replacement for original foe Amphon Suriyo, who reportedly encountered visa problems – to remain on his stool at the start of the 8th round.
Salido is now 44-14-3(31), while Perez is now 30-10-2(16).
Salido didn’t have things all his own way during the fight. Dropped by an uppercut to the head in the 3rd, Perez gave Salido’s fans a scare. But, once again battling back from adversity, “Siri” bullied Perez, with body shots especially. Perez had had enough after round seven, opting to remain on his stool (will Perez get even a half of the backlash Kell Brook is currently on the receiving end of after his loss to Errol Spence Junior last night!)
Salido remains on course for a return fight with pound-for-pound star Vasyl Lomachenko; he of course being the only man to have beaten the emerging superstar at pro level. It remains to be seen if a second fight can be worked out, but fight fans are eager to see it. Can Salido repeat his close decision win over Lomachenko, or has “Hi Tech” improved too much since then (the fight taking place in March of 2014)?
It’s arguably the most interesting and intriguing return fight that can be made in boxing today, and with Salido involved, you know it won’t be dull. How many great fights has Salido, now aged 36, given us throughout his long and hard career? Too many to keep count of. Has Salido got one more great fight left in him? Certainly, after having served the sport so well, so honourably, the former featherweight king is fully deserving of one last big pay day before he retires.
Let’s hope the respective promoters of Salido and Lomachenko can thresh out a deal for a rematch in the late summer.
