By Juan C. Ayllon – CHICAGO – It’s a far cry from his day job, where there’s little regard for personal space. There, he can smell the breath and body odor of his opponent, who sweats and sometimes bleeds on him as they batter, parry and manhandle each other in close.
At 19 years of age, Cicero, Illinois’ super featherweight boxing prospect Adrian Granados (2-0, 1 KO) apparently relishes one facet of American pop culture. It’s the one where the intimacy of face-to-face or telephone conversations are nixed in favor of text messages and Facebook and Twitter updates. A case in point: our interview was conducted via email.
Be that as it may, so far, Granados has proved a crowd pleaser, attacking with a savagery generally reserved for a shark in the throes of a feeding frenzy.. However, it’s not just his attack that adds to the intrigue, it’s the fact that he’s very human; in only his second bout, he was hurt and dropped by Jesse Francisco (2-10, 1 KO) in mid-attack at Cicero Stadium in December. Granados rose and went on to stop Francisco later on that round, but like rising stars James Kirkland and Yuriorkis Gamboa, his chin remains a question mark.
That said, his potential is such that acclaimed boxing trainer Isidro “Nacho” Beristain – the same trainer who trains Juan Manuel Marquez and was enlisted by Oscar De La Hoya to prepare him for Manny Pacquiao – trains him. In fact, he enlisted Granados to serve as chief sparring partner for boxing superstar and current World Boxing Organization Lightweight Champion Juan Manuel Marquez.
Tonight, Granados plans to unleash his shark attack style at a tournament in Mexico City, Mexico.
JUAN AYLLON: tell us about a typical day in training. Who did you spar and how many rounds did you spar per day? How many rounds do you go on focus mitt drills, heavy and light punching bags? What calisthenics (push-ups, sit-ups, etc.) do you use? How many miles do you run per day?
Adrian Granados: A typical day of training would consist of roadwork at 6:00 a.m. I’m on a running program so some days I do 6k another 10k and on other days I do sprints. Boxing training usually starts at 11-11:30. I spar mostly everyday depending on how far the fight is. I always start workouts with a 10 minute warm up stretch. Each day switches, I do pad work about 3 times a week from 4-6 rounds. Same goes with heavy, double-end and the speed bag. I usually do around 10-14 rounds on work.
JA: What can you tell us about the tournament you’ll be fighting in this week? Do you know any of your opponents?
AG: I’m fighting in the “Cinturon De Oro” it’s a very popular tournament here in Mexico City> Such champions as Christian Mijares and Israel Vasquez have fought in this tournament. It is televised and receives much publicity out here. I don’t know much of the guys in my weight class, but the tournament has the reputation of having nothing but tough, give it their all warriors. I know that anyone I fight will be a tough opponent.
JA: Rick Ramos said that you were chief sparring partner for Juan Manuel Marquez’ chief sparring partner for his bout against Juan Diaz. What did that experience tell you about yourself, and what was it like to spar with him on a regular basis?
AG: Sparring with Marquez was like a dream come true. He’s my favorite boxer of this generation and the reason why I wanted to be here with this team. He’s a great down to earth guy who taught me a lot. Sparring with him day in and out was intense. I had about a month and a half of it. He chose me to be his sparring because he liked how I was able to copy Diaz’ style and keep pressure on him constantly and with speed and power. I can’t even explain how I felt being in there with my idol trading punches and going through some mini wars in sparring sessions. It’s an experience of a lifetime.
JA: You’ve also been training with Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain for a while. What’s that experience like?
AG: Nacho is the Guru of boxing. Training with him has escalated me to another level. He’s teaching me the tricks of the trade and schooling me on how to really box. Being trained by him is an honor because of all the experience he has and many great champions he has made.
JA: You have an exciting, swarming and bruising style. What’s your favorite punch? Also, in your fight versus Jesse Francisco, you were knocked down. What concerns, if any, does this raise for you and what are you doing to prevent that from happening again?
AG: I have gotten that a lot. I don’t know if it’s a positive or a negative, but with the teaching of Nacho, he’s working on making me more of a complete fighter. To tell you the truth, Francisco did catch me with a good shot. I wasn’t hurt or nothing, he just caught me off balance. Also, I want to add that I fell into the ropes and it was not a legitimate knockdown, but definitely a bad hiccup.
JA: Where do you see yourself going in the next several years, assuming all goes well tomorrow? What are your goals?
AG: Assuming all goes well. I have dreams of one day becoming World Champion. I hope to become one of the bigger names to come out of Chicago. I’m very proud of where I’m from and I hope I can represent them right.
JA: Last thoughts?
AG: God Bless my family, my boxing team back home, Rico Gonzalez, Robinson Ayala, Rick Ramos, and all of Chicago!
Thank you,
Adrian “El Tigre” Granados