10.10.09 – by James Slater – Talk about a huge shock! Last night, in Tokyo, Japan, 24-year-old Mexican puncher Juan Carlos Salado utterly wrecked Golden Boy Promotion’s latest signing Jorge Linares, destroying “The Golden Boy” inside a round to take the previously unbeaten Venezuelan’s WBA super-featherweight title.
A candidate, surely, for upset of the year award, Salgado-Linares was all over at just one-minute and 13-seconds of the opening round. The new champion sent the favourite crashing to the mat twice, and in so doing improved his unbeaten, but until yesterday largely untested record to 21-0-1(15). Far bigger name and would-be star of the future Linares fell to 27-1(18). Some big plans sure were upset last night..
The talented Linares, also aged 24, was defending the WBA 130-pound belt for a second time, and before his reign at super-feather, the Japan-based boxer had reigned as the WBC 126-pound champion. A pro since 2002, Linares has to his name wins over guys like Oscar Larios and Whyber Garcia (both wins coming inside the distance). Snapped up, to much fanfare, by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy outfit, Linares was in no way expected to even struggle last night; let alone get annihilated. Once again, the great sport of boxing was shown to be a sport in which anything can happen, and that any fighter has a shot at winning.
This is not to suggest Salgado is a no hoper. Far from it. A pro since March of 2003, the Mexican has beaten some decent fighters, and he had also stopped a good number of his victims on the way to last night’s world title challenge; the first of his career. The draw came back in November of 2005, when Berman Sanchez of Nicaragua held him to a tie in Puerto Rico. On something of a roll in a return to the ring that followed the near year-and-a-half layoff he took in June of 2007, Salgado had won two in a row before tackling Linares, his second return fight by 1st-round KO.
But never had the new champion met anyone anywhere approaching the class of Linares, and in shocking him as he did, and so quickly, Salgado has surely set himself up for some big fights and big pay days. Sure, the Mexican warrior may have caught Linares cold and got lucky, but in no way should his great victory be downplayed. Will there be a rematch? As Salgado was not Linares’ mandatory, the ex-champ may well be able to get a quick return, seeing as how he granted Salgado a shot in the first place.
But will Linares want another fight with the man who has just ran over him? It sure would be interesting to hear what Oscar De La Hoya, the original “Golden Boy,” has to say about last night’s events and what the fighter he promotes will do in the future.