By James Slater: Going into this past Wednesday’s fight with defending IBO cruiserweight champ Danny Green, B.J Flores was an ultra-confident fighter. Unbeaten, younger than Green, as well as being bigger and faster, Flores was sure he’d take the title home with him when he left Australia. But as we know, despite giving “The Green Machine” a hard night’s work in losing a decision that was closer than how the three judges’ cards had it, Flores came up short; losing a 12-round unanimous decision.
But Flores has not had enough of Green yet.
Hoping very much that he can get himself a second go at the well respected 37-year-old who has never been stopped as a pro, Flores says he would be willing to fight on one of Green’s under-cards, if that would make a second fight possible. Flores, who agreed he didn’t do quite enough to win on Wednesday, is nevertheless proud of his overall performance.
As he said after having had time to reflect on his first pro loss:
“I know Marcus Beyer (who beat Green in defence of his WBC 168-pound title back in 2003, only to give Green a return for the same belt two years later – winning again) gave him a rematch,” Flores said. “Maybe Team-Green could do the same with me. You only had to see Danny after the bout to know what kind of fight I gave him. Check out his eye, his cheek, his jaw. I’m keen to get us fighting again and if, as part of our contract, that means me fighting on one of his under-cards, I’d love to do it.
“I came to his hometown, weighed in at 195-pounds – I did everything he asked of me. And despite the fact everyone always talks about his power, I was never rocked, never hurt.”
It’s true Flores was never once in trouble in the fight, and it’s also true that he emerged pretty much unmarked while the winner had some facial wear and tear. But: would a second fight play out any differently than the first one? The weight may have been a factor in fight-one – seeing as how Flores had to weigh in at 195 and not the cruiser limit of 200-pounds. However, won’t Green, being the champion and calling the shots as a result, make the same demand a second time round?
Flores, though, will have encouraged his fans by making it clear he wants another fight with Green as soon as he can get it, and hopefully B.J will get back in the ring ASAP. Whether or not his next fight is in the U.S or in Australia, Flores needs to get back into action quickly, then remain active and get himself into even better fighting shape for either a rematch with Green or for another big fight. Having had 15 months of inactivity before last Wednesday’s fight, Flores was surely affected as a result.
Can a more active, more aggressive Flores reverse his sole pro setback? If Green and his team are as interested in a sequel as Flores is, we may find out some time next year.
And it is worth noting how Flores became just the fourth man to take Green the distance, and Flores also gave the Australian warrior his toughest fight in a few good years. Would a rematch appeal to the fans as a result?