Team Alberto Machado makes claims on why the champion lost his title!
Alberto Machado was on the losing end of an “upset of the year” candidate February 9. He was stopped by journeyman Andrew Cancio in the 4th round of their WBA super featherweight title fight.
Machado came in to the fight a HUGE betting favorite, and for good reason. His opponent had a modest record of 19-4-2 and was only 2 fights removed from a 2016 9th round stoppage loss at the hands of Joseph Diaz.
Quick Recap
The hard hitting Puerto Rican started off the fight in typical fashion dropping his opponent with a well timed uppercut. Cancio beat the count, and spent rounds 2 and 3 pressuring and tagging the defending champion.
It’s this writers opinion that the champion was suffering from stamina issues heading into the 4th round. As a result, he was dropped by a beautiful straight right to the mid-section that took absolutely everything out of him.
He bravely beat the count, but was dropped 2 more times by an unrelenting body attack. The result was shocking! No one expected the single father and full time gas company employee to be leaving with the belt, especially not in the fashion in which it happened.
Machados performance has left many wondering what went wrong for the fighter they call “El Explosivo.”
The Skinny…(No Pun Intended)
His manager, Jason Bauman, may have just shed some light on this. When speaking with industry insiders after the fight, Bauman expressed his disappointment with the outcome.
In addition, he cited possible overtraining and weight cutting issues as reasons for the loss. That’s not hard to believe as the rangy Puerto Rican southpaw has a HUGE 5’10 frame for a junior lightweight. Furthermore, he has long been tabbed as someone who will eventually move up in weight.
Fighters who struggle to make weight often spend their camp over training just to make weight. Moreover, it costs them when they face durable opponents who have spent 6-8 weeks focusing on how to beat them.
Is that what we saw the night of February 9? I can’t say for certain, however, one thing is clear, Machado has to make some changes immediately.
Should Machado Make Team Changes?
Often times in defeats like this, boxers will make extreme changes to their teams. However, I don’t think that’s necessary here. Machado has a good team around him.
Bauman also manages Machados friend WBO light flyweight Champion Angel Acosta. He is also co-promoted by countrymen and mentor Miguel Cotto and Golden Boy Promotions. Additionally, he does his training with legendary coach Freddie Roach.
No one knows exactly what’s next. However, if Machado intends on having an immediate rematch in an attempt to regain his title, bringing on a nutritionist to help him make weight while maintaining optimum fighting shape is the best move.
We recently wrote about former super bantamweight champion Isaac Dogboe who suffered a similar upset defeat and is now choosing to make his change heading into his immediate rematch for the title he lost.
The other option is to go ahead and move up to lightweight. Machado certainly has the frame to be able to compete at there, but it would also likely result in a slower route back to a title.
At the end of the day this is the wild world of boxing where anything can happen! Virtually everyone loses! It’s always the best fighters that bounce back even better so we’ll be keeping an eye out for what the 28 year-old’s next play is.
By: Tanner Gill
