MANILA, Philippines – His chance for an outright world title crack gone, Charly Suarez is focusing on beating American Luis Coria impressively on Saturday, April 13 (Sunday, April 14, Philippine time) at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The unbeaten Suarez (16-0 with 9 knockouts) was supposed to tangle with unscathed Henry Lebron (19-0, 10 KOs), but the Puerto Rican backed out, forcing the Filipino “King’s Warrior” to fight Coria (15-6, 7 KOs) instead.
Although, on paper, Coria appears to be the lighter assignment, Suarez refuses to be complacent in their 10-round super featherweight bout.
After making the necessary adjustments with his chief trainer Delfin Boholstz, the 35-year-old Suarez said he’s raring to dispose of Coria and look forward to July or August for his next bout.
Suarez, a three-time Southeast Asian Games gold medalist, checked in at 131.8 pounds during the official weigh-in on Friday. Coria came in a tad lighter at 131.7 pounds.
According to Boholstz, they accepted the Coria fight rather than be downgraded from his current No. 5 ranking in the International Boxing Federation (IBF).
Owing to his reputation as a Rio de Janeiro Olympian in 2016, Suarez has been installed a -450 favorite over the 25-year-old Coria, who was listed at +500.
This means a $450 bet on Suarez would earn just $100 if he wins. A $100 wager on Coria, on the other hand, would return $500 in case of an upset. – Rappler.com