By Arne K. Lang
Gabriel Flores Jr. opposes Josec Ruiz tonight in a ring set up in the MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas in an area that is colloquially known as The Bubble. The fight, slated for 10 rounds in the lightweight division, has been bumped into the main event of the five-fight ESPN / ESPN Deportes card that kicks off at 8 pm EST/5 pm PST.
This development, late-breaking news, came about when the manager/cornerman of Mikkel LesPierre tested positive for COVID-19. LesPierre was slated to meet former two-division world champion Jose Pedraza in tonight’s featured attraction. Their fight has been cancelled.
Someone out there thinks that Flores is a mortal lock. According to Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Todd Dewey, a man laid a princely sum on Flores at the MGM Grand at odds of the 45/1. The wager, said Dewey, was in the amount of $187,845.35. If Flores wins, the bettor stands to earn a profit of $4,173.95.
(This is no reflection on Dewey, a fine journalist, but this reporter is always suspicious of reported wagers in queer amounts. Why in the world would this man size his wager to win an amount that required a decimal? For the record, a man could not make a wager of this magnitude without first getting the approval of a higher-up. And it would obviously be a person who had the okay to wager big on credit, not someone who could shake $187,845.35 in loose change out of his pocket at the counter of the sports book. And for the record, yes, gambling winnings are taxable.)
Gabriel Flores Jr. was only 16 years old when he signed with Top Rank. At the time, he was the youngest fighter that Top Rank had ever signed.
Top Rank honcho Bob Arum was attracted to him for two reasons. Jose Carlos Ramirez, the former Olympian, had bubbled into a big regional attraction, making the turnstiles hum in Fresno. Arum thought that Flores could become an equally big draw in his hometown of Stockton (pop: 312,000). The two cities have much in common as both are hub cities within the agriculturally fertile San Joaquin Valley and neither has a major professional sports franchise to syphon newspaper coverage away from boxing.
Second, Arum has always been drawn to a fighter with a compelling back story. Gabriel Flores Jr lost his mother when he was 12 years. She was the victim of a stray bullet while attending a backyard birthday party. The incident was thought to be gang-related.
Arum invited Flores to sit on the dais for the final press conference for Manny Pacquiao’s fight with Jessie Vargas in November of 2016. Flores hadn’t yet turned pro. Flores shared his story with the audience and vowed to dedicate his career to stopping gang violence.
Gabriel Flores, who is trained by his father, turned 20 on May 1. As an amateur he was reportedly 91-7. He’s undefeated in 17 starts as a pro but has scored only six knockouts. His bout tonight will be his first 10-rounder.
Flores’ opponent Josec Ruiz (21-2-3, 14 KOs) is something of mystery fighter. He hails from Honduras and had fought exclusively in Central America prior to settling in Miami where he had his last four fights.
There’s another fighter out there with Honduran roots who spent his formative years in south Florida. His name is Teofimo Lopez. If Josec Ruiz is half as good as Teofimo, the high roller who laid the heavy wood on the Stockton boy is in big trouble.
If recent history is any guide, the Flores-Ruiz fight would have been the first fight on tonight’s card. Moving it to the back end stretches out the suspense for the person who rates Flores a mortal lock.
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