Brian Viloria Beats Julio Cesar Miranda and Other News from 112 and Below

On Saturday, July 16th, 2011, Brian "Hawaiian Punch" Viloria moved up to the flyweight division and won the WBO version of the 112-pound world title by defeating Mexico's Julio Cesar Miranda via unanimous decision in front of a hometown crowd in Honolulu.

The victory made Viloria, who has previously held the IBF and WBA belts at 108 pounds, a multiple division world champion. The 30-year-old Viloria started quickly, dropping the champion Miranda with a body shot in the opening round. He relied on a punishing body attack throughout.

Some of the sport's most exciting fights take place in the very lowest weight classes, rarely receiving a fraction of the attention they deserve. 

Ring's top-ranked fighter at light flyweight (and pound-for-pound No. 8) Giovani Segura is a devastating puncher and crowd-thrilling finisher who still fights for five figure purses.

Pongsaklek Wonjongkam of Thailand, the top-ranked 112-pounder on the planet, has won over 80 professional fights and is ranked seventh on Ring's pound-for-pound list. Most casual American boxing fans would be unsure of how to pronounce his name, if they were even able to recognize it at all.

If Segura and Wonjongkam fought at 135 and 140, or 154 and 160, their potential matchup would be viewed as a super fight, and promoters would be lining up to throw tens of millions of dollars at both men just to make it happen.

But Segura vs. Wonjongkam is barely even talked about as a possibility.

Viloria is a very popular fighter in his home state of Hawaii. Maybe a promoter there could get Wonjongkam, the IBF flyweight champion, to travel across the South Pacific for a unification bout in Honolulu.

Another great potential fight for Viloria could be made against Ring's No. 2 at 112 pounds, Daisuke Naito of Japan.

With all the potential excitement in boxing's smallest weight classes, it would be great to see something big happen for the fighters there.

July 23rd: Ulises Solis vs Omar Nino Romero for the IBF Light Flyweight Belt

This coming Saturday, July 23rd, Ulises Solis defends his IBF light flyweight title against Omar Nino Romero in a  an extremely significant fight for the 108-pound division.

At 33-2-3, with 27 KOs, Solis is ranked No. 6 in the division by Ring Magazine. He is the brother of WBA super featherweight champion Jorge Solis.

Ulises Solis previously held the IBF belt from 2006 until 2009, when he was knocked out in 11 by Brian Viloria. He regained the belt last year by defeating Luis Alberto Lazarte after drawing with him in a previous fight.

Romero, 30-4-2 (12) is ranked No. 3 at 108 by Ring. He was the WBC light flyweight champion until dropping the belt last year in an upset to journeyman Gilberto Keb Baas (Baas lost the belt in April to Adrian Hernandez). Romero originally claimed the WBC strap by beating Viloria.

These are two of the top fighters in the division. Matchups for the winner could include WBO champion Giovani Segura, or, even more likely, rising Nicaraguan sensation and WBA 108-pound champ, Roman Gonzalez.

The Leged at 112: Pongsaklek Wonjongkam

Pongsaklek Wonjongkam has a professional record of 81-3-1 (44). The 33-year-old native of Thailand made his professional debut in December of 1994, halfway through the first Clinton administration. He is the WBC flyweight champion and is ranked No. 1 in the division by Ring Magazine and No. 7 pound-for-pound.

Although he fights in front of large crowds in his native Thailand and in other parts of Asia, the great Wonjongkam remains obscure in the USA. If he had been active in the 1970s or 80s, I am positive ABC's Wide World of Sports would have sent a small production team to Bangkok and broadcast his work across the United States on a Saturday afternoon. I mention this so my younger readers will understand that yes, boxing really was a major sport at one point.

Wonjongkam has had a classic four-fight rivalry with Japan's Daisuke Naito 36-3-3 (23), Ring's No. 2 at 112 pounds. The Thai champion won their first match by first0round KO and the second by seventh-round technical decision. Naito came back to win the third fight, and the fourth match was a draw. 

Wonjongkam is in the middle of a relatively busy summer. On July 1st, he successfully defended his title against Japan's Takuya Kogawa. On August 4th, he has a non-title bout scheduled with Filipino journeyman Dondon Jimenea, 26-16-4 (13).

Wonjongkam has been among the most successful boxers and greatest champions of his generation. At age 33, with a lot of ring mileage behind him, he is likely writing the last chapters in his legacy. It would be great to see him increase his exposure in the west, where he remains tragically under appreciated.

An Icon in the Making: Giovani Segura

Mexico's Giovani Segura, 28-1-1 (24), is the WBO light flyweight champion and the Ring Magazine linear champion by virtue of his two knockout victories over Ivan Calderon—the only two losses in the great Puerto Rican's storied career. Segura avenged his only professional loss, a unanimous decision against Cesar Canchila, with a fourth-round KO in the rematch.

The August edition of Ring featured a compelling interview with Segura. The 29-year-old champion emerged as an articulate and devoted family man, with an intense work ethic he has cultivated since childhood.

Segura idolized the great Julio Cesar Chavez growing up, and the influence shows. He is a thrilling, straight-ahead fighter who brutalizes his opponents with a fierce body attack. His in-ring style, combined with his engaging and thoughtful demeanor, should equal superstar status, even for a man fighting at 108 pounds.

In his Ring interview, Segura spoke about how agonizing the weight cut to 108 has been for him, especially in recent years. Unless he can collect a big payday there, unlikely in the division, he is not interested in doing the cut any longer. He fought in June at 115 pounds, knocking out the obscure Eddy Zuniga (7-5-1).

From a fan's perspective, there are several interesting matchups for Segura at either 108 or 112. Fellow Mexican Adrian Hernandez, 21-1 (13), won the WBC light flyweight title in April. Roman Gonzalez of Nicaragua has a very exciting style, an undefeated record and the WBA version of the 108-pound crown.

I would personally love to see a super fight between Segura and Pongsaklek Wonjongkam at 112.

Segura is at the point in his career where he should already have been able to achieve long-term financial security. Instead, he is still saving to buy a house for his family.

But if there was ever going to be a very small weight fighter who managed to achieve major status, Segura is likely the guy. With his frame and style, I could see him competitive all the way up to bantamweight.

The Rising Phenom: Roman Gonzalez

On July 16th, while Brian Viloria was winning the WBO flyweight title in Honolulu, Roman Gonzalez was defending his IBF light flyweight belt in Cancun, Mexico, knocking out challenger Omar Salado, 22-4-2 (13), in seven rounds.

At 28-0 (23), Gonzalez, of Nicaragua, is another example of a little guy not getting the level of attention he deserves. If a 24-year-old phenom was tearing through the welterweight division like this, his name would be on everybody's lips, and he would have long since headlined an event on HBO or Showtime.

Like Giovani Segura, Gonzalez is an aggressive and punishing fighter. He uses a superb lead hook to the body/lead uppercut to the head combination. He has ended fights with both punches. `

A showdown between Segura and Gonzalez would be an action-packed brawl, although the five-foot two-inch Gonzalez, who previously held the WBA 105-pound title, might prove too small to withstand the Aztec Warrior's attacks. In his Ring interview, Segura expressed little interest in the bout, dismissing both Gonzalez's chances against him and the likelihood the fight could generate a purse large enough to make him want to stay at 108.

Although a dream fight with Segura is probably unlikely, Gonzalez is in an excellent position to clean out the 108-pound division when Segura inevitably makes a full time move up in weight. Fans can count on seeing his name in the Ring rankings for years to come.