Toe-to-Toe Tuesday returns on FS1 with a PBC Boxing show featuring Migues Flores (21-1, 9 KOs) trying to bounce back from his first loss against Chris Avalos (26-5, 19 KOs) at tje Rapides Coliseum in Alexandria, La.
In the primary undercard, we’ll see Ahmed Elbiali (15-0, 12 KOs) fight Christopher Booker (12-3, 5 KOs).
As awlays, scroll on down for the live blog. Keep reading for the press release from the PBC.
Flores looking to rebound from first loss by beating former title challenger Avalos
A boxer’s journey to the top is usually a step-by-step climb. Sometimes all the rungs on the ladder are as strong as granite; sometimes one or two are as sturdy as cheap plastic. Trouble is, a fighter doesn’t know which rungs are rock solid and which are potential traps until he completes each step—something Miguel Flores recently learned the hard way.
Born in Mexico but raised in Houston, Flores breezed through his first 21 pro fights without so much as a pause, winning all but one by either stoppage or unanimous decision, with the other victory coming by majority decision. In the process, Flores positioned himself on the precipice of contender status in the 126-pound division entering his February 21 bout against unheralded Dat Nguyen.
Nguyen was a veteran fighter with a 19-3 record, but he was 10 years Flores’ senior and had fought just five times in nearly six years, losing two of those contests. In other words, Nguyen appeared to be yet another sturdy-as-granite rung on Flores’ ladder—except he wasn’t. Fighting in Flores’ hometown of Houston, Nguyen pressed the action from the opening bell and slugged it out toe-to-toe for five rounds before dropping and stopping Flores in the sixth for his first knockout in nearly a decade.
Five months after that stunning upset, Miguel Flores (21-1, 9 KOs) is ready to resume his ascent in the 126-pound division Tuesday night when he takes on hard-hitting former world title challenger Chris Avalos (26-5, 19 KOs) at Rapides Parish Coliseum in Alexandria, Louisiana.
The 10-round clash headlines another Toe-to-Toe Tuesdays card on FS1 (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) that also features 175-pound prospect Ahmed Elbiali (15-0, 12 KOs) vs Christopher Brooker (12-3, 5 KOs) in a 10-round bout, and former title challenger “Prince” Charles Martin (24-1-1, 22 KOs) battling Michael Marrone (21-7, 15 KOs) in a 10-round heavyweight showdown.
“It was definitely a hard learning experience suffering my first loss, but [it’s] one that I took in stride,” says Flores, who weighed in Monday at 125.3 pounds, while Avalos tipped the scales at 125.8. “No fighter ever wants to suffer defeat, but it’s what that fighter does to get back on top that matters.”
While many boxers coming off that first defeat might prefer to re-establish themselves in a low-profile fight against an inexperienced opponent, Flores insists he’s thrilled to be right back in the spotlight against another quality, battle-tested boxer.
“Fighting in the main event is exactly what I need right now,” says Flores, whose loss to Nguyen also headlined a Toe-to-Toe Tuesdays event. “It’s important for me to be fighting in front of a nationally televised audience [again], because I want to show the world that I have what it takes to get back into world title contention. This type of fight brings out the best in me, and my warrior spirit will be shining on fight night.”
The fights are on FS1 at 9 p.m. Watch it with me.
