Out of the ring for 19 months following his 2015 loss to Timothy Bradley, Brandon Rios finally returned to the ring last night against Mexican veteran journeyman Aaron Herrera. Top PBC prospects Mario Barrios and Jose Miguel Borrego were also in action on the undercard.
In the Lancaster, California main event, Brandon Rios (34-3-1, 25 KOs) basically did what Brandon Rios does. He opened by battering a very game Aaron Herrera (32-7-1, 21 KOs) around the ring. Herrera was getting his shots in through the first three rounds, but Rios was definitely doing more damage.
The tone shifted a bit in the fourth and fifth as Rios seemed to tire. His punches lost snap and Herrera was able to consistently land big shots, especially in the fourth when he was able to establish distance. It was fool’s gold for the Mexican hopeful, however, as Rios stormed back in the sixth and seventh.
In the seventh, Rios began to visibly bother Herrera. A good shot upstairs backed him into the ropes and Brandon began digging to the body. From there, Herrera collapsed and was counted out. Vicious body work carried the day for former world titlist Brandon Rios in a fight in which all his strengths and weaknesses were on display.
It is difficult to imagine Brandon Rios really being a top contender at 147. Junior welterweight would fit him much better, but I do not think we will ever see him there. Without his size advantage, however, his pressure style is just not going to be effective. It relies on power that he doesn’t really carry at the weight. The bigger shots at the full welterweight limit will continue to be a problem over time as well since he has very little defense.
With that said, PBC does have matchups that make sense for him at the weight. Particularly a fight with Omar Figueroa Jr, a newly minted welterweight with many of the same problems, would make sense should he prevail later this summer against Robert Guerrero Jr. That would be a winnable matchup for both fighters that would all but guarantee fireworks.
In the chief support bout, six foot tall junior welterweight Mario Barrios (19-0, 11 KOs) continued his unbeaten run through less than impressive competition. PBC continues to match him weak for where he is in his development. Here he stopped now ten loss Jose Luis Rodriguez (21-10, 12 KOs) in the seventh on a body shot, just like what would come next in the main event.
Opening the show, a much better looking prospect in 19 year old junior welterweight Jose Miguel Borrego (13-0, 12 KOs) scored a much better win than Barrios has in his entire career over a talented fighter in Kevin Watts (11-2, 4 KOs). Watts came out on fire and won the first two rounds pretty clearly. Borrego rallied, however, beginning in the third where he really began to find Watts. In the fourth round, Borrego showcased his seemingly real power by badly hurting Watts and dropping him to the canvas. The fight was rightfully stopped shortly after with Kevin Watts pinned in the corner.
