He is an exciting fighter and I have enjoyed watching him. He has some decent wins on his ledger, but he has been KO'd in his last two fights. Ponce De Leon KO was understandable, he is a top fighter, but then he is KO'd in one round against Alejandro Perez - who on paper wasnt anything special http://boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=262992&cat=boxer Did anyone see Escalante's last fight and what does he need to do to improve?
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYB0P0ky6C0[/ame] Great knockout. To be fair Perez had some skills. The one thing I noticed was to me he was telegraphing his punches quiete a bit. Escalante did not notice as both times he was dropped he was stepping forward. Shame really Escalante should have started using the jab and got into a rythm. I think Perez's early rushes made him see a oppurtunity for a eye catching knockout and he paid for it. Should have played it slower IMO. Nasty KO.
Thanks for the link. Perez was throwing big hooks from the first bell, he was looking for a big shot early. Still, Escalante walked right into that - hope he can work on his defence and come back from this.
Well, going back, I don't think it was the best idea to move up to 126 from 122. I guess he said he had trouble making the weight, but to be honest, I definitely think he could have still fought at 122. That was after the Locke fight, and fast forward to the Roman fight after that fight, there were changes that were made and there was some talk that it wasn't his best performance and he could have done better, so changes were made. Louie Burke, a very good local trainer, stepped in and then started training Escalante. He was there for the Ruiz fight and then the De Leon fight. Evenutally, I guess he got fired, and he Tony went to Houston to train with Ronnie Shields, and didn't really own up to the De Leon fight. Saying he didn't get the right training; he didn't have his transmountain runs and what not. Then obviously, his most recent fight with Perez, who in his own right is getting his career back on track and is a good kid. Anyway, Tony gets starched and to be honest, don't know what move he is going to make now. So, all in all, I think his downfall was, may'be lack of real training commitment. May'be, but definitely not owning up to his faults and trying to make excuses and just having too many cooks in the kitchen. If Escalante wants to get back to contender status and perhaps be a world title holder. He needs to really get serious, get down to 122, if not 126 max. He can't fight at 130. He looked sluggish (talking about the Perez fight which was at 130), had no pop, and obviously, his chin can't take the power. At 122 and even at 126 he had good movement, good power, good speed, and had a decent chin. So, he needs to get serious, own up to his mistakes, and really put this in his rearview mirror. Take a couple of 6 and 8 rounds fights. For the whole year, and into early 2012. After that this time next year, may'be step up to 10 round fight, after he has his confidence back, and take on a top 10 contender. And then go from there. He has the skills to get back to where he was he just really needs to be dedicated, and get that confidence back.
Brawler with little defence and boxing skills with a **** chin..... not a combo that is gonna get you to the world class level.
Very good post. Yeah, I watched his fights against Locke and Roman and he looked like a completely different fighter to the version that go KO'd by Perez. I didnt know about his change of trainers, but you make a good point about his weight - I think he could come down in weight - he looked like a far more dangerous fighter when he was lighter, and faster. Hopefully, he can get back on track, as he is great to watch when he is on top form:good
