Javier Francisco Maciel vs. Martín Fidel Ríos

Argentine crossroads fight on Friday.

La Bestia has struggled to build any momentum since his robbery loss to Brian Rose in 2013, squandering all that he garnered during his climb up the rankings following the Pirog defeat 7 years ago. Maciel has gone 4-3 (2) in the meantime, while to Rose as the unlucky victor went the spoils of being dominated by Demetrius Andrade. 2017 was a mixed bag for the former contender after dropping consecutive frustrating split decision setback losses to Mateo Damian Verón and Norberto González: getting knocked out for the first time in nearly a decade by Michel Soro and then rebounding with his first KO scored in a couple of years, over Sergio Nahuel López.

El Terrible has sprung a few upsets since his rapid tailspin from prospect to gatekeeper, but the last was over a year ago when he took an SD over Ezequiel Oswaldo Maderna. Since then Ríos has gone 1-5, including a wide UD loss to Maderna in a rematch, netting only a scant handful of rounds (maybe half a dozen total) of 48 completed.

The winner might put themselves in line for a crack at the FAB 168lb title, which Maderna is set to defend against Verón later this month. Small world.

 

Even with Ríos slumping himself? The last KO he scored over anybody worth a damn was... Gaston Vega maybe? If not Billi Godoy four years ago. But yeah, Maciel hasn't looked too hot in a while (even in the Rose fight, while he got screwed IMO, he was diminished from the guy that fought Pirog and had been destroying his domestic 154lb opposition before that fight and for a while after it) and the jump up is concerning. He fought Verón at super middle, and that didn't go too well..

 

A tasty little co-feature has Kazakh welterweight puncher Bobirzhan Mominov taking on experienced southpaw Gabriel Fernando Puñalef Calfin. That might steal the show.

Maciel & Mominov are sparring buddies, apparently.

 

Stream lined up for tomorrow:

This content is protected

Alternate/back-up:

This content is protected

 

Weigh-ins are supposed to happen today at 4:45pm local time in Argentina (so in about 5 minutes)

 

Opponent change for Bobirzhan Mominov. 1-0 Jose Ignacio Balcedo substituted in for Gabriel Fernando Puñalef Calfin.

 

This content is protected

 

Another tweet from these knuckleheads that DOESN'T state what the fighters weighed in.

This content is protected

 

This content is protected

 

Apparently both parties renegotiated it down to MW, as both came in under that division's limit with room to spare.

I'm still nervous on behalf of La Bestia, though a bit less so now.

 

Mominov came in overweight by 1¾lbs, but since this is just a six-rounder and the opponent was a late-notice sub anyway he probably won't even get fined.