On January 19, 2013 in Madison Square Garden Juan Carlos Burgos will be looking to continue his five fight winning streak as he steps into the ring with the chance of coming out a champion. Fighting on the packed card that features three championship fights in the theater of New York City ‘s most famed arena, this will be Burgos’ second title shot in the Super Featherweight division. In 2010 he fought what was touted as an epic battle with Hozumi Hasewaga. Hasewaga won a mostly one sided decision after going twelve rounds with Burgos, the judges scoring 111-116, 110-117, and 110-117.
Since then Burgos has not been on the losing side of the cards. His last five fights have gone his way, two by TKO, two by unanimous decision, and one by majority decision. Burgos has beat journeymen the likes of Cristobal Cruz, and undefeated prospects like Luis Cruz and Caesar Vazquez, whom he knocked out in an impressive victory on ESPN2 this July, his most recent fight.
Burgos, who has a record of 30-1-0, will step into the ring against Roman Martinez 26-1-1 in January. Martinez, who most recently won a spilt decision over Miguel Beltran Jr. in Las Vegas this September, seems a formidable opponent for Burgos. For Burgos, however, he is just a guy in the way of his title. Burgos has been quoted saying that he will not let this title slip away this time.
Being a champion is a family tradition of sorts for Burgos, who is the nephew of former light flyweight champion Victor Burgos. His uncle isn’t the only fighter in the family. His mother, father, and brother have all taken their turn at the sweet science. At first his parents were hesitant to allow “Mini”, a childhood knick-name that stuck with him, to follow his dream but once they realized it was his passion for the sport, they were on board with his career choice.
Having stopped prospects in their tracks previous to the fight with Hasewaga, Burgos admits to being overconfident in his last shot at the title. He admittedly allowed himself to get caught up in his own hype, with fighters moving around weight classes, lining up to fight you, who wouldn’t? The good part is, he hasn’t since, and it doesn’t look like he has any plans to in the future. Re-grounded, and fighting frequently, Burgos seems ready for a successful fight.
