Abner Mares: "Saturday it is going to be my night"

Photo Credit: Esther Lin/SHOWTIME

Abner Mares is looking to return to the winning column and keep his career back on track. He said during the Grand Arrival at the MGM Grand that "Saturday it is going to be my night in the ring." But he knows what he's up to. "This fight is no walk in the park. Jonathan is a warrior and that's why I trained very hard".

Mares (26-1-1, 14 KO) is Transnational Boxing Rankings Board's rank number six featherweight. But I don't know about Jonathan Oquendo. Without taking anything away from Oquendo, but I like to see Mares fighting on a rematch with Jhonny Gonzalez. The guy who knock him out in the first round. The knockout he suffered in the hands of Gonzalez, in very first round should be avenged, if he ever wanted to pick-up where he left, prior to the Gonzalez fight.

Prior to the Gonzalez fight, Mares was atop of the featherweight division. Boxing fans wanted him to square off against Nonito Donaire, who was also the top dog at 122 division at that time, but because of this so-called "cold war" in boxing, that fight didn't happen.Instead, Donaire took Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux and lost. Mares took Gonzalez and lost.

But Mares is hesitant to have a rematch with Gonzalez. I don't know if he doubt his own self now. But I agree that, that KO loss he suffered is really confidence zapping.Taking on Jonathan Oquendo (24-3, 16 KO) and winning is just a confidence booster. It will not keep to where he was a fight before. But losing this fight would bring him deep down to the deep list of featherweights.

I hate writing underdog off, but Oquendo's prominent opponents in his ledger were the exposed Juan Manuel Lopez and Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. and he lost both fights. But I like to see underdogs that rise to the occasion and win upsets. In boxing you will never know.

Oquendo was very confident and said "The knockouts come naturally to me; if it presents itself I will definitely knock him out." But he admits that he has enormous respect with Mares, "I'm not going to lie; I have a lot of respect for Abner Mares, but don't let that fool you. I don't feel any pressure, he's a great champ but there will be blood in the ring on Saturday, and it won't be mine."