Do or Die for Richard Gutierrez

It goes without saying that much is on the line for Jr. Middleweights Richard Gutierrez and Antwone Smith when they meet this coming Friday, May 22^nd at the

Fontainbleau Hotel in Miami, Florida. At just 22 years of age, Smith has emerged as prospect worth watching while displaying solid skills and true grit along the way. The young Miami resident is still in the early steps of his career and you can almost see him developing fight by fight with your own eyes. Gutierrez, however, doesn’t have the luxury of youth and time on his side and at 30 years old and having gone 3-2-1 in his last six fights his back is against the wall in this one.

Gutierrez fought the first 18 bouts of his pro career in his native Columbia before venturing to Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota for his first fight on American soil. The man known as ‘La Lamina’ would continue his undefeated trek towards a July 2006 fight with Ghanaian workhorse Joshua Clottey at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California. The two men engaged in a back and forth, pitched affair that was ultimately won by Clottey due to his superior punch selection and overwhelming work rate. Gutierrez did show much grit but some his limitations as a fighter were also on display as he appeared to lack a decent game plan and didn’t invest enough of his punches to the body to have a noticeable effect.

Gutierrez would return to the ring six months later to stop Teddy Reid with a brutal beating but his inactivity and inconsistency were both of note afterwards. Things again boiled over for Gutierrez roughly a year ago when he locked horns with ultra-aggressive Alfredo Angulo on an HBO Boxing After Dark Tripleheader in Primm, Nevada. Gutierrez had moments of success early on but the heavy hands and body punching of his younger foe would ultimately prove to be his undoing, as he was halted in the 5^th stanza.

Since then Gutierrez has been unheard of for the most part and hasn’t been in the ring for nearly 10 months. A February clash with Jesus Gonzalez didn’t transpire, adding to Gutierrez’ frustrations and he is now set to square of with Smith, who has shown solid all around skills, mental toughness, and hunger so far into his young career. This is a fight that, on paper, looks to be an uphill battle for Gutierrez and even those close to him are cautious.

“Smith is a solid fighter,” says John David Jackson, who is training Gutierrez for this bout. “I’ve liked what I’ve seen so far from him in his early career and this is a risky fight for Richard. Smith is complete in a lot of areas and it’s going to be a definitive test.”

            Since Jackson and Gutierrez began working together, the trainer and former two-time champion has noticed that he has a fighter who is talented in several areas while in need of a change in others. All Jackson can do is take the best of what Gutierrez brings and try to add a little bit to it.

“The thing with Richard is that his previous trainers kind of had him going down the wrong path,” Jackson continues. “They stressed so much on head hunting and had him rely so much on his power that it hurt him. It was almost like he was a wind-up robot going for the kill. I’m teaching him how to be a more complete fighter and making sure that he focuses his attack to the body just as much as the head.”

Every fight in boxing comes with its share of subplots and angles. Without question one of the glaring contrasts in this fight is the experience of Gutierrez against the youth of Smith. While some may say that this fight is a case of a fighter on the way up against a fighter on the way out, others will say that Gutierrez’ experience is a plus and that he may have found a new spark under Jackson’s reign. For as much as you want to analyze the contest there is no denying that everything will be on the line for Richard Gutierrez and for him this fight is truly do or die.

Questions and comments can be sent to Chris at Trimond@aol.com or www.Myspace.com/BoxingHarmony