Goossen-Tutor Boxing: Honorio vs. Hilario For NABO Belt March 5

He won his NABO Lightweight Championship by upsetting undefeated hot prospect John Molina, Jr. in the Grand Ballroom of the Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California back in November of 2009.

On March 5, Martin “El Brochas” Honorio (27-4-1, 14 KOs) will make his first defense of that title against another undefeated hot fighter in Wilton “Pretty Warrior” Hilario (12-0-1, 9 KOs) at that very same venue in the scheduled 12-round main event of the ESPN2 “Friday Night Fights” telecast presented by Goossen Tutor Promotions.

The 30-year old Honorio, a Mexico City native, put on one of his best performances of his 11-year pro career in his unanimous decision win over Molina in the main event broadcast on Showtime.

Honorio moved up from the super featherweight division (126 lbs) to face Molina in the lightweight division (135 lbs) and consistently beat the bigger and stronger Molina to the punch.

The biggest name among Honorio’s 27 wins was a 10-round unanimous decision in November, 2005 over Steven Luevano, who would go on to capture the WBO Featherweight title four fights after his loss to Honorio. Honorio is managed and trained, respectively, by the father and son team of Rick and Art Mota.

“I have no secret about beating undefeated fighters,” Honorio said. “I just work hard and train hard, stick to the game plan and win the fight.

“It’s these type of challenges that make you really work hard. Hilario is young and hungry and wants to keep his undefeated record,” Honorio continued. “I believe his lack of experience will play into my hands. I hear he has predicted victory. It’s going to be a tough and exciting fight but I will be ready for whatever he brings.”

The fearless and talented Hilario, a Dominican Republic native fighting out of Saint Louis Park, Minnesota, is taking a step up in competition against the Mexican veteran. After just 11 bouts (10 wins and a draw), Hilario passed his first major test in capturing the IBA Americas Super Featherweight crown against highly-touted Allen Litzau by fifth-round TKO in April of last year.

In his most recent outing in November, Hilario earned an impressive unanimous decision win over Leon Bobo and he views this NABO title shot as a measuring stick in his young career.

“I am the type of fighter who likes to fight in close but if I need to box I know I can box,” Hilario, who is managed by Chuck Daskiewicz and trained by Jock Davis, stated. “I can bring whatever I need to win the fight. So whether it means fighting inside or outside, I’ll do whatever it takes to win it. This is what I train for. I know he is a tough Mexican fighter and he will bring everything to the table and lay it all on the line. I will too, and then we’ll find out who walks out of that ring the winner.”

In one of the ESPN2 televised co-feature bouts, undefeated Rico “Sauvecito” Ramos (14-0, 8 KOs), of Pico Rivera, California will take on Mexico City’s Cecilio “Boga” Santos (24-12-3, 14 KOs) in a battle for Ramos’ NABO Super Bantamweight title.

The 22-year old Ramos, a hard-hitting buzzsaw, appeared in a televised co-feature underneath Honorio at Pechanga his last time out and looked most impressive in posting a lopsided win on points against Alejandro Perez, which included a lightning-quick, second-round knockdown.

Ramos has been a busy fighter, 14 fights in a professional career spanning just under two full years, and is fast becoming a big fan favorite for his aggressive style combined with a pair of the fastest fists in the business.

In the 31-year old Santos, Ramos faces a far more experienced competitor who has challenged for four world titles.

He lost a decision in Thailand in 2004 for the WBCBantamweight title to Veeraphol Sahaprom; he was stopped in the tenth round by WBO Super Flyweight Champion Fernando Montiel in Mexico in 2007; he battled to a hard-fought draw with IBF Super Flyweight titleholder Dmitry Kirilov in 2008; and was behind on the scorecards when an accidental headbutt caused his WBA Bantamweight title challenge versus Anselmo Moreno in Panama later that year to be stopped, resulting in a technical decision loss.

Another featured performer on the Pechanga undercard is unbeaten junior welterweight Michael “Silent Assassin” Dallas, Jr. (11-0-1, 2 KOs), of Bakersfield, California. Dallas, 23, posted a six-round, unanimous-decision win over Sergio Joel De La Torre in his last outing back in October.

“We are really excited to be bringing Martin Honorio and Rico Ramos back to Pechanga where they both had tremendous fan support in their last outing here. Honorio is trying to get back into World Championship contention and Ramos is looking to establish himself as a future champion,” promoter Dan Goossen exclaimed.

“They both brought the sellout crowd to its feet with their impressive performances that night. Throw in the undefeated jr. welterweight Dallas and we have an excellent show of established world class fighters along with young up-and-coming prospects.”