NEW YORK CITY– 2000 Dominican Republic Olympian Giovanni “El Chico Malo” Lorenzo (26-1, 18 KOs) soon embarks on a mission to prove that, coming off of his first pro loss in June, he still remains a clear and present danger in the middleweight division.
Lorenzo lost a voluntary IBF title eliminator fight to former world champion Raul “El Diamente” Marquez in a razor-close 12-round decision, separated by a single point on all three judges’ scorecards, but only after one point was controversially deducted for a head butt, live on Showtime Championship Boxing from Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
“Losing to Raul Marquez in my first TV fight was very difficult for me,” Giovanni said. “At the same time, I have gained a tremendous amount of experience from this fight. I waited a little too much thinking Marquez would fade. My plan was to come on hard down the stretch. I felt like the bigger and stronger puncher in the fight. I learned that I need to be more aggressive. I am hoping to land another really big fight very soon and I am training very hard to regain my status as the top middleweight contender so I can complete my destiny of becoming middleweight champion of the world.
“Marquez is the kind of fighter that, if Abraham takes him lightly (Abraham defends his IBF title Saturday night against Marquez live from Germany on pay-per-view in the United States and Canada), he is capable of pulling off an upset. Marquez should not be underestimated because he shows you many different angles. He can punch a lot harder than people give him credit for and he is a tough, tough Mexican warrior with a ton of experience and determination.”
Going into the title eliminator, Lorenzo had been criticized in some quarters for having fought relatively light opposition. Team Lorenzo rolled the dice, even though they didn’t have to fight an eliminator for “Gio” to get a title shot, accepting the challenge (and risk) to fight the crafty U.S. Olympian Marquez. The former IBF junior middleweight title-holder had a distinct advantage in professional experience having fought 40 pro fights, 257 rounds and battled world champions Jermain Taylor, Fernando Vargas, and Shane Mosley. “Gio,” on the other hand (or glove), at that time had only 25 pro bouts and 90 rounds of action under his belt.
“Giovanni is going to learn a lot from our fight,” Marquez remarked. “He could afford to lose that fight, I couldn’t. He’s young and has a very bright future. He’s a big middleweight – strong puncher, definitely with power – who is going to make a name for himself.”
Lorenzo learned an invaluable lesson against Marquez as the 12-rounds of hard-earned experience will prepare him very well for the future. Giovanni is still a top 10-rated middleweight challenger, No. 6 by the IBF and No. 9 by the WBC, who doesn’t celebrate his 28th birthday until October 13.
“The Marquez fight was a good experience for ‘Gio’ who is still young,” Giovanni’s co-manager Rich Ryan said. “Raul was too savvy, too experienced for ‘Gio,’ who had never fought a lefty before. He’s a much better fighter than he showed in that fight, but he still won six rounds against the house fighter. After the fight, we went back to the hotel and Marquez went to the hospital. The next day you wouldn’t have thought Marquez had won if you had seen him because he’d obviously been to a plastic surgeon and was all bandaged up. We can’t wait to get ‘Gio’ back in the ring to show everybody how much he’s learned and improved.”
Lorenzo posted a 247-16 amateur record, capturing 15 gold medals in International competition. He is from Jeringa, Dominican Republic but now lives and fights out of the Washington Heights section of New York City.
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