The start of a new era

In so many ways this really is the start of something new, I'm writing under my real name, the column is brand new, the personal blog site it's on is brand new, and more importantly in the case of many of the fighters that are going to be featured in this column they are the start of a new era in boxing. 

Although their are no "rules" as such for the column's fighters outside of the fact they aren't allowed to be world champions or have had long reigning title reigns. They can be any age and have any amount of fights though the vast majority will be youngsters in their early fights often with a solid amateur background. One condition to be featured that is "generally" kept is that only 1 fighter can appear per week (though some exceptions will apply to this rule) and the fighter must be penciled down to fight that week (again some exceptions will apply).

So for the first fighter to be featured in this segment (which still doesn't have a name folks if you want to volunteer one that beats “Prospect Scotting”) we take a look at McWilliams Arroyo, one of a pair Puerto Rican twins who only started their professional careers at the start of this year. Both Arroyo brothers are 3-0 though it's McWilliams that seems to be the more exciting of the two having stopped all 3 opponents so far (whilst twin brother McJoe Arroyo has 1 stoppage). The pair came to international prominence in the amateurs with McWilliams being the more impressive of the two. He would win Gold at the Central American and Caribbean Games in 2006 before adding the Gold at the 2007 Pan Am games and then his crowning glory, Gold at the 2009 World Boxing Cup. The victory over Tugstsot Nyambayar of Mongolia in the World Boxing Cup was a masterclass with a score of 18-2 in the final as Arroyo captured the first gold in the tournament for his nation in 35 years. 

Having been chased by several promoters both brothers would sign with PR Best Boxing and debut on a card in Bayamon, Puerto Rico on the undercard of Wilfredo Vazquez Jr's triumphant WBO super bantamweight title fight. Both brothers would score KO's with McWilliams needing just 106 seconds to make an impact on fellow debutant Eliecer Sanchez. Sanchez was flattened by a straight right which seemed to badly hurt his opponent who seemed out of it for quite a while. Since then McWilliams has been matched well for a young professional. His second bout for example came against the 4-1 (3) Francisco Rosario from the Dominican Republic a former national champion as a professional who had never been stopped. Having won the opening 2 rounds McWilliams would turn it on in the 3^rd and force the stoppage against a capable opponent. Mexican Samuel Gutierrez went in with a 5-6-1 and came out with a 5-7-1record with McWilliams needing just over 1 and a half rounds to add to his growing reputation.

McWilliams Arroyo takes part in his 4^th contest as a professional on 12^th June only 2 weeks after having beaten Gutierrez., This will be the first time he has fought with out his brother on the card as a professional and also the first time he fights out side of his homeland as a pro. Facing off against unbeaten (1-0-1 (1)) Japanese fighter Takashi Okada in Madison Square Garden on the undercard of Ivan Calderon's WBO light flyweight title defence against Jesus Iribe, Arroyo is almost certain to see his stock rise through the roof with an impressive win on American soil in front of the sports written media.

Whether the 24 year old super flyweight will ever manage to headline a card in “The Garden” is up for debate though if he continues doing what he's done so far he may well become the Puerto Rican star many thought Kenny Galarza was going to be. It's always nice to see a technically able fighter, with fast hands and power, even more so when they are a little guy and the power is rather unexpected though in McWilliams Arroyo the lighter weights seem to have a real star in the making.

Boxrec record for McWilliams Arroyo