Liam Paro: Nobody wanted to fight the “bogeyman” Matias

by Keith Idec

AMONG the things Richardson Hitchins said that didn't make sense to Liam Paro was the fact that Hitchins beat a higher level of opposition than him.

Paro pointed out during an interview with Boxing News that although Hitchins “hid” in the IBF rankings after a fight with “so-called bogeyman” Subriel Matias, the Australian southpaw happily took this title chance on June 15. that it paid off when he toppled the powerful Puerto Rican puncher by unanimous decision to win the IBF junior welterweight title.

Paro (25-0, 15 KOs) is scheduled to make his first defense of this IBF belt against Hitchins (18-0, 7 KOs), his mandatory challenger, Saturday night at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The 12-round, 140-pound championship fight between Paro, 28, and Hitchins, 27, is the main event of a card that DAZN will begin broadcasting at midnight GMT in the UK (7 p.m. ET in the US). United).

An inspired Paro returned to Matias' home island for a second straight fight nearly six months after surprisingly withstanding Matias' power and beating him on all three scorecards at the Jose Abreu Coliseum in Manati, Puerto Rico .

“Matias is a hell of a champion,” Paro told Boxing News. “I was very lucky to share the ring with him there in Puerto Rico. We've been saying it for a long time: we believe in our skills, we know what we have and we're just showing it to the world and making people believe it. What better way than to do it with the so-called bogeyman of the time?

“He had five people arrested on the stool. Nobody wanted to fight him. No one else raised their hand. Hitchins was one of them lurking in the IBF rankings. Everyone was silent and no one said his name. But we are true warriors and we have shown what we are capable of. And, as I said, we believed and we showed the world what we knew.

Referee Luis Pabon took a point away from Paro for holding in the seventh round against Matias (21-2, 21 KO). Paro still won by five points according to judge John Basile (116-111) and three points each according to the cards of judges Gerardo Martinez (115-112) and Carl Zappia (115-112). Matias entered the ring as an 8-1 favorite against Paro, who handicappers made a slight favorite to beat Hitchins of Brooklyn, a pure boxer who is taller and has a longer reach than the defending champion.

“Listen, it was a very tough fight,” Paro said of his loss to Matias. “We knew what we were up against. I said it before. We knew the task ahead of us, and it was a huge task. But that just makes it a better chapter in the book. I live the rest of my life as an advocate for this and got the respect we deserve. But we continue to win them all over the world, and I will continue to do so this month of December 7th.”