Marcos “El Chino” Maidana, the hard-hitting gaucho from Margarita, Santa Fe, Argentina, made history on the night of December 14, 2013, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. He was fighting the reigning and defending WBA World welterweight champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner, the speedster from Cincinnati, Ohio, and few people gave Maidana a chance.
Maidana was on a three-fight win streak, with early stoppages of Jesus Soto Karass in 2012 and Josesito Lopez in 2013, but Broner was undefeated at 27-0 and thought to be unbeatable.
“El Chino” dropped “The Problem” in rounds two and eight. Broner went the distance. But he got himself a good old-fashioned whooping.
The final scores were 117-109 (Levi Martinez), 116-109 (Nelson Vazquez), and 115-110 (Stanley Christodoulou), all in favor of Maidana.
It was the win Maidana wanted since turning pro in 2004. He parlayed that victory into not one, but two pay-per-view fights with Floyd Mayweather in 2014. Maidana lost his belt in the first fight by majority decision after 12 rounds. After the second fight, which Floyd won by unanimous decision, Maidana all but disappeared.
There were occasional sightings. Maidana looked happy. Surrounded by friends and family, he looked fulfilled. He also looked overweight. Maidana is not the first fighter to gain weight between fights, nor will he be the last. Maidana may be living large, but he never retired, and he may be plotting his return.
“I never said that I was retiring,” said Maidana, “but I have no idea if I’m going to return. I still don’t know what I’ll do.”
Those losses to Mayweather shouldn’t spoil the party. Those losses to Mayweather made the party possible. Maidana can come back if he wants. Eat right. Return to the gym. Start sparring. That fighting heart will start beating again. Maidana may not be the stylist’s stylist, but he can fight with the best of them in a stacked welterweight division.
Special thanks to Elisinio Castillo and BoxingScene.com.
This article was penned by the author who is not related to the WBA and the statements, expressions or opinions referenced herein are that of the author alone and not the WBA.
