Charly Suarez and his team are already sounding like winners a little over a month before the shot at the World Boxing Organization (WBO) super-featherweight crown in the United States.
From the fighter to his chief trainer Delfin Boholst, chief handler Luis “Chavit” Singson and camp coordinator Ricky Navalta, everyone is speaking the language of victory.
Suarez challenges defending champion Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete of Mexico on 10 May at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California.
“I am training long and hard for this. Won’t let this slip away. I am going to take it,” Suarez said during Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex that was graced by Philippine Sports Commission chairperson Richard Bachmann.
The heavy underdog in the scheduled 12-rounder, Suarez swears the Navarrete fight will pave the way for a series of big bouts.
“I am not going to allow this to be my last big fight,” added Suarez, who will be gunning for his first crack at a world title at 36 years of age.
The 30-year-Navarrete’s resume is packed wins over big names. He has a 39-2-1 win-loss-draw card with 32 knockouts and stopped all his four Filipino foes, including two in world championship matches.
But Singson has faith and confidence that Suarez, unbeaten in 18 fights with ten knockouts, can get the job done.
“Charly has been studying Navarrete ever since. I am very confident he’s got a big chance,” said Singson, who has promised Suarez of a hefty cash reward if he returns home holding Navarrete’s head.
Boholst is also oozing with optimism that Suarez, his longtime buddy when they were still amateurs, has more than what it takes to stun the boxing world next month.
“I believe that Navarrete’s going to get hurt once he gets a taste of Charly’s punches,” Boholst said, citing Navarrete’s willingness to get hit as well as his being knocked down by Liam Wilson of Australia in 2023.
Filipino-American Ricky Navalta, handpicked by Singson to represent Suarez in negotiations with Top Rank, is even bolder with his assessment.
“It’s not a matter of if (Suarez wins), but a matter of when,” Navalta, adding that Team Suarez is leaving for the US on 16 April.
Navalta said he has arranged everything Suarez would need the moment they arrive in America next week.
“They’ll be setting up camp in Las Vegas before proceeding to San Diego,” he said.
Singson won’t make the trip and watch Suarez collide with Navarrete since he will be attending to the needs of friends in the country during the elections on 12 May.
But he has one simple instruction.
“Win at all cost.”