Carl Peñalosa Jr. makes it a point to check his smartphone every day to see if there are uploaded fight videos of Gustavo Perez, the Mexican fighter tapped to challenge International Boxing Federation (IBF) minimumweight champion Pedro Taduran.
So far, Carl has encountered little success.
“Just one fight (on YouTube),” Carl told me Thursday from their Las Vegas training camp.
Taduran faces Perez one month from now — on 3 April — at the Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, California.
Not that Carl and the rest of Taduran’s camp are starting to panic.
Carl said Perez is a worthy foe but is somehow suited for Taduran’s ultra-aggressive style.
“He’s a mover but not much, fundamentally sound. But he is right there in front of you and not the type to run away,” Carl said after reviewing Perez’s bout with Anthony Olascuaga, now the reigning World Boxing Organization flyweight titleholder.
Carl arrived in Las Vegas last Sunday to preside over the final month of Taduran’s training.
Taduran’s clash with Perez will be his third defense of the IBF 105-pound crown he had won in July 2024 in Japan.
To make sure Taduran toughens up further, Gibbons is bringing in a strength coach any day.
“Everything they need are being provided for, groceries and vitamins. Everything,” Gibbons added.
If victorious, Gibbons will push for a unification match with Oscar Collazo, who defends his World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Association belts against Jesus Haro on 14 March in Anaheim, California.
Another option is a clash with the other Filipino titlist in the division — World Boxing Council ruler Melvin Jerusalem.
But Jerusalem has to hurdle past his next fight — the fourth defense against one-time victim Siyakholwa Kuse of South Africa — on 16 May in Johannesburg.
Meanwhile, Carl is still on the lookout for fights of Perez and any tips would make a long way in his strategic planning.