“Perro” Faces Freddy Hernandez on PBC Card
“El Perro” is back.
Alfredo “Perro” Angulo makes his return to the ring on August 27 on the Premier Boxing Champions’ card taking place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The Spike TV event is promoted by TGB Promotions. The fight weekend will showcase Friday’s Bellator 160 and Saturday’s boxing broadcast.
I recently caught up with the Mexicali warrior at the Ten Goose Boxing Gym in Van Nuys where Angulo and undercard boxer Terrell Gausha held a media workout in anticipation of Saturday’s fight night in Orange County. The main event will be a matchup between Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero and David Emanuel Peralta. This Spike Sports Presents: Bellator (Henderson vs. Pitbull) & PBC special event should make for an exciting back-to-back showcase for the athletes. Angulo is happy to be on this card and ready to make his comeback.
It has been one year since Alfredo has faced off in a professional bout. The 2012 Olympian was a fan favorite with his come-forward, aggressive style. The brawler would often wear a thick dog collar around his neck while bringing along live canine in his walkouts. After turning pro in 2005, Angulo sports a 24-5 record with 20 knockouts. In his comeback match, he will lock horns with blood-and-guts brawler Freddy “El Riel” Hernandez (33-8, 22 KOs) in this SoCal clash slated for 10 rounds.
After working with various trainers and working to bounce back from 5 defeats, the slugger is opting for a fresh start and hoping to prove he still has some gas left in the tank. In this comeback fight, Angulo has famed trainer Romulo Quirarte in his corner.
The fighter says he’s very happy training with Quirarte. “He knows exactly my style and what works with my body,” Angulo tells me. “He’s really good and I’m training really, really hard.”
He has a new team, a new wife Cecilia and a brand new baby on the way. Life is good for the former champ.
But the road has been a rocky one for the Baja boxer. He has held WBC and WBO titles and was also a 2004 Mexican Olympian. But the bumps along the way include an immigration detention, switches in trainers (including Clemente Medina, Ignacio Beristain and Virgil Hunter), and losses to Canelo Alvarez, Erislandy Lara, James Kirkland and Kermit Cintron. But boxing is in his blood and being a prizefighter is what he knows–and now he plans to shake off the critics who have counted him out.
After shaking off the inevitable ring rust of the one-year layoff, “El Perro” hopes to climb up the ranks in his current weight class. A fresh start, another new beginning. Whether he’s been humbled by the peaks and valleys during his career, Angulo remains confident that he’s still got the power in his hands and the drive and determination to continue.
I’ve known Alfredo for several years now and I have to say this is the happiest I’ve ever seen him. Known for his fierce demeanor, Angulo always let his fists do the talking inside the ropes. This 2016 Alfredo Angulo still trains just as hard but also takes time to joke around and take time to greet everyone at the media workout with TGB’s Tom Brown and Brittany Goossen Brown and Ten Goose’s Ricky Funez also in the gym. He thanked everybody for their support through the years.
Up on the canvas, the puncher, 34, shadow boxed and jumped rope in the ring with coach Quirarte looking on. Also in attendance was Alfredo’s wife, Ceci. The petite beauty is pregnant with their first child, a baby girl due in November. Angulo also has a daughter, Rebeca, 10. Alfredo was ear-to-ear smiles while fielding questions from the media during the workout which happened to land on his birthday (August 11). Alfredo sporting very long locks these days, growing out hair to donate to charity once again. Fighting a super middleweight, he wants to keep fighting, adding more victories to his ledger.
He said he’s looking forward to the August 27 collision versus Freddy Hernandez. This scrap could be an all-offense war, a real dog fight with neither gladiator backing down. Freddy always gives his all and this will not be a boring fight. Angulo’s loyal–and loud–”dog pound” squad will be there to cheer on their hero in this super middleweight contest.
“After a one-year rest, I feel very strong,” Alfredo commented to me. “I want to thank everyone for their support and I’m gonna give a really good show to my fans on August 27!”
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Photo by Michele Chong