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Derrick James assured Ismael Salas and any other doubter that Errol Spence Jr. is indeed the same fighter that beat Shawn Porter in September 2019.
Yordenis Ugas’ trainer stated during the WBA “super” welterweight champion’s open workout Wednesday that the Spence he watched unanimously out-point Danny Garcia in December 2020 “wasn’t the same” as the Spence that dropped Porter in the 11th round and beat him by split decision 2½ years ago at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Spence suffered various injuries in a one-car accident less than two weeks after he topped Porter and nearly two years later underwent surgery to repair a torn left retina last August.
Spence will fight for the first time April 16 since the southpaw’s left eye was surgically repaired seven months ago. Though he has fought only once in the 30 months since his victory over Porter in their 12-round welterweight title unification fight, oddsmakers have installed Spence as almost a 4-1 favorite to defeat Ugas in their own 147-pound championship unification match.
James, Spence’s longtime trainer, has seen the same ferocious fighter in sparring since mid-January that he guided toward winning the IBF and WBC welterweight titles against then-unbeaten Kell Brook and Porter, respectively. His fighter’s left eye isn’t even something they’ve discussed while preparing to square off against Ugas.
“It’s great,” Spence told Premier Boxing Champions’ Ray Flores during Spence’s open workout Thursday in Dallas. “We haven’t even thought about it. I mean, it’s not even an issue.”
Dallas’ James doesn’t agree, either, with Salas’ assessment of how Spence performed while defeating Philadelphia’s Garcia (36-3, 21 KOs) by unanimous decision, in contrast to how he looked when he opposed Porter (31-4-1, 17 KOs).
“I think that you just see a different fight style,” James said. “I mean, different strategy, different game plan for a different fighter. And at the same time, that’s all it is. I mean, it wasn’t even about [being different from the car accident]. He’s OK. He’s good.”
Spence (27-0, 21 KOs), of DeSoto, Texas, will end a 16-month layoff when he faces Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs), who replaced Spence on 11 days’ notice and upset Manny Pacquiao by unanimous decision in their 12-rounder August 21 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. James hasn’t noticed any ring rust during camp, at least in part because Spence nearly completed a training camp for the Pacquiao bout before his retina tear was detected during a pre-fight eye exam in Nevada.
“It’s been great,” James said. “Man, he’s been working hard. He’s been looking very strong. Had some very physical, very quick, very sharp sparring partners to keep him on his toes. And if he’s not coming 100 percent, they gonna let him know it. But he’s been really well.”
Showtime Pay-Per-View will distribute the 12-round bout between Spence, 32, and Ugas, 35, as the main event of a four-fight telecast from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.