It appeared that the setting could not have been better on that final day of May, when 26-year-old Alfredo Angulo seemed to be on the verge of a transitional moment in his young professional boxing career. For not only did the 154-pounder boast a spotless record at 15-0 with 12 knockouts, but the Mexicali, Mexico, native had steamrolled his way through 11 consecutive knockouts entering that junior middleweight bout at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla.
Angulo's opponent was Kermit Cintron, an ex-welterweight (147 pounds) champion who was just two bouts removed from a sixth-round knockout loss to former titlist Antonio Margarito.
As a former sparring partner for Margarito -- who owns two KO victories over Cintron -- Angulo was simply looking to pick up where Margarito had left off.
But things didn't go according to plan for Angulo, who was out-boxed on the way to losing a unanimous decision by identical scores of 116-112 on all three judges cards.
"I didn't cut off the ring in the Cintron fight. That is usually one of my assets, and I didn't do that against Cintron," said Angulo. "I didn't pursue him enough and wasn't as aggressive as I usually am."
Angulo was later discovered to have had a stomach flu during the days leading up to the Cintron fight.
Angulo (16-1, 13 KOs) has since rebounded with a second-round stoppage of Gabriel Rosado on Aug. 7 -- four days before his 27th birthday.
"I know that I was sick, so the Cintron fight is in the past. I'm over it," said Angulo. "I don't feel as if I have to prove myself any further. I have been moving forward from there."
Angulo will be after yet another victory at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn., on Saturday night, when he takes on Harry Joe Yorgey (22-0-1, 10 KOs) of Bridgeport, PA.,n for the WBO's interim junior middleweight title.
"Yorgey is a good, strong fighter. He likes to mix it up and fight. He will fight you for the whole round, every round, for 12 rounds," said Angulo, adding that he was sparring as much as 12 hard rounds as far back as two weeks ago.
"I'm prepared to go hard and to fight all the way for the full 12 rounds," said Angulo. "I don't have any predictions, but it will be a good fight for the fans, because I'm a fighter who comes forward."
Angulo-Yorgey will take place on the undercard of a light heavyweight (175) matchup between Chad Dawson (28-0, 17 KOs) and Glen Johnson (49-12-2, 33 KOs), in defense of Dawson's IBO crown in a bout that is for the WBC's interim title.
The fights will be televised on HBO.
Angulo's preparation has involved moving from his residence in Coachella, Calif., into the Wayne, N.J., home of promoter Gary Shaw, where he has trained under the watchful eyes of Clemente Medina mostly at the nearby LA Fitness Center.
"I came early to spend some time here with Papa Gary [Shaw]. I want my body to get acclimated to the weather because it is a lot colder than what I'm used to, especially in November," said Angulo.
"I've never had a problem reaching the weight," he added, "but I wanted to get accustomed to the weather and the time difference" between the East and West Coast.
In March, Yorgey scored a ninth-round knockout of Ronald Hearns, who entered their bout with a record of 21-0 and 17 knockouts.
In Yorgey, Angulo will yet again be facing a fighter with solid boxing skills.
"I have definitely been working on my defense. I've been moving my head more so that the opponent doesn't have as much contact with me. I'm hoping to throw more of the harder punches," said Angulo.
"I'm going to go back to my usual style on this one. I am hoping the fight is going to be dynamic, because he throws a lot of combination punches and so do I. I am hoping that it will be pleasing to the crowd."
