Jorge Linares – Is “The Golden Boy” Stuck Between Weights?

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By Tyler “The Miracle Man” White

After Jorge Linares’ shock defeat to Pablo Cesar Cano this past weekend, the question arises as to whether Linares will be able to withstand the demands of the 140lb weight division.

Down at 135lbs, Linares was an animal, only losing on 3 occasions; one loss belonging to the likes of Vasyl Lomachenko, after the Venezuelan dropped him earlier on in their highly competitive fight.

Before his reign as a Lightweight champion though, Linares also boxed at Super Bantamweight, Featherweight and Super Featherweight, showing that at 140lbs, he is unlikely to be the force he was at the lighter weights.

Despite this, Linares still packs a pop in his punches and possesses World class skills, but against Cano he was caught off guard and even admitted himself that he was surprised at the power which his naturally heavier opponent possessed.

It would seem that Linares now finds it too hard to make 135lbs, which at the age of 33 is hardly a surprise, however, the result from his first fight at 140lbs shows that he may have difficulty adjusting to the increase in his opponents’ punching power.

For a fighter like Linares, what he’s in, is a very awkward position and whilst he’s a talented and skilful boxer, the physicality’s of weight classes these days are likely to prove a tremendous challenge.

I would say that Linares is a fighter that is stuck between weight classes and for that reason it will be difficult to plan out the best way/route for him to go next.

As a 3 weight World champion, Linares doesn’t necessarily need to do any more in his career to cement his legacy, but I can sense that on a personal level he still wants to achieve more or else he’d have hung up the gloves by now!

In which weight class does Linares belong? Does he even need to carry on fighting?

Whatever the answer to these two questions, there’s no doubt that Linares has been a fantastic fighter and entertainer over the years…

Personally though, I’d like to see him fight again at 140lbs and see how he comes through it, as I’m almost certain there’s still some “life in the old dog” yet to come!

Check out Tyler “The Miracle Man” White who is part of a new podcast called “British Boxing Talk” on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

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