By Mario Ortega Jr. –
From the famed fighting clan centered in Gilroy, California, Jessie James Guerrero will return to the ring this coming Saturday night for the first time since beginning his own family with the birth of his daughter Luna this past June. With the newfound inspiration that comes with being a father, Guerrero aims to advance his career as he takes on Bryan Santiago in a six-round super flyweight attraction as part of the Gabriel Flores Jr.-Dennis Contreras card streamed by BLK Prime from the Adventist Health Arena in Stockton, California.
Guerrero (4-0-2, 4 KOs) was last in the ring in March, scoring a second-round stoppage of Jose Rodriguez Montemayor at the same venue in Stockton. Emotions ran high, as the fight took place on Guerrero’s expecting girlfriend Ariel’s birthday.
“When I was walking to the ring, I had a little emotion before I was coming out of the tunnel,” recalls Guerrero. “I was just thinking about having a baby and everything. It just hit me. But I was able to hold my emotion once I saw the crowd. Everything changed and I got locked in.”
With the added pressure and motivation to put on a performance, Guerrero did just that. Guerrero would find Rodriguez Montemayor’s sweet spot, dropping him three times in the second round with a punishing body attack to force the stoppage.
“He was a good opponent,” Guerrero says of Rodriguez Montemayor. “It was a good fight. Everything I did in the training camp is what I displayed that night. Everything worked out perfect and everything was set in place.”
Though the fight only lasted into the second round in March, it was Guerrero’s first scheduled six-rounder. Guerrero, whose pro ledger fails to include two bouts he won as a 16-year-old in Tijuana, Mexico that have yet to be recognized by official record keeper BoxRec, has been moved along by his team, which includes his grandfather Ruben Sr., his dad Ruben Jr. and his uncle, multi-time world champion Robert Guerrero.
“We all work together and make the best decisions,” says Ruben Sr. of the family operation, which includes five active professional fighting Guerreros, including Robert, who is eyeing a return in the near future, and many respected trainers. “We are a family. That is the way we prepare the boys, as one big family. We take care of my grandsons. My sons learned a lot from me and we are doing the best we can for them. It is their turn now.”
After a quick return to the ring was ruled out by the California State Athletic Commission, Guerrero turned his focus to his blossoming family as Ariel’s pregnancy wound down. Luna, who was due on Father’s Day, arrived a week earlier. As any parent knows, everything changes once you bring your first born into the world.
“It is going good,” explains Guerrero of his new family life. “There are just a lot of things to look out for now. It’s not just get up and go. We have to work around our schedules. She is four months old now. It has not been as hard as we thought it would be. We have family and everybody helps out. I stay with her for four or five hours, just me and her, while my lady goes to work. We have our family time together and then I go to the gym and they have their time together.”
There are so few things in the world that could come close to motivating a man as much as their newborn daughter. “It has put a spark in me,” says Guerrero. “It made me realize that I got a little one to provide for and that is going to look up to me. I know that I want to do the best for her, whatever it takes. It is a lot of emotions, but I am handling it. As long as my family is healthy and I stay healthy, that is all that matters.”
Having adjusted to family life, Guerrero can resume focus on his promising pro career. For many fighters competing in the lower weight divisions, any time away from the gym could be problematic, as every pound gained has added significance when you need to make 115 or 112-pounds on fight night. Guerrero, still a young pro, seems to have a strong hold on what he needs to do to be on point when it is time to hit the scales on Friday.
“At first, about a year or two ago, it was easy,” says Guerrero of his ability to rebound from time away from the ring and make weight. “But as I’ve been getting older and my body is changing, I’ve noticed that I go up a few more pounds than I usually had. But it is easy for me to cut the weight. I have a fast metabolism and I do it the smart way. I don’t do it like some of these guys that do it, the last week, where they feel weak. That is not a good way to cut weight at the last minute. I start about two-and-a-half weeks out from the fight. Then I just have the last little bit to cut to get the last pound when it is time to make weight.”
Guerrero will be dropping down from his last fight in March for his second scheduled six-rounder, this time at the 112-pound flyweight division against Bryan Santiago (1-1-1) of Donna, Texas.
“He has three fights,” explains Guerrero, as Santiago’s listed record fails to include a July 27th bout in Harlingen, Texas. “I found a third fight. He lost his first fight, won his second fight and then he rematched the kid again and got a draw. I did my research.”
Guerrero, who will be entering the ring for his ninth pro fight when including the two victories he had in Tijuana not as of yet officially recognized, will have the edge in ring time over Santiago and also feels he has an ace in the hole helping him prepare for his opponent’s style.
“He’s 21 and I am 20, so he is a year older than me, but I feel like I am the more experienced one coming into the fight. This is my ninth pro fight and he only has three. I think this is his first time being in a six-rounder too. He’s a come forward, pressure fighter. But one of the good things is that one of my buddies, one of the pros in our gym, is a pressure fighter too, so I have been working with him for the whole month.”
The fighter in camp with Guerrero, helping him prepare most for Santiago, is Angel Luis Cavazos, a bantamweight that won his professional debut on September 21st by first round knockout in Tijuana.
“Angel fights exactly like [Santiago,”] explains Guerrero. “He comes forward and he’s a pressure fighter. After I saw the video on him, I knew exactly who I needed to work with. And Angel was already getting ready for his pro debut too, so he was in shape and in camp. He started his three weeks before I started my camp.”
With all the motivation in the world to succeed now, Guerrero is ready to show the world the type of fighter he has become on Saturday night in Stockton.
“It is not going to be the same as the last time I was in Stockton,” says Guerero. “Last time I was a young teenager and now I am a father, so it is completely different. It is going to be a whole different performance, a whole different Jessie James.”
Tickets for the event, promoted by G-Squad Entertainment, are available online at gsquadent.com
Photo by Trini Guerrero/@trinigphotography
Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at [email protected]
