Jose ‘Rayo’ Valenzuela’s trainer, Robert Garcia, says he didn’t have a rematch clause for his voluntary title defense of his IBF light welterweight belt against Gary Antuanne Russell last Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Rayo lost the fight by a wide 12-round unanimous decision by the scores 119-109, 119-109 and 120-108. Robert Garcia states that Valenzuela (14-3, 9 KOs) said he was told that he couldn’t have a rematch clause for the fight. He had no choice but to accept the fight with Russell without a rematch clause.
The “Him or Nobody” Demand
Robert says that Rayo told him that Russell was the only fight that was going to be offered to him, saying, ‘It’s him or nobody else.‘ In hindsight, Valenzuela shouldn’t have taken the fight with Russell unless the money was out of this world good.
“It was one of those nights where it wasn’t his night. He couldn’t let go and couldn’t get off. No excuses. Russell came out in a beast mode, kept going, kept throwing punches, and didn’t let Rayo adjust,” said trainer Robert Garcia to YSM Sports Media, reflecting on his fighter, former IBF light welterweight champion Jose ‘Rayo’ Valenzuela’s loss to Gary Russell last Saturday night.
“He didn’t let Rayo figure him out. [Antuanne Russell] kept coming from round one until the end,” Robert continued. “He never stopped throwing punches and never stopped doing his job.”
The movement that Valenzuela had used so well in his wins over Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz and Chris Colbert wasn’t there last Saturday against Russell. However, with the way he was cutting off the ring, countering and dominating from the outside, it probably wouldn’t have mattered if Rayo had moved more.
No Rematch Clause
“When Rayo got that fight, we told him, ‘Why that fight, Rayo?’ The Russells have always been great fighters, always win by knockout. It could have been somebody else, and they told me, ‘It’s him or nobody else.’ He said, they forced him to fight him. Then he said, ‘They didn’t even let me get a rematch clause.’
“You’re the champion, it’s your voluntary title defense. He should have been allowed to get a rematch clause, everybody does. Pitbull had a rematch clause. With Rayo, he told us, ‘I’m not allowed to get a rematch clause.’ He signed the contract. There’s nothing we can do now.
“He should have at least had a rematch clause in the contract, but they told him, ‘Nope, there’s no rematch clause.’ Now, there’s nothing we can do. Bounce back and come back, maybe start all over again,” said Garcia about Rayo Valenzuela.
Last Updated on 03/06/2025
