Xander Zayas gets the Puerto Rican Day fight he’s been dreaming of: ‘Means the world’
Xander Zayas doesn’t hide the excitement in his youthful voice as he talks about when and where his next fight will be.
Puerto Rican Day Weekend and Madison Square Garden, a time and an arena that — for a young boxing fan who grew up in San Juan before moving to Florida — means everything.
One of boxing’s most acclaimed prospects, 20-year-old Zayas (15-0), was due to fight at MSG on the same date last year but was forced to pull out due to illness.
A year later, his lifelong vision becomes reality.
Zayas fights Ronald Cruz (18-2-1) in a 10-round junior middleweight bout as the co-main event on Top Rank’s Josh Taylor-Teofimo Lopez card (10 p.m., ESPN) at the Theater at Madison Square Garden Saturday night – hours before the Puerto Rican Day Parade sweeps through town.
“It means the world to me,” Zayas told the Post. “It’s an opportunity that I’ve always wanted, that I’ve always dreamed of. The biggest names in Puerto Rican boxing fought over Puerto Rican Day weekend – Tito Trinidad, Miguel Cotto. And now I’m going to fight for the Miguel Cotto prize, it’s even more meaningful, more exciting. I’m just blessed. I am blessed for the opportunity the company is giving me. I’m ready to take advantage…
“They brought a lot of glory to Puerto Rico. I can’t wait to carry that weight they left behind and carry that torch.
The Miguel Cotto Award was introduced last year and given to the winner of each main event on Puerto Rican Day weekend to honor the legendary former champion.
Saturday night’s fight will already be Zayas’ fourth fight in New York at MSG.
Although he does not live in the city, Zayas feels connected to both the vibrant local Puerto Rican community and the arena where he saw so many of his heroes become immortal.
And he wants to keep coming back, at least until he reaches similar heights.
“I can’t wait to make this my second home like Tito Trinidad, Miguel Cotto and all those guys did,” Zayas said. “I get excited every time they call me to fight at Madison Square Garden. It’s something special, every time there.
“I look forward to one day headlining a show at MSG or the theatre. And sell it. I feel like for years to come, I’ll be that name that sells MSG every time I step into that arena. I love the atmosphere, I love the energy the people bring to New York, and I can’t wait to be the next face of MSG boxing.
Zayas is definitely on the right track.
Despite his age, the junior middleweight phenom has already started to slip into the top 15 of some rankings — No. 5 in the WBO and No. 11 in the WBA.
He signed with Top Rank at just 16 after becoming one of the world’s top amateurs, becoming the youngest fighter to ever sign with the promotion.
In 2021, Zayas was named Prospect of the Year by ESPN.
Matured beyond his years inside and outside the ring, Zayas combines quick – and sometimes relentless – punching ability with supreme in-ring IQ to dispatch his opponents, whose quality continues to grow. increase.
“The way I can adjust inside and outside the ring. The way I behave. And how I can keep getting better with every fight. I feel like that’s what separated me from all the other young people is that the company believes in me, and at the same time they see every time I’m in it [the ring]I’m showing something even better,” Zayas said.
Each subsequent fight figures as a progression match for Zayas, who has so far passed each new test in dominant fashion.
And with each victory, Zayas continues to draw more attention to him.
Ahead of his last fight, a unanimous decision win over Alexis Salazar last December, Zayas was led into the ring by Mets closest Edwin Diaz, another Puerto Rican star whom Zayas calls a friend.
Diaz plans to be there Saturday night.
In recent weeks, Zayas has been posting videos of himself working out with another pal, Puerto Rican hip-hop star Myke Towers.
Zayas plans to have another celebrity sidekick on Saturday, though he’s keeping the name a surprise.
The biggest challenge at the moment, it seems, is balancing his ambition to fight at his best and grow his name while growing at the right speed.
Saturday’s fight will not only be a major step in his rise, but it will be a confirmation of Zayas’ stature in the sport.
But beyond being another test to pass, the game is also a dream come true.
“I feel like I’m not even close to my peak,” Zayas said. “I’m not even close to my strength as a man. What I’m going to become, when I get to that age, when I get to that age, it’s going to scare a lot of people.
“I’m going to show why my name will be in the boxing history books.”
