IF ever a line summed up a fighter, it was Subriel Matias’ declaration during the week that merely knocking down Liam Paro would not satisfy his blood lust. Instead, he wants to make the Aussie suffer.
As much as we like to shake our heads in disgust or tut disapprovingly at such a statement, just like when Prince Naseem swaggered to a ring surrounded by graveyards and zombies or when Sergey Kovalev openly mocked his victim’s distraught children sitting ringside, there’s a quietly awkward enjoyment to be had when it comes to the unapologetic nature of a raw fighting machine.
Perhaps, given his history, Matias should “know better” when making such comments. But this is a tough man in a tough sport.
Standing in the opposite corner, arriving with a 24-0 (15 KOs) record, IBF super-lightweight title challenger Liam Paro is under no illusions as to what it will take to dethrone a man who has beaten up, broken down and stolen the soul of his last five fistic casualties.
“I am a fighter, and fighter’s fight, and I’m proving that, not only by fighting the guy that’s the most avoided in the division, but going to his backyard to do so,” said Paro.
“I’ve always said I’ll fight anyone and I’m showing that. There’s a world title on the line and that’s what you dream about as a kid, winning world titles, and what better way to do it than to take out the number one guy in the division. I didn’t want to weave my way around the easy way, you want to beat the best and there’s no better way.”
Putting full faith in his corner team -headed by trainer Alfie Di Carlo- Paro reckons a solid camp, rigorous routines and a keen tactical mind will get him through the night, with a title strapped around his waist at the conclusion.
Liam Paro – Chris Hyde/Getty Images
“It’s a world title fight and you shouldn’t expect anything but a hard night’s work, I’m ready for a 12 round war. I’m going to give this 110 per cent and I’m ready for anything that he throws at me. The IBF is a great organization and I believe it’ll be a fair shot, so it’ll be up to me and him, and who wants it the most on the night. If that’s the case and it goes 12 rounds, I’ve got the boxing ability to be ahead on the cards.”
Getting ahead on the cards is one thing. Staying there is another entirely. Petros Ananyan managed it in early 2020 when he inflicted Matias’ single blemish on a 21-fight slate. The other 20 wins have all been within the distance, including a revenge trouncing of Ananyan two years later when Subriel had got himself back together. As if Paro hasn’t received enough warning already, Matias’ concise wordage around his Puerto Rican homecoming has strayed into the usual territory.
“During camp I feel like an animal trapped in a cage,” stated Matias. “The confinement, the day-to-day nuisances, being away from my family. This creates a monster that grows inside me during camp. I leave camp as an animal, in search of my prey, and this time, that’s Liam Paro.
“I’m preparing myself to take damage, and to inflict damage. They want to take away the beans from my family, and we can’t allow that. We’ve put in a lot of effort to be here, and I cannot lose everything in one day. That’s why I have to make these sacrifices,” continued Matias, getting darker by the second.
“Many say I am crazy, but I like it, one day they will open their eyes and I will be unified champion. They will have to give it to me.”
Even though Matias appears to be a brute-force world champion on paper, the 32-year-old’s approach is more nuanced than that.
His opponent can box and bang a bit, too. A confident southpaw with a decent dig, Paro annihalated domestic rival Brock Jarvis in a single round and scored a good sixth-round stoppage win over the talented yet erratic Montana Love in late 2023.
If he can step into a hostile environment, silence the crowd and grab hold of Subriel Matias’ 140-pound crown, effectively derailing the freight train momentum of one of boxing’s bonafide beasts, then the Queensland man deserves every credit.
Throwing bombs at Matias with intensity and activity garnered early success for the likes of Jeremias Ponce, Batyrzhan Jukembayev and Shohjahon Ergashev. Keeping the boogeyman at bay for an extended period of time is a much more difficult task.
Another difficult task is creating the kind of buzz and hype needed to capture the attention span of a boxing public wired up to a Las Vegas pay-per-view event going on around the same time. If one man can rival Gervonta Davis for a spine-tingling finish, it’s Subriel Matias. Just don’t expect any apologies after he does it.
